Please help identify a song:

Female singer, big-band 40's sound, slow 4/4 ballad, starts with:


       
-------------Cmaj7--------------|-----------Am7------|Gmaj7-|   ???  
|  D-5   |  ???

Bb     B----------------------  B   A   G   F#  E Eb D----- D Db C Db
F#-------E F# E D Db B


What's new?

       up                           down            triplet

(you may need to unwrap the 1st two lines)

Hello chris,

This is one of the simplest and loveliest of the great torch songs,
"What's New?", written and copywrited by Johnny Burke and Bob Haggart
in 1939.

It was one of my mother's favorite "sing in the shower" songs, so I
recognized it immediately.

Originally made famous by Bob Crosby's Bobcats, the most famous
version for a long time was Frank Sinatra's, arranged by Nelson
Riddle, and recorded in 1958.

I believe the version you're asking about is Linda Ronstadt's, from
her collaborative effort with Nelson Riddle in 1983, which culminated
in the fabulous collection of jazz ballads "What's New: Linda Ronstadt
and the Nelson Riddle Orchestra." It's a lush, torchy number that
opens the CD.

This first collaboration was so successful that Ronstadt and Riddle
expanded on it, releasing a double CD of jazz standards, "'Round
Midnight," in 1990.

A clip of the song is available at Barnes and Noble:
http://music.barnesandnoble.com/search/product.asp?userid=281OPKSTGM&WRK=71628

Ronstadt's website has the complete lyrics
http://www.ronstadt-linda.com/whatsnew.htm

The song appears in a multitude of songbooks including "Nelson Riddle:
'Round Midnight," which I found at Sheet Music Plus:
http://www.sheetmusicplus.com/store/smp_searchresults.html?cart=32363419401712484&searchtitle=Sheet%20Music&snum=50


Here are some other sources and related links for you:

The Bob Crosby Bob Cats
http://www.bobcrosbybobcats.com/record.asp

Spirit of Sinatra Website
http://www.spiritofsinatra.com/pages/Lyrics/w/Whats_New.htm

Clip of Sinatra's version, from a CD called "Only the Lonely" on
Barnes and Noble's site:
http://music.barnesandnoble.com/search/product.asp?userid=281OPKSTGM&ean=724349475625

Search strategy:

song title "What's New?"

but my personal experience with the song helped me find it faster.


Thanks for reminding me of this beautiful song!  I enjoyed finding out
more about it.

authorshelper

Excellent! I was hoping someone was familiar with it and would enjoy
the search. A lot of great material came out of that era. What a song
to sing in the shower!
Chris