"Violets for Your Furs" is a 1941 song written by

Matt Dennis Matthew Loveland Dennis (February 11, 1914 – June 21, 2002) was an American singer, pianist, band leader, arranger, and writer of music for popular songs. Biography Dennis was born in Seattle, Washington, United States. His mother was a violi ...

with words by

Tom Adair Thomas Montgomery Adair (June 15, 1913 – May 24, 1988) was an American songwriter, composer, and screenwriter. Biography Adair was born on 15 June 1913, in Newton, Kansas, where his father owned a clothing store: he was the only child of Willi ...

, and first recorded in that year by

Tommy Dorsey Thomas Francis Dorsey Jr. (November 19, 1905 – November 26, 1956) was an American jazz trombonist, composer, conductor and bandleader of the big band era. He was known as the "Sentimental Gentleman of Swing" because of his smooth-toned trombo ...

's orchestra with vocals by

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the " Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular entertainers of the 1940s, 1950s, and ...

. The song describes the wearing of violets with furs on an evening in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

. Song is said to be about Lana Turner, who was involved with Sinatra at the time. Turner often wore flowers pinned to her furs.

Selected recordings

— ''

Songs for Young Lovers ''Songs for Young Lovers'' is the seventh studio album by Frank Sinatra and his first on Capitol Records. It was issued as an 8-song, 10" album (Capitol H-488) and as a 45rpm EP set, but it was the first Sinatra "album" not to have a 78rpm mul ...

'' (1954) * Beverly Kenney — ''Come Swing with Me'' (1956) *

John Coltrane John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist, bandleader and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Born and raise ...

— '' Coltrane'' (1957) * Jutta Hipp — '' Jutta Hipp with Zoot Sims'' (1957) *

Billie Holiday Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan; April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959) was an American jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner, Lester Young, Holiday had an innovative influence on jazz music and pop s ...

— '' Lady in Satin'' (1958) *

Chet Baker Chesney Henry "Chet" Baker Jr. (December 23, 1929 – May 13, 1988) was an American jazz trumpeter and vocalist. He is known for major innovations in cool jazz that led him to be nicknamed the "Prince of Cool". Baker earned much attention and ...

— ''

Chet Baker with Fifty Italian Strings ''Chet Baker with Fifty Italian Strings'' is an album by trumpeter Chet Baker which was recorded in Italy in 1959 and released on the Jazzland label.

'' (1959) * J.R. Monterose — ''The Message'' (1959) *

Nat Adderley Nathaniel Carlyle Adderley (November 25, 1931 – January 2, 2000) was an American jazz trumpeter. He was the younger brother of saxophonist Julian "Cannonball" Adderley, whom he supported and played with for many years. Adderley's composition ...

— ''

Work Song A work song is a piece of music closely connected to a form of work, either sung while conducting a task (usually to coordinate timing) or a song linked to a task which might be a connected narrative, description, or protest song. Definitions and ...

'' (1960) *

Dave Brubeck Quartet David Warren Brubeck (; December 6, 1920 – December 5, 2012) was an American jazz pianist and composer. Often regarded as a foremost exponent of cool jazz, Brubeck's work is characterized by unusual time signatures and superimposing contras ...

— '' Angel Eyes'' (1964) * Jimmy Roselli — ''New York: My Port of Call'' (1965) * Al Haig — ''

Piano Interpretations ''Piano Interpretations'' is the début album by jazz pianist Wynton Kelly released on the Blue Note label featuring performances by Kelly with Oscar Pettiford/ Franklin Skeete, and Lee Abrams recorded in 1951.Shirley Horn Shirley Valerie Horn (May 1, 1934 – October 20, 2005) was an American jazz singer and pianist. She collaborated with many jazz musicians including Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Toots Thielemans, Ron Carter, Carmen McRae, Wynton Marsalis and othe ...

— '' Violets for Your Furs'' (1981) * Johnny Hartman — '' For Trane'' (1995), rec. 1972 *

Stacey Kent Stacey Kent (born March 27, 1965) is an American jazz singer from South Orange, New Jersey. Kent was nominated for a Grammy Award and was awarded the Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Order of Arts and Letters) by the French Mini ...

— ''

Dreamsville ''Dreamsville'' is a studio album by jazz singer Stacey Kent. It was released in 2001 by Candid Records. This was Kent's fourth studio album, it was produced by Alan Bates and features her husband, tenor saxophonist Jim Tomlinson. Reception D ...

'' (2001) *

Barry Manilow Barry Manilow (born Barry Alan Pincus; June 17, 1943) is an American singer and songwriter with a career that spans seven decades. His hit recordings include " Could It Be Magic", " Somewhere Down the Road", " Mandy", " I Write the Songs", " C ...

— '' In the Swing of Christmas'' (2007)

References

{{Authority control 1941 songs Frank Sinatra songs Songs about New York City Songs with music by Matt Dennis Songs written by Tom Adair