Baubles, Bangles, & Beads
"Baubles, Bangles, & Beads" is a popular song from the 1953 musical Kismet, credited to Robert Wright and George Forrest. It's based on an 1881 piece by Russian composer Alexander Borodin.
Background
Like almost all the music in that show, the melody was based on works by Alexander Borodin,[1][2] in this case the second theme of the second movement of his String Quartet in D. The "Kismet" setting maintains the original's 3/4 waltz rhythm; pop music settings change the rhythm to a moderate four-beat accompaniment. Jazz musicians are especially drawn to the song's beguiling melody and advanced harmonic structure. The familiar AA'BA+Coda structure of the song is energized by a key change up a major third interval for every section; the transition is marked by a harmonic progression from the central major key of one section to the tritone minor key of the following section.[citation needed]
1953 recordings
The best-selling version of the song was recorded by Peggy Lee on September 16, 1953[3] and charted briefly that year.[4] Other versions were recorded that year by Lu Ann Simms and Georgia Gibbs.
Other recordings
The song has appeared on numerous albums over the years including:
- Dionne Warwick - On Stage and in the Movies (1967)
- Eydie Gorme - Gorme Sings Showstoppers (1958)[5]
- Frank Sinatra - Come Dance with Me! (1959)[6], Francis Albert Sinatra & Antônio Carlos Jobim (1967)
- The Kirby Stone Four re-make hit No. 25 in the Billboard Top 100 in 1958[7] and remains a favorite on adult standard stations.
- Johnny Mathis - So Nice (1966)
- June Christy - The Cool School (1960)
- Kay Starr - Movin' on Broadway (1960)[8]
- Gerry Mulligan - Recorded in Boston at Storyville (1956)
- Wes Montgomery - Fingerpickin' (1957)
- Lena Horne - Give the Lady What She Wants (1958)
- Sarah Vaughan - You're Mine You (1962)
- Oscar Peterson Trio - Affinity (1962)
- Argentine composer Ernesto Acher mixed the scherzo of Borodin's string quartet with this piece of music, under the name "Borodin, Bangles & Beads" in 1987 on his album Juegos [9]
- Chet Atkins - Travelin' (Chet Atkins album) (1963)
- Sofia Hoffmann - Rebirth (2022)[10]
References
- ^ Kaye, Colin. Classical Connections: Stolen melodies, www.pattayamail.com, September 3, 2021.
- ^ McHugh, Dominic “I’ll Never Know Exactly Who Did What”: Broadway Composers as Musical Collaborators. Journal of the American Musicological Society, Vol. 68, Number 3, pp. 605–652 ISSN 0003-0139, electronic ISSN 1547-3848.
- ^ "peggyleediscography.com". peggyleediscography.com. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (1986). Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890-1954. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 270. ISBN 0-89820-083-0.
- ^ "Discogs.com". Discogs.com. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
- ^ "www.allmusic.com". allmusic.com. Retrieved December 1, 2024.
- ^ "The Kirby Stone Four Baubles, Bangles And Beads Chart History". Billboard.com. Archived from the original on May 31, 2019. Retrieved October 28, 2019.
- ^ "Discogs.com". Discogs.com. 1960. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
- ^ "Borodin, Bangles & Beads" (Borodin's Scherzo from the Quartet n° 2/Baubles, Bangles & Beads) is also on the album Mischief with Mozart - Comical Combat with the Classics (Stradivari Classics).
- ^ "SOFIA HOFFMANN NA SMOOTH FM: ENTREVISTA E NOVO ÁLBUM!". Retrieved October 25, 2023.
