Word Association Wednesday: We Love Concertos

Following Sunday’s Concerto for Cootie, my train of thought didn’t have far to travel before hopping over to Freddy Martin’s massive 1941 hit, Piano Concerto in B‑Flat.

🎹 Ballroom B‑Flat Brilliance

Let’s spin Freddy’s original Bluebird recording featuring pianist Jack Fina:

I think that’s just a tremendous record — one of my favorites of the whole era. There’s a certain lift to it, a ballroom‑bright excitement that’s hard to pin down, but easy to understand why audiences went wild for it at the time.

📀  B‑Side Bewilderment

For years, I mostly encountered this same recording on reissues and big‑band compilations labeled as Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1, with Jack Fina prominently credited as pianist and arranger. So imagine my surprise when I finally came across the unassumingly titled Bluebird single, which instead credits Ray Austin as arranger and doesn’t mention Fina at all — and it's the B-side!

🎤 “Tonight We Love” Takes Over

Whatever the paperwork says, the record was a smash — and as often happens with hit instrumentals, lyrics soon followed. The tune became best known as Tonight We Love, and Freddy adopted it as his theme song. He also recorded a hit vocal version for Bluebird with Clyde Rogers later in 1941:

Nice enough, but you really can’t beat the original instrumental.

🎶 Concerto Contenders

A nearly forgotten footnote: before Tonight We Love took over, there was a rival lyric version titled Concerto for Two. A couple of bands recorded it, then it slipped into obscurity. I do appreciate that Concerto for Two keeps the “concerto” theme alive.

Claude Thornhill recorded a lovely version for Columbia, so let’s give that one a spin:

Also mostly forgotten today is vocalist Dick Harding, but I’ve always liked his work with Thornhill’s band.

📡 Miller’s Majestic Makeover

Back to the instrumental itself — Glenn Miller had a terrific Bill Finegan arrangement that he never recorded commercially, but we can enjoy this November 1941 aircheck:

I love how the audience hums along, completely swept up in the moment. The arrangement is less pianocentric and very Miller‑esque, with that familiar glide and polish.

🎹 Lopez Looks In

Let’s also drop the needle on this 1941 cover by veteran pianist/bandleader Vincent Lopez, issued on the Classic Record Company label:

It’s fun — not quite in Freddy’s league — but I do enjoy Lopez’s little piano flourishes. He plays it less like a concerto and more like one of his piano specialties!

🎬 RKO Reveries & 44th Street Showmanship

To finish, let’s return to Freddy Martin with a clip from the 1942 RKO film The Mayor of 44th Street, featuring Freddy and the band performing the Piano Concerto:

It’s wonderful to see this “live” version, and I always appreciate when a musical performance isn’t interrupted by dialogue. I’m especially intrigued by sprightly vocalist Eddie Stone playing violin with such a serious expression!

So, there we are — the little concerto that could!