Porgy & Bess was first performed in 1935 and sadly has peaked. Perhaps unsurprisingly, it was popular in the Soviet Union during the Cold War as a display of American repression - the 1980s film White Nights showcased this.. It seems that the Usual Suspects who control popular culture are not subtle enough to line this into their repertoire of anti-American art, but whatever.
This is without doubt the most famous song from that opera, and has been recorded by pretty much everybody - Janis Joplin & The Holding Company may have been the most unexpected of these. Here's Ella Fitzgerald with what approaches the Platonic Ideal performance of the song.
5 comments:
What a gift she had for putting her feelings in her singing. Is there anyone today who can compare?
I really hate to say this, but you do know that there are saltwater fish called Porgies, right? The singular is Porgy. Not gamefish, pretty much the same as the grunts you see everywhere inshore.
That means on any given outing to the right place, you might catch Porgy and Bass.
Or. as Mad Magazine had it back in the day:
"Supper time, and the liver is greasy..."
Kurt
Ahh... Back in the day when black folk actually COULD sing and DID sing VERY WELL!!! Where have all those voices gone?...
A classic sung by a classic!!!
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