Oh, Lady Be Good!

"Oh, Lady Be Good!" is a 1924 song by George and Ira Gershwin. It was introduced by Walter Catlett in the Broadway musical Lady, Be Good!, written by Guy Bolton, Fred Thompson, and the Gershwin brothers, starring Fred and Adele Astaire. It ran for 330 performances in its original Broadway run.

The song is also performed in the film Lady Be Good (1941), although the film itself is unrelated to the musical play.

A 1947 recording of the song became a hit for Ella Fitzgerald, notable for her scat solo. The song became identified with Fitzgerald, and she sang it many times in live performance. For her album Ella Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin Songbook (1959), it was sung as a ballad, arranged by Nelson Riddle.

Recorded versions

• Paul Whiteman and His Orchestra - rec. December 29, 1924 - released as Victor 19551 (#2 Pop in 1925)
• Cliff "Ukulele Ike" Edwards - rec. January 2, 1925 - released as Pathe 025130, matrix 105767
• Jack Hylton and his Orchestra - rec. March 29, 1926 - released as Bb 8191-2
• Buddy Lee with the Gilt-Edged Four - rec. May 17, 1926 - released as Columbia 3981, matrix WA 3256
• Buck and Bubbles - rec. December 26, 1933 - released as Columbia 2873-D, matrix W 152661-3
• Benny Goodman Trio - rec. 1935
• Jones-Smith Incorporated (feat. Lester Young and Count Basie) - rec. October 9, 1936 - released as Vocalion 3459, matrix C-1660-1
• Slim & Slam - rec. May 3, 1938 - released as Vocalion 22849
• Artie Shaw and his Orchestra - Performed in the Warner Brothers/Vitaphone short subject Artie Shaw's Symphony In Swing (June,1939) - rec. August 27, 1939 - released as Bluebird B10430-A, matrix 042609-1
• Count Basie - rec. February 4, 1939 - released as Decca (American) 2631-A ; matrix 64985
• Charlie Parker - rec. at the Philharmonic Auditorium (Los Angeles, California), January 28, 1946, as part of the Jazz at the Philharmonic series
• Ella Fitzgerald - rec. March 18, 1947 - released as Decca 23956, matrix 73820
• Fred Astaire - rec. December 1952 - from the LP The Astaire Story
• The Gordons with Dizzy Gillespie and Stuff Smith - rec. April 17, 1957
• Ella Fitzgerald - rec. 1959 - from Ella Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin Songbook
• Mel Tormé and Buddy Rich - Together Again: For the First Time (1978)
• Rob Agerbeek on his 1998 album Three of a Kind

See also

• List of 1920s jazz standards

External links

• "Oh, Lady Be Good!". jazzstandards.com. 

George Gershwin
Albums	Gershwin Plays Gershwin: The Piano Rolls
Ballets	An American in Paris Gershwin Piano Concerto Three Preludes Who Cares? List of stagings
Operas	Blue Monday (1922) Porgy and Bess (1935)
Orchestral works	Rhapsody in Blue (1924) Concerto in F (1925) An American in Paris (1928) Second Rhapsody (1931) Cuban Overture (1932) Strike Up the Band (1934) Hoctor's Ballet (1937)
Piano compositions	Three Preludes (1926) French Ballet Class (1937)
Songs	"Aren't You Kind Of Glad We Did?" "(I've Got) Beginner's Luck" "Bidin' My Time" "Blah Blah Blah" "Boy Wanted" "Boy! What Love Has Done To Me!" "But Not for Me" "By Strauss" "Clap Yo' Hands" "Do It Again" "Doin' Time" "Embraceable You" "Fascinating Rhythm" "A Foggy Day" "For You, For Me, For Evermore" "Funny Face" "'The Half of It, Dearie' Blues" "He Loves and She Loves" "How Long Has This Been Going On?" "I Can't Be Bothered Now" "I Got Rhythm" "I Was Doing All Right" "I've Got a Crush on You" "Isn't It a Pity?" "Just Another Rhumba" "Let's Call the Whole Thing Off" "Let's Kiss and Make Up" "Liza (All the Clouds'll Roll Away)" "Looking for a Boy" "Lorelei" "Love Is Here to Stay" "Love is Sweeping the Country" "Love Walked In" "The Man I Love" "My Cousin in Milwaukee" "My One and Only" "Nice Work If You Can Get It" "Of Thee I Sing" "Oh, Lady Be Good!" "Oh, So Nice!" "The Real American Folk Song (is a Rag)" "'S Wonderful" "Sam and Delilah" "Slap That Bass" "Somebody from Somewhere" "Somebody Loves Me" "Someone to Watch Over Me" "Soon" "Stairway to Paradise" "Stiff Upper Lip" "Strike Up the Band" "Summertime" "Swanee" "That Certain Feeling" "They All Laughed" "They Can't Take That Away from Me" "Things Are Looking Up" "Tra-la-la" "Treat Me Rough" "Walking the Dog" "Who Cares?" "You've Got What Gets Me"
Tribute albums	Brian Wilson Reimagines Gershwin By George Ella Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin Song Book Ella Sings Gershwin Gershwin Live! Gershwin's World The Glory of Gershwin Ira, George and Joe Nice Work If You Can Get It Oscar Peterson Plays the George Gershwin Songbook Red Hot + Rhapsody: The Gershwin Groove Rosemary Clooney Sings the Lyrics of Ira Gershwin
Related articles	Gershwin Prize Arthur Gershwin Frances Gershwin Ira Gershwin Gershwin Theatre
List of compositions by George Gershwin Category:George Gershwin