Girish Mahajan (Editor)

I've Got You Under My Skin

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Released
  
1956

Label
  
Capitol

Length
  
3:40

Writer(s)
  
Cole Porter

Genre
  
Vocal jazz, traditional pop, swing music

Composer(s)
  
Cole Porter Arranged and conducted by Nelson Riddle

"I've Got You Under My Skin" is a song written by Cole Porter. Written in 1936, the song was introduced in the Eleanor Powell MGM musical Born to Dance, in which it was performed by Virginia Bruce. It was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Song that year. It became a signature song for Frank Sinatra and, in 1966, became a top 10 hit for The Four Seasons. The song has been recorded by many leading pop artists and jazz musicians over the years.

Contents

Frank Sinatra versions

Frank Sinatra first sang the song on his weekly radio show in 1946, as the second part of a medley with "Easy to Love". He put his definitive stamp on the tune ten years later, in a swinging big-band version that built to successive climaxes on the back of an arrangement by Nelson Riddle. Riddle was a fan of Maurice Ravel, and has said that this arrangement was inspired by the Boléro. Sinatra aficionados usually rank this as one of his finest collaborations with Riddle's orchestra. An insistent saxophone section propels the chart which climaxes in a startlingly out-of-control slide trombone solo by Milt Bernhart. Appreciating the excitement of the arrangement, Sinatra usually included the song in his concerts thereafter—a tradition carried on by Sinatra's son, Frank Jr.

Sinatra re-recorded "I've Got You Under My Skin" for the album Sinatra's Sinatra (1963), an album of re-recordings of his personal favorites. This time the trombone solo was by Dick Nash because Bernhart was booked for another session.

A live version of the song also appears on the 1966 album "Sinatra at the Sands" featuring Count Basie and his orchestra.

In 1993, Sinatra recorded a version as a duet with Bono of U2 for the album Duets. It was also released as a double A-side single with U2's "Stay (Faraway, So Close!)", and a music video was directed by Kevin Godley. The song was in the movie What Women Want the character Darcy played by Helen Hunt is singing along with the song.

Neneh Cherry version

Neneh Cherry's hip-hop interpretation of the song was the lead single for the Red Hot + Blue charity album, and reached number 25 in the UK Singles Chart. The music video was directed by Jean-Baptiste Mondino.

Neneh Cherry replaced most of the lyrics with a rap on AIDS victims and how society reacts to them. Of the original Cole Porter lyrics, she kept only the first four lines and "Use your mentality, wake up to reality".

