Torch singer

For other uses, see Torch song (disambiguation).
For the 1933 film, see Torch Singer.

A torch song is a sentimental love song, typically one in which the singer laments an unrequited or lost love, either where one party is oblivious to the existence of the other, where one party has moved on, or where a romantic affair has affected the relationship.[1][2] The term comes from the saying, "to carry a torch for someone", or to keep aflame the light of an unrequited love. It was first used by the cabaret singer Tommy Lyman in his praise of "My Melancholy Baby".[3]

The term is also explicitly cited in the song "Jim", popularized by versions by Dinah Shore, Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughan and Ella Fitzgerald:

Someday, I know that Jim will up and leave me
But even if he does you can believe me
I'll go on carryin' the torch for Jim.
I'll go on lovin' my Jim.

Torch-singing is more of a niche than a genre and can stray from the traditional jazz-influenced style of singing; the American tradition of the torch song typically relies upon the melodic structure of the blues.[2] Examples of a collection are Billie Holiday's 1955 album Music for Torching and Entre eux deux by Melody Gardot and Philippe Powell.

See also

References

  1. ^ Smith, L.: Elvis Costello, Joni Mitchell, and the Torch Song Tradition, p. 9. Praeger Publishers, 2004, ISBN 978-0275973926
  2. ^ a b Allan Forte, M. R.: Listening to Classic American Popular Songs, p. 203. Yale University Press, 2001, ISBN 978-0300083385
  3. ^ Shanaphy, Edward, ed. (2003). "My Melancholy Baby". Piano Stylings of the Great Standards. Shacor. p. xi. ISBN 978-1-929009-14-5.

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