SONG OF THE DAY

“Some Other Time” – Barbra Streisand (Love Is The Answer, Columbia Records, 2009). Music by Leonard Bernstein, with lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green.

WHY TODAY?

I heard it performed by the Los Angeles Gay Men’s Chorus in an episode of “Six Feet Under,” and had never heard it before. A new classic for me! Yay!

LYRICS

Wow, these are some “day after your birthday serious depression” lyrics:

Where has the time all gone to?
Haven’t done half the things we want to
Oh well, we’ll catch up some other time

There’s so much more embracin’
Still to be done but time is racin’
Oh well, we’ll catch up some other time

Oh well…

INTERESTING FACTS (a la wikipedia)

– The song first showed in 1944 in the score for the broadway musical On The Town, a musical with music by Leonard Bernstein and book and lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green, based on Jerome Robbins’ idea for his 1944 ballet Fancy Free.

– The musical introduced several popular and classic songs, among them “New York, New York”, “Lonely Town”, “I Can Cook, Too”, and “Some Other Time”.

- Love Is the Answer is an album of jazz standards by Barbra Streisand released on September 29, 2009. The album was produced by Diana Krall and features Krall on piano.

– Orchestral arrangements are by Johnny Mandel, Anthony Wilson and Alan Broadbent.

– A deluxe edition contains a bonus disc featuring versions of the songs with just Streisand’s vocals and Krall’s quartet.

^– Streisand’s ninth #1 album on the Billboard 200, the album makes her the only artist to have a #1 album in America in five different decades.

–  The album was certified Gold on November 13, by the RIAA, giving Streisand her 51st Gold record in the US.

– To promote the album, Streisand performed for one night only on September 26 at the Village Vanguard some forty-eight years after she opened for Miles Davis at the same venue.

– On the 2nd of October she also gave a rare interview and performed live for a BBC TV special hosted by Jonathan Ross.

– The album was promoted in a QVC special which offered a Special Edition DVD that includes bonus video tracks of “People” from My Name Is Barbra (1965); “Yesterdays” from Color Me Barbra (1966); “I’m Always Chasing Rainbows” from The Belle of 14th Street (1967); “Silent Night” from A Happening in Central Park (1968); “Crying Time” (with Ray Charles) from Barbra Streisand…and Other Musical Instruments (1973).

– The same day of the release of the album, Mariah Carey released her album Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel. Initially favored to be #1 on the Billboard 200 during its debut week, it was announced that Paramore’s Brand New Eyes was able to reach the top spot of the Billboard 200 and surpass Mariah Carey. What began as a battle between those two albums ended with Streisand surpassing both and achieving the pole position of the charts. The news shocked the music industry.

– The album made Streisand the fourth artist with the most #1 albums in history, behind The Beatles (19), Jay-Z (11), and Elvis Presley (10). (It must be noticed that also Bruce Springsteen and The Rolling Stones have achieved nine #1 albums both.)

– In the UK, the album initially landed at #4, with sales of 30,000 copies. The extensive press reporting about Streisand debuting at the top of the U.S. chart news generated positive reactions on the market, and this benefited the UK sales, with Love Is the Answer managed rising to #1 during its second week, even surpassing Madonna’s Celebration album in sales.

– Achieving the top position in both countries, Love Is the Answer is only the fourth Barbra Streisand to be #1 in both the U.S. and the UK, the next most recent being 1980’s Guilty.

– So far no singles have been released from the album, making its success more fruitful as most albums successes are based upon a songs success in the singles charts.

Track listing for Streisand’s Love Is The Answer

1. “Here’s to Life” (Artie Butler, Phyllis Molinary) – 4:35
2. “In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning” (Bob Hilliard, David Mann) – 4:02
3. “Gentle Rain” (Luiz Bonfá, Matt Dubey) – 4:19
4. “If You Go Away (Ne me quitte pas)” (Jacques Brel, Rod McKuen) – 4:14
5. “Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most” (Fran Landesman, Tommy Wolf) – 4:32
6. “Make Someone Happy” (Betty Comden, Adolph Green, Jule Styne) – 4:08
7. “Where Do You Start?” (Johnny Mandel, Alan Bergman, Marilyn Bergman) – 4:26
8. “A Time for Love” (Mandel, Paul Francis Webster) – 5:12
9. “Here’s That Rainy Day” (Johnny Burke, Jimmy Van Heusen) – 5:04
10. “Love Dance” (Ivan Lins, Gilson Peranzzetta, Paul Williams) – 4:43
11. “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes” (Jerome Kern, Otto Harbach) – 4:22
12. “Some Other Time” (Leonard Bernstein, Comden, Green) – 4:43
13. “You Must Believe in Spring” (Bergman, Bergman, Michel Legrand) – 4:04 [Bonus track]

VIDEO OF THE DAY