Blue Gardenia is the title of a

torch song A torch song is a sentimental love song, typically one in which the singer laments an unrequited or lost love, either where one party is oblivious to the existence of the other, where one party has moved on, or where a romantic affair has affecte ...

composed by Lester Lee and Bob Russell, for the 1953 movie ''

The Blue Gardenia ''The Blue Gardenia'' is a 1953 American film noir directed by Fritz Lang from a screenplay by Charles Hoffman, based on the novella ''The Gardenia'' by Vera Caspary. The film stars Anne Baxter, Richard Conte, and Ann Sothern. An independent p ...

'' in which a recording of the song serves as a crucial plot point. The song was recorded for ''The Blue Gardenia'' by

Nat King Cole Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's music career began after he dropped out of school at the age of 15, and continued f ...

who also performs the song in the film as a

lounge singer Lounge music is a type of easy listening music popular in the 1950s and 1960s. It may be meant to evoke in the listeners the feeling of being in a place, usually with a tranquil theme, such as a jungle, an island paradise or outer space. The rang ...

. Cole recorded "Blue Gardenia" in a 20 January 1953 session at the

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...

Recording Studio in Hollywood, featuring the

Nelson Riddle Nelson Smock Riddle Jr. (June 1, 1921 – October 6, 1985) was an American arranger, composer, bandleader and orchestrator whose career stretched from the late 1940s to the mid-1980s. He worked with many world-famous vocalists at Capitol Records ...

orchestra. The track was issued as the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

of Cole's number 16 hit, "Can't I".

Dinah Washington recording

"Blue Gardenia" became a

signature song A signature (; from la, signare, "to sign") is a Handwriting, handwritten (and often Stylization, stylized) depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and ...

Dinah Washington Dinah Washington (born Ruth Lee Jones; August 29, 1924 – December 14, 1963) was an American singer and pianist, who has been cited as "the most popular black female recording artist of the 1950s songs". Primarily a jazz vocalist, she performe ...

whose initial recording was made in the 15 March 1955 New York City sessions for the singer's album ''

For Those in Love ''For Those in Love'' is a studio album by American jazz vocalist Dinah Washington with musical arrangements by Quincy Jones. It was originally released by EmArcy Records in June 1955, and was reissued by EmArcy Records in 1991. In popular cultu ...

'' which was produced by

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...

. Washington recorded the song a second time on 15 August 1961 during a session for her album ''I Wanna Be Loved'', which version featured the Quincy Jones Orchestra. The 1955 version was featured in the soundtrack of the 1995 film ''

The Bridges of Madison County ''The Bridges of Madison County'' (also published as ''Love in Black and White'') is a 1992 best-selling romance novel by American writer Robert James Waller that tells the story of a married Italian-American woman (WWII war bride) living on a ...

''.

Other recordings

The song has also been recorded on albums by: *

Helen Merrill Helen Merrill (born Jelena Ana Milcetic; July 21, 1930) is an American jazz vocalist. Her first album, the eponymous 1954 recording '' Helen Merrill'' (with Clifford Brown), was an immediate success and associated her with the first generation ...

(''You've Got a Date With the Blues''/ 1958), *

Johnny Mathis John Royce Mathis (born September 30, 1935) is an American singer of popular music. Starting his career with singles of standard music, he became highly popular as an album artist, with several dozen of his albums achieving gold or platinum s ...

(''Faithfully''/ 1960) *

Gloria Lynne Gloria Lynne (born Gloria Wilson; November 23, 1929 – October 15, 2013), also known as Gloria Alleyne, was an American jazz vocalist with a recording career spanning from 1958 to 2007. Career Lynne was born in Harlem in 1929 to John and Mary W ...

(''Intimate Moments''/ 1965), * Bobby Scott (''Star''/ 1969), *

Bruno Martino Bruno Martino (11 November 1925 – 12 June 2000) was an Italian composer, singer, and pianist. Career Martino learned to play the piano at the age of fourteen. A Jazz fan, he spent the early years of his career performing with European radio an ...

