Released 1935, 1942 Genre Opera, Jazz Writer(s) Ira Gershwin | Recorded 1935 Label RCA Producer(s) George Gershwin | |
"I Loves You, Porgy" is a duet from the opera Porgy and Bess with music by George Gershwin and lyrics by Ira Gershwin. It was published in 1935.
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Background
Originally a duet by Anne Brown and Todd Duncan in the 1935 production and in the 1942 revival of the opera, "I Loves You, Porgy" has been recorded as a solo number by a number of popular vocalists and jazz musicians, most notably Billie Holiday, Nina Simone, and Bill Evans. Nina Simone's recording of the song (from Little Girl Blue, 1958) was a Top 20 pop hit in the United States in the autumn of 1959. Simone's version went to number eighteen on the Billboard Hot 100 and number two on the R&B charts. A live version is featured in her 1964 album Nina Simone in Concert. Bill Evans's piano trio version recorded at the Village Vanguard in 1961, available on the CD re-issue of the album Waltz for Debby, is also acclaimed.