Other versions

  • Virginia Bruce sang the song in Born to Dance (1936)
  • Al Bowlly recorded the song 1936, it can be found on The Al Bowlly Story 1928–1941
  • Lee Wiley (1937)
  • Stuff Smith (1940)
  • Cab Calloway (1943–1944)
  • Peggy Lee – Black Coffee (1953)
  • Dinah Washington (with Clifford Brown) – Dinah Jams (1954, remastered 1990)
  • Stan Kenton – Portraits on Standards (1954)
  • Ella Fitzgerald – Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter Songbook (1956)
  • An instrumental version of the song is used by Cole Porter in the movie Silk Stockings with Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse (1957)
  • Cesare Siepi with The Roland Shaw Orchestra – Easy to Love (Songs of Cole Porter) (1958)
  • Shirley Bassey – The Fabulous Shirley Bassey (1959)
  • Helen Merrill – Parole e musica (with Fernando Caiati, 1960)
  • Eartha Kitt – The Romantic Eartha (1962)
  • Mel Tormé – That's All (1965)
  • Julie London – All Through the Night: Julie London Sings the Choicest of Cole Porter (1965)
  • Bill Evans and Jim Hall – Intermodulation (1966)
  • Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons (1966)
  • Lu Elliott - Sings Way Out from Down Under (1967)
  • Sammy Davis Jr. – I've Gotta Be Me (1968)
  • Gloria Gaynor – I've Got You (1976)
  • Julio Iglesias - Libra (1985)
  • José José – At Puerto Rico in 1985 (unofficial live recording)
  • The Rapiers – 1961 (1987)
  • James Darren – This One's from the Heart (1990)
  • Gerard Kenny as part of his tribute album Play Me Some Porter, Please (1992)
  • Rita Reys – The Great American Songbook, volume 1 (1992)
  • Bono and Frank Sinatra recorded a duet of the song for U2's Stay (Faraway, So Close!) single in 1993.
  • Margaret Urlich & Dale Barlow recorded a version for Kate Ceberanos 1994 album, Kate Ceberano and Friends.
  • The New Four Freshmen – Voices in Standards (1994)
  • The Rutles – The Rutles Archaeology (recorded 1996; released 2007)
  • Louis Prima and Keely Smith – Capitol Collectors Series: Louis Prima (1996)
  • Joe Lovano – Celebrating Sinatra (1996)
  • Bireli Lagrene - "Blue Eyes" (1998)
  • Jawbox - "My Scrapbook of Fatal Accidents" (1998)
  • Diana Krall – When I Look In Your Eyes (1999)
  • Jamie Cullum – Heard It All Before (1999)
  • Perry Como – Papa Loves Mambo – The Very Best of Perry Como (2004)
  • T.J. Graham – Memphis Jazz Box (2004)
  • Carly Simon – Moonlight Serenade (2005)
  • Michael Bublé – It's Time (2005)
  • Bobby Caldwell - Come Rain or Come Shine (2005)
  • Michael Bolton – Bolton Swings Sinatra (2006)
  • Lauri Beth Quinlivan – On Angel's Strings (rearranged for classical guitar, 2006)
  • Cliff Richard – Bold as Brass (2009)
  • Chris Botti – Chris Botti in Boston (featuring Katharine McPhee) (2009)
  • Seether (2009)
  • Deana Martin - Volare, a 2009 album released by Big Fish Records
  • Rod Stewart – Fly Me to the Moon... The Great American Songbook Volume V (2010)
  • Landau Eugene Murphy, Jr. – That's Life (2011)
  • Jermaine Jackson – I Wish You Love (2012)
  • Mina – 12 (American Song Book) (2012)
  • Cristian Rosemary wrote a Spanish version in 2013, called Bajo mi Piel.
  • Cherry Poppin' Daddies - Please Return the Evening (2014)
  • Maysa
  • Josephine Baker
  • Steve Barton
  • Beatifik featuring Larraine Odell
  • Violinist Vov Dylan & The Palace Orchestra as the opening number of the album "So In Love" (2015)
  • Sergio Franchi - Live At The Cocoanut Grove with pianist Neil Warner accompanying playing Debussy's "Clair de Lune" (1964 RCA)
  • In 1946, in the comedy movie, The Show-Off, Red Skelton and Marilyn Maxwell sing an abbreviated version of the song.

    In 1952, Stan Freberg produced a parody of the song.

    In 1977, in The Muppet Show episode 119, Behemoth eats Shakey Sanchez and they then sang this number, with Shakey still alive in Behemoth's mouth.

    In 1986, the song featured in the BBC TV series The Singing Detective performed by the BBC Dance Orchestra.

    In 1988, Vanish Foamin’ toilet bowl cleaner ran a TV commercial with an animated toilet crooning a reworded lyric, ”I’ve Got You Under My Rim”.

    In 1993, The song was used in The Flintstones' movie I Yabba-Dabba Do!

    In 2004, The song was used in the Treehouse of Horror XV episode of The Simpsons

    The film Gamer includes the Sammy Davis Jr. version of the song in a musical number in which Ken Castle, the villain (played by Michael C. Hall), lip-syncs it to show he has the ability to control people with technology.

    In Star Trek: Deep Space 9, a holographic version of Vic Fontaine sings this song during Odo and Major Kira's first date in the episode "His Way"

    Tyreese, a character from The Walking Dead, sang this song to his girlfriend in the second episode of Season 4.

    Sinatra's version is played during the opening sequence for the 2015 video game Batman: Arkham Knight during the cremation of The Joker.

    The song is performed by Seth Macfarlane in the episode of American Dad! "Tears of a Clooney" while Francine attempts to falsely seduce George Clooney into falling in love with her.

    In the M*A*S*H episode, George, Captain John "Trapper" McIntyre sings the song during an operation.

    References

    I've Got You Under My Skin Wikipedia