(''I Remember 1945''/ 1973), *

Irene Kral Irene Kral (January 18, 1932 – August 15, 1978) was an American jazz singer who was born to Czechoslovakian parents in Chicago, Illinois and settled in Los Angeles in the early 1960s. She died from breast cancer in Encino, California. Kral's ol ...

(''The Gentle Rain''/ 1977), * Mark Murphy (''Sings the Nat King Cole Songbook Volume Two''/ 1985) *

Audrey Morris Audrey Morris (November 12, 1928 – April 1, 2018) was an American singer and pianist who specialized in jazz ballads. Biography Morris was born on November 12, 1928, in Chicago. Morris grew up on the South Side of Chicago and had classical ...

(''Film Noir''/ 1989), *

Della Griffin Della Griffin (June 12, 1922 – August 9, 2022), also known as Della Simpson, was an American jazz vocalist and drummer. She was a member of two of the first all female R&B groups in the 1950s, The Enchanters and The Dell-Tones. Biography E ...

(''Travelin' Light''/ 1992), *

Diane Schuur Diane Joan Schuur (born December 10, 1953), nicknamed "Deedles", is an American jazz singer and pianist. As of 2015, Schuur had released 23 albums, and had extended her jazz repertoire to include essences of Latin, gospel, pop and country music ...

(''Love Walked In''/ 1995) *

Etta James Jamesetta Hawkins (January 25, 1938 – January 20, 2012), known professionally as Etta James, was an American singer who performed in various genres, including gospel, blues, jazz, R&B, rock and roll, and soul. Starting her career in 1954, sh ...

('' Blue Gardenia''/ 2001 - featuring Dorothy Leatherwood) * Patti Wicks (''Love's Locked Out''/ 2003) * Stephanie Nakasian ('' Thrush Hour: A Study of the Great Ladies of Jazz''/ 2006) * Joanna Pascale ( de) (''Through My Eyes''/ 2008) *

China Moses China Moses (born January 9, 1978, in Los Angeles) is an American singer and television host. Life and career Born in Los Angeles, California, China Moses is the daughter of jazz singer Dee Dee Bridgewater and director Gilbert Moses. She re ...

(vocalist) & Raphaël Lemonnier (pianist) (''This One's For Dinah''/ 2009) *

Branford Marsalis Branford Marsalis (born August 26, 1960) is an American saxophonist The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed inst ...

Quartet with vocalist

Kurt Elling Kurt Elling (born November 2, 1967) is an American jazz singer and songwriter. Born in Chicago, Illinois, and raised in Rockford, Illinois, Rockford, Elling became interested in music through his father, who was Kapellmeister at a Lutheran chur ...

(''Upward Spiral''/ 2016). Diane Marino ("Soul Serenade" 2018) Instrumental versions of ''Blue Gardenia'' have been recorded on albums by

Lee Morgan Edward Lee Morgan (July 10, 1938 – February 19, 1972) was an American jazz trumpeter and composer. One of the key hard bop musicians of the 1960s, Morgan came to prominence in his late teens, recording on John Coltrane's '' Blue Train'' (1 ...

(''

Standards Standard may refer to: Symbols * Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs * Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification Norms, conventions or requirements * Standard (metrology), an object th ...

''/ 1998 release of 1967 recording) *

Dexter Gordon Dexter Gordon (February 27, 1923 – April 25, 1990) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist, composer, bandleader, and actor. He was among the most influential early bebop musicians, which included other greats such as Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gi ...

(''Landslide''/ 1982) *

Ran Blake Ran Blake (born April 20, 1935) is an American pianist, composer, and educator. He is known for his unique style that combines blues, gospel, classical, and film noir influences into an innovative and dark jazz sound. His career spans over 40 rec ...

(''Film Noir''/ 1980). * Charles Davis (''Blue Gardenia''/ 2003).

References

{{authority control Nat King Cole songs Etta James songs Johnny Mathis songs Dinah Washington songs Torch songs 1953 songs Songs written for films Songs with lyrics by Bob Russell (songwriter)