George Gershwin, music · Ira Gershwin, lyrics · Introduced by Walter Catlett in the Broadway musical Lady, Be Good!
Oh, Lady Be Good! is a 1924 George and Ira Gershwin song from the Broadway musical Lady, Be Good! Players love its plain G-major changes, short bridge and two-bar tag ending. You will hear it everywhere swing is played, from jam sessions to big band books.
G major · 32 bars · A A B A form · how it works
The path starts with the 1936 Jones-Smith side and Ella Fitzgerald's hit vocal, then moves through Slim & Slam, Charlie Parker's live bebop, two piano trios, a live guitar record and Zoot Sims's tenor. Each step gives you one thing to hear and one thing to try.
8 recordings, 1936 to 1993 · Play all 8 on YouTube ↗
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Jones-Smith Incorporated · 1936
Vocalion 3459
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Ella Fitzgerald with Bob Haggart and His Orchestra · 1947 · Vocal, Swing
“Oh, Lady Be Good”, Flying Home / Oh, Lady Be Good
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Slim & Slam · 1938
“Oh, Lady Be Good (Previously Unissued Performance)”, The Groove Juice Special
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Charlie Parker with Jazz at the Philharmonic · 1946 · Swing
“Oh, Lady, Be Good!”, Norman Granz' Jazz at the Philharmonic: How High the Moon
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Oscar Peterson Trio · 1952 · Bebop
“Oh, Lady Be Good”, Oscar Peterson Plays George Gershwin
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Kenny Burrell with Art Blakey · 1959 · Hard bop
“Lady Be Good (Live At Five Spot Café, 1959)”, On View at the Five Spot Cafe
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Zoot Sims · 1975 · Swing
“Oh, Lady Be Good”, Zoot Sims and the Gershwin Brothers
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Tommy Flanagan Trio · 1993 · Bebop, Swing
“Oh, Lady Be Good”, Lady Be Good ... For Ella
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2 more, from 1959 to 1963. Tap a cover to play it here.
1959 · Vocal
“Oh, Lady Be Good”, Ella Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin Song Book
Twelve years after her hit single, Ella remade the song as a ballad arranged by Nelson Riddle for her Gershwin songbook album.
1963
“Oh, Lady Be Good”, Guitar/Guitar
A two-guitar version from Charlie Byrd and Herb Ellis's Columbia album Guitar/Guitar.
The chorus is 32 bars, AABA: two A sections that differ only in their last two bars, an eight-bar bridge and a last A. Everything stays in G major. A opens on Gmaj7, moves to C7 and back, then runs Bm7 E7 and Am7 D7 before landing on G6; the first ending turns it around with Am7 D7, and the second ending aims Dm7 G7 at the bridge. B starts on Cmaj7, slips past C♯°7 back to Gmaj7, then F♯m7♭5 B7♭9 points at E minor before Em7 A7 and Am7 D7 lead home. The last A repeats the first and closes on the turnaround.
Chart from iReal Pro's Jazz 1460 playlist, contributed by its users.