"Blue Tango" is an

instrumental An instrumental is a recording normally without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through semantic widening, a broader sense of the word song may refer to inst ...

composition by

Leroy Anderson Leroy Anderson ( ) (June 29, 1908 – May 18, 1975) was an American composer of short, light concert pieces, many of which were introduced by the Boston Pops Orchestra under the direction of Arthur Fiedler. John Williams described him as ...

, written for

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...

in 1951 and published in 1952. It was later turned into a popular song with lyrics by

Mitchell Parish Mitchell Parish (born Michael Hyman Pashelinsky; July 10, 1900 – March 31, 1993) was an American lyricist, notably as a writer of songs for stage and screen. Biography Parish was born to a Jewish family in Lithuania, Russian Empire in July 190 ...

. Numerous artists have since covered "Blue Tango".

Song history

An instrumental version of "Blue Tango" recorded by Anderson ( Decca Records, catalog number 27875, with the flip side "Belle of the Ball") reached number one on the '' Billboard'' chart in 1952. (According to other sources, the Anderson recording first reached the charts on December 29, 1951.) ''Billboard'' ranked it as the number one song of 1952. The same recording was released in 1952 by

Brunswick Records Brunswick Records is an American record label founded in 1916. History From 1916 Records under the Brunswick label were first produced by the Brunswick-Balke-Collender Company, a company based in Dubuque, Iowa which had been manufacturing prod ...

(United Kingdom) as catalog number 04870, with the same flip side.

Hugo Winterhalter Hugo Winterhalter (August 15, 1909 – September 17, 1973) was an American easy listening arranger and composer, best known for his arrangements and recordings for RCA Victor. Biography Hugo Ferdinand Winterhalter was born in Wilkes-Barre, Penns ...

and his orchestra recorded "Blue Tango" at

Manhattan Center The Manhattan Center is a building in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Built in 1906 and located at 311 West 34th Street, it houses Manhattan Center Studios, the location of two recording studios; its Grand Ballroom; and the Hammerstein Ballroo ...

, New York City, on January 22, 1952. It was released by RCA Victor as catalog number 20-4518A, with the flip side "Gypsy Trail". This version first reached the ''Billboard'' Best Seller chart on February 29, 1952 and lasted 18 weeks on the chart, peaking at No. 8. (Other sources give the first date on the charts as March 8, 1952, and the highest position as No. 6.) It was also released in Great Britain by

EMI EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British Transnational corporation, transnational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in March 1 ...

on the

His Master's Voice His Master's Voice (HMV) was the name of a major British record label created in 1901 by The Gramophone Co. Ltd. The phrase was coined in the late 1890s from the title of a painting by English artist Francis Barraud, which depicted a Jack Russ ...

label as catalog number B 10277.

Les Baxter Leslie Thompson "Les" Baxter (March 14, 1922 – January 15, 1996) was a best-selling American musician and composer. After working as an arranger and composer for swing bands, he developed his own style of easy listening music, known as exotica a ...

and his orchestra released a version of "Blue Tango" by Capitol Records as catalog number 1681, with the flip side " Because of You". This version first reached the ''Billboard'' Best Seller chart on March 14, 1952 and lasted 9 weeks on the chart, peaking at No. 22. (Other sources give the first date on the charts as March 15, 1952, and the highest position as No. 10.) This version was also released by Capitol Records in the United States as catalog number 1966, in Australia as catalog number CP-117 and in the United Kingdom as catalog number CL 13703, all with the flip side " Please Mr. Sun". A recording of the song by

Guy Lombardo Gaetano Alberto "Guy" Lombardo (June 19, 1902 – November 5, 1977) was an Italian-Canadian-American bandleader, violinist, and hydroplane racer. Lombardo formed the Royal Canadians in 1924 with his brothers Carmen, Lebert and Victor, and oth ...

and his Royal Canadians was released by Decca Records as catalog number 28031, with the flip side "At Last, At Last". This version first reached the ''Billboard'' Best Seller chart on April 11, 1952 and lasted 10 weeks on the chart, peaking at No. 16. A vocal version was recorded by

Alma Cogan Alma Angela Cohen Cogan (19 May 1932 – 26 October 1966) was an English singer of traditional pop in the 1950s and early 1960s. Dubbed the "Girl with the Giggle in Her Voice", she was the highest paid British female entertainer of her era. C ...

in the United Kingdom in 1952. The song was also featured on the first

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

the same year in another instrumental recording by orchestra leader Ray Martin. The song was subsequently revived by

Bill Black William Patton Black Jr. (September 17, 1926 – October 21, 1965) was an American musician and bandleader who is noted as one of the pioneers of rock and roll. He played in Elvis Presley's early trio. Black later formed Bill Black's Combo. Ear ...

's Combo. This recording was released by

Hi Records Hi Records is an American soul music and rockabilly label founded in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1957 by singer Ray Harris, record store owner Joe Cuoghi, Bill Cantrell and Quinton Claunch (formerly producers for Sun Records), and three silent partne ...

as catalog number 2027, with the flip side "Willie". It first reached the ''Billboard'' charts on December 12, 1960 and lasted 7 weeks on the chart. On the composite chart of the top 100 songs, it reached No. 16. This version (with the same flip side) was also released in Australia by London Records, as catalog number HL-1735.

