Everything about The Way You Look Tonight totally explained
"
The Way You Look Tonight" is a song featured in the film
Swing Time, which won the
Academy Award for Best Original Song in
1936. It was written by
Jerome Kern with lyrics by
Dorothy Fields. Dorothy Fields later remarked that the melody, upon first hearing it, moved her to tears and she was thrilled to provide the lyrics: "The first time Jerry played that melody for me I went out and started to cry. The release absolutely killed me. I couldn't stop, it was so beautiful."
The song was sung by John "Lucky" Garnett (played by
Fred Astaire) while sitting at the piano. Penelope "Penny" Carroll (played by
Ginger Rogers) was busy washing her hair in an adjacent room, and feeling anything but beautiful at the time.
This song was also popularly performed by
Frank Sinatra,
Tony Bennett,
Michael Bublé,
Rod Stewart,
Andy Williams,
Ray Quinn,
Steve Tyrell and as a duet between
Bing Crosby and his wife
Dixie Lee. Jazz pianist
Art Tatum has an instrumental recording in the collection
The Complete Pablo Solo Masterpieces. The song was also performed by
The Lettermen and became a hit for them in
1961 (Billboard #13 pop, #3 easy listening).
Billie Holiday has also recorded this song, in 1936, and it can be found in "The Quintessential Billie Holiday, Vol.2". It was also covered by Chad & Jeremy and Bryan Ferry. The Lettermen's and Chad & Jeremy's versions were slowed-down more romantic-sounding crooning versions, rather than the original dance tempo number from the original film, "Swing Time". The Lettermen version is a(n) MOR modification of a doo-wop/R&B version of the late 1950s version by the Jaguars.
Pianist
Bradley Joseph performs his arrangement of "The Way You Look Tonight" on his 2006 album,
Piano Love Songs. Saxophonist
Johnny Griffin covered this song in the hard bop jazz style on his 1957
A Blowing Session recording. The song also appears in the
Kenneth Branagh film
Peter's Friends. A cover performed by
James Darren also forms the background music for the "Seven-year Montage" in the final episode of, "
What You Leave Behind".
"The Way You Look Tonight" is referenced in
Harold Pinter's play
Old Times, in which two characters recite some of the lines. In the 1942 film
Once Upon a Honeymoon,
Cary Grant says to
Ginger Rogers that he always wants to remember "you just the way you look tonight - er, today", referencing this song - Rogers appeared in the 1936
Swing Time, the film in which the song first appeared. It was featured in the movies
Chinatown,
My Best Friend's Wedding,
Father of the Bride,
Woody Allen's Hannah and Her Sisters,
Peter's Friends and
Kenneth Branagh's version of
Love's Labour's Lost. It also was sung by
Allison Munn in the WB show,
What I Like About You, in the season finale.
Further Information
Get more info on 'The Way You Look Tonight'.
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