Melancholy Me
| "Melancholy Me" | |
|---|---|
| Single by Ella Fitzgerald | |
| B-side | "Somebody Bad Stole de Wedding Bell" |
| Released | 1954 |
| Label | Decca |
| Songwriters | |
| Audio | |
| "Melancholy Me" on YouTube | |
"Melancholy Me" is a song written by Joe Thomas and Howard Biggs that was a hit in 1954 for Ella Fitzgerald, who recorded it for Decca with the orchestra directed by Sy Oliver.
Release and critical reception
[edit]| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Billboard | 79/100[1] |
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Billboard | positive[2] |
In its issues from 6, 13, 20 February, and 6 March 1954, the Billboard magazine listed three single records of the song available for purchase: by Eddy Howard (on Mercury), by Ella Fitzgerald (on Decca) and by the Smith Brothers (on Label X).[3][1][4] Eddy Howard 's version was rated "excellent" by Variety, Ella Fitzgerald's version — "excellent" by Variety and 79 ("good") by Billboard.[1]
In its issue from 27 February, Billboard reported: "The Howard recording of this tune has definitely stepped out ahead of the several competing versions on the market. [...] The Ella Fitzgerald and Smith Brothers versions have been reported as good sellers in some territories also, but in almost all considerably behind Howard."[5]
Chart performance
[edit]Howard's single charted for several weeks on Billboard's Most Played by Disk Jockeys chart.[6][7]
Charts
[edit]Eddy Howard version
| Chart (1954) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard Most Played by Disk Jockeys[7] | 16 |
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 "BMI check list of new record ratings by the trade press". Billboard. 6 March 1954.
- ↑ "New records to watch". Billboard. 13 February 1954. p. 48.
- ↑ "Cough drops plug record". Billboard. 6 February 1954. p. 20.
- ↑ "'Melancholy' draws action by diskers". Billboard. 20 February 1954.
- ↑ "This week's best buys". Billboard. 27 February 1954. p. 31.
- ↑ "Most Played by Disk Jockeys". Billboard. 3 April 1954.
- 1 2 "Most Played by Disk Jockeys". Billboard. 24 April 1954.
