From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"God Bless the Child" is a song written by Billie Holiday
and Arthur Herzog Jr. in 1939, first recorded
on May 9, 1941 under the Okeh label.
Holiday's version of the song was honored with the Grammy Hall of Fame Award in (1976).[1] It was
also included in the list of Songs of the Century, by the
Recording Industry of America and the National Endowment for the
Arts.
Recording
session
Session #44: 799 Seventh Avenue, New York City, May 9, 1941, Eddie Heywood and
his Orchestra with Roy
Eldridge (trumpet) Jimmy Powell, Lester Boone (alto saxophone),
Ernie Powell (trumpet), Eddie Heywood (piano), Paul Chapman
(guitar), Grachan Moncur II (bass), Herbert Cowans
(drums), Billie
Holiday (vocal)[2]
Origin
and interpretation
In her autobiography Lady Sings the Blues[3] Holiday
indicated an argument with her mother over money led to the song.
She indicated that during the argument she said the line "God bless
the child that's got his own." The anger over the incident led her
to turn that line into a starting point for a song, which she
worked out in conjunction with Herzog. In Jazz Singing Will
Friedwald[4]
indicates it as "sacred and profane" as it references the Bible
while indicating that religion seems to have no effect in making
people treat each other better.[5] The
lyrics refer to a Biblical verse, probably Luke 19:26.[6]
Notable
cover versions
- Billy Eckstine and Linda Ronstand, duet 1969
It also inspired a children's picture book.[9] It was
included on the The Simpsons Sing the
Blues album, performed by Lisa Simpson (Yeardley Smith); this
version was released as a single, the third from the album. Tony Bennett recorded
the song as an overdubbed "duet" with Holiday for his 1997 album
Tony Bennett on Holiday.
Tricky released a version of
the song on Angels with Dirty
Faces (1998), retitled as "Carriage for Two".
In popular
culture
Film
Television
Literature
Video
Games
- BioShock soundtrack:
The three remixed tracks on the CD include "Beyond the Sea", "God
Bless the Child" and "Wild Little Sisters"; the original recordings
of these songs are in the game.
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