Baubles, Bangles, & Beads

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"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.

Contents

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:

Related Research Articles

George Forrest was an American writer of music and lyrics for musical theatre best known for the show Kismet, adapted from the works of Alexander Borodin. He was also known professionally at times as Chet Forrest.

Robert Craig Wright was an American composer-lyricist for Hollywood and the musical theatre, best known for the Broadway musical and musical film Kismet, for which he and his professional and romantic partner George Forrest adapted themes by Alexander Borodin and added lyrics. Kismet was one of several Wright and Forrest creations that was commissioned by impresario Edwin Lester for the Los Angeles Civic Light Opera. Song of Norway, Gypsy Lady, Magdalena, and their adaptation of The Great Waltz were also commissioned by Lester for the LACLO. The LACLO passed most of these productions to Broadway.

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References

  1. Kaye, Colin. Classical Connections: Stolen melodies, www.pattayamail.com, September 3, 2021.
  2. 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.
  3. "peggyleediscography.com". peggyleediscography.com. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
  4. Whitburn, Joel (1986). Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890-1954. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 270. ISBN   0-89820-083-0.
  5. "Discogs.com". Discogs.com. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
  6. "The Kirby Stone Four Baubles, Bangles And Beads Chart History". Billboard.com. Archived from the original on May 31, 2019. Retrieved October 28, 2019.
  7. "Discogs.com". Discogs.com. 1960. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
  8. "Discogs.com". Discogs . 1975. Retrieved June 3, 2023.
  9. "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).
  10. "SOFIA HOFFMANN NA SMOOTH FM: ENTREVISTA E NOVO ÁLBUM!" . Retrieved October 25, 2023.