Instrumentation

Anderson originally wrote "Blue Tango" for an orchestra consisting of two flutes, one piccolo, two

oboe The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range. ...

s, two clarinets in B-Flat, two bassoons; four

horns Horns or The Horns may refer to: * Plural of Horn (instrument), a group of musical instruments all with a horn-shaped bells * The Horns (Colorado), a summit on Cheyenne Mountain * ''Horns'' (novel), a dark fantasy novel written in 2010 by Joe Hill ...

in F, three

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...

s in B-Flat, two

tenor trombone A tenor is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The low extreme for tenors is wide ...

s, bass trombone,

tuba The tuba (; ) is the lowest-pitched musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, the sound is produced by lip vibrationa buzzinto a mouthpiece. It first appeared in the mid-19th century, making it one of the ne ...

; a percussion section consisting of snare drum, bass drum and glockenspiel; and strings.

Amanda Lear version

French singer

Amanda Lear Amanda Lear (; born 1939) is a French singer, songwriter, painter, television presenter, actress, and former model. She began her professional career as a fashion model in the mid-1960s, and went on to model for Paco Rabanne, Ossie Clark, and ...

recorded her own version of "Blue Tango", providing it with self-penned lyrics. The recording was included on her debut 1977 album '' I Am a Photograph'' and released as a 7" single in the Netherlands and Russia. The single was not a commercial success and did not chart.

Music videos

The music video referenced rumours on her alleged

transsexualism Transsexual people experience a gender identity that is inconsistent with their assigned sex, and desire to permanently transition to the sex or gender with which they identify, usually seeking medical assistance (including sex reassignmen ...

, which circulated in media at that time. The clip opens with Lear wearing a mannish attire, a black tie and a

bowler hat The bowler hat, also known as a billycock, bob hat, bombín (Spanish) or derby (United States), is a hard felt hat with a rounded crown, originally created by the London hat-makers Thomas and William Bowler in 1849. It has traditionally been worn ...

. The singer then "transforms" herself into a woman, taking the costume off and revealing a long bright dress. The video was first aired in Italian TV show ''Odeon'' on 18 October 1977. Another music video was produced for a popular German TV show ''

Musikladen ''Der Musikladen'' (german: The Music Shop) was a West German music television programme that ran from 13 December 1972 to 29 November 1984. The show continued the 1960s '' Beat-Club'' under a new name, and in turn was replaced by ''Extratour' ...

''. It pictures the singer sat at the table while performing the song and smoking a cigarette. In 1982, another video for "Blue Tango" was released for Italian TV show ''Premiatissima'', which Lear hosted at that time. The singer is pictured wearing a

flamenco Flamenco (), in its strictest sense, is an art form based on the various folkloric music traditions of southern Spain, developed within the gitano subculture of the region of Andalusia, and also having historical presence in Extremadura and ...

dress and repeating dance routines accompanied by male dancers. The video premiered on 25 December 1982 and was later included in Lear's Italian

television special A television special (often TV special, or rarely television spectacular) is a standalone television show which may also temporarily interrupt episodic programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Some specials provide a full range of ent ...

''Ma chi è Amanda?''.

Track listing

*Dutch 7" Single (1977) :A. "Blue Tango" – 2:40 :B. "Pretty Boys" – 2:55 *Russian 7" Single (1978) :A. "Голубое Танго" ("Blue Tango") :B. "Кровь И Мед" (" Blood and Honey")

Other recorded versions

* Oneal Hudson Sax Trio (released by Rim Records as catalog number 4101, with the flip side "

September Song "September Song" is an American standard popular song composed by Kurt Weill with lyrics by Maxwell Anderson. It was introduced by Walter Huston in the 1938 Broadway musical production ''Knickerbocker Holiday.'' The song has been recorded by num ...

") * Bobby Wayne (released by Jerden Records as catalog number 766, with the flip side "Honky Tonk") * Jose Poniera (released in 1951 by

Rainbow Records Rainbow Records was a record label based in the United States of America in 1920 which featured recordings of Christian gospel music, hymns, and spirituals. Rainbow Records were made by the Rodeheaver Record Company of Chicago, Illinois, which i ...

as catalog number 104, with the flip side "Valentino Tango") * Calvin Boze (released in 1952 by Aladdin Records as catalog number 3142, with the flip side " The Glory of Love") *

Teddi King Teddi King (September 18, 1929 – November 18, 1977) was an American jazz and pop vocalist. Born Theodora King in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, she won a singing competition hosted by Dinah Shore at Boston's Tributary Theatre, later beg ...

(released in 1959 by

Coral Records Coral Records was a subsidiary of Decca Records that was formed in 1949. Coral released music by Patsy Cline, Buddy Holly, the McGuire Sisters and Teresa Brewer. Coral issued jazz and swing music in the 1940s, but after Bob Thiele became head of ...

as catalog number 62094, with the flip side "River of Regret") * The Flee-Rekkers (released in January 1961 by

Pye Records Pye Records was a British record label. Its best known artists were Lonnie Donegan (1956–1969), Petula Clark (1957–1971), the Searchers (1963–1967), the Kinks (1964–1971), Sandie Shaw (1964–1971), Status Quo (1968–1971) and Brotherho ...

as catalog number 7N.15326, with the flip side "Bitter Rice") * The Mulcays (released in 1962 by

Jubilee Records Jubilee Records was an American independent record label, specializing in rhythm and blues and novelty records. It was founded in New York City in 1946 by Herb Abramson. His partner was Jerry Blaine. Blaine bought Abramson's half of the compan ...

as catalog number 5438, with the flip side " Blue Moon") * International Pops Orchestra (released in 1963 by Cameo Records as catalog number 263, with the flip side "Slaughter on Tenth Avenue")

References

{{authority control 1952 singles Amanda Lear songs 1950s instrumentals Number-one singles in the United States Songs with lyrics by Mitchell Parish Songs with music by Leroy Anderson Tangos Tango in the United States 1951 songs Guy Lombardo songs