Hummin' To Myself

I've been less than impressed with the Iowa Caucus. Ted Cruz has joined the ranks of Mike Huckabee and Rick Santorum as Iowa winners and he did worse than Huckabee in 2008. So, meaningless. As for the Democrats, a tie is a tie and says nothing.

So, I'm going to write about old music.

Around 1930, Tin Pan Alley veterans Sammy Fain and Herbie Magidson joined the little known Monty Siegel in writing a cute little ditty, Hummin' To Myself.

I've got the words, I've got the tune,
I've been rehearsin' under the moon!
But I got nobody to hear my song,
I'm hummin' to myself!

It was preformed by Joan Abbot in George White's (he was a poor man's Flo Ziegfeld) Broadway musical review in 1932. After that it has been recorded periodically over the years.

In 2004, Linda Ronstadt used it as the title number for her last solo album. It was her third visit to the old jazz tunes of the 1930's through 1950's. Her first two had been with the Nelson Riddle Orchestra, this time she used small combos instead of a full orchestra. At 58, Linda's voice was beginning to show the effects of her Parkinson's Disease, a fact she freely admitted in a Vanity Fair article. Intended or not, the song hints at the end of her musical career.

Still, of all the versions I've heard Linda's is the most vibrant and most beautiful rendition. Enjoy.