| "Les Feuilles mortes" | |
|---|---|
| Song byJacques Prévert andJoseph Kosma, English lyrics byJohnny Mercer | |
| English title | "Autumn Leaves" |
| Written | 1945 |
| Released | 1946 by Enoch & Cie (Enoch (édition musicale) [fr]) |
| Genre | Chanson,jazz,pop |
| Composer(s) | Joseph Kosma |
| Lyricist(s) | Jacques Prévert (French),Johnny Mercer (English) |
"Autumn Leaves" is the English-language version of the French song "Les Feuilles mortes" ("The Dead Leaves") composed byJoseph Kosma in 1945. The original lyrics were written byJacques Prévert in French, and the English lyrics were byJohnny Mercer. An instrumental recording by pianistRoger Williams was a number one best-seller in theUSBillboard charts of 1955.
Since its introduction "Autumn Leaves" has become ajazz standard, and it is one of the most recorded songs by jazz musicians. More than a thousand commercial recordings are known to have been released by mainstream jazz and pop musicians.[1][2]
Kosma was a native of Hungary who was introduced to Prévert in Paris, and they collaborated on the song "Les Feuilles mortes". The song was legally deposited in 1945, and published in 1947.[3] The song has its origin in the ballet music written by Kosma forLe Rendez-vous byRoland Petit, performed in Paris at the end of the Second World War. Large parts of the melodies are exactly the same as the ballet music,[4] which was itself partially similar to "Poème d'octobre No. 4" byJules Massenet.[5] This portion of the tune has also been noted to be near-identical to a passage inTchaikovsky's 1888 compositionHamlet Overture-Fantasia, Op. 67.[6][7]Marcel Carné used "Les Feuilles mortes" for the 1946 filmLes Portes de la nuit (Gates of the Night), where it was sung/hummed in parts byIrène Joachim andYves Montand.[8]
The most successful commercial recording of "Les Feuilles mortes" was byYves Montand (Columbia) in 1949, which sold a million copies within 5 years.[3][9]Cora Vaucaire recorded it (1947 or 1948),[3][10] as didJuliette Gréco who first recorded a version in 1949.[3]
In 1950,Johnny Mercer wrote the English lyric and gave it the title "Autumn Leaves". The English lyrics are significantly shorter than the French version, consisting of only two verses. In the French original, the crucial line "C'est une chanson" starts at the 13th bar, while in English the line "the autumn leaves" starts at bar 1.[3] Mercer was a founder and partner inCapitol Records at the time, and he selected Capitol recording artistJo Stafford to make the first English-language recording in July, 1950.[3][8]
The song is inAABC form.[11] "Autumn Leaves" offers a popular way for beginning jazz musicians to become acquainted withjazz harmony as thechord progression consists almost solely ofii–V–I and ii–V sequences which are typical of jazz. Although it is mostly played inG minor, the original key of the composition was A minor.[2]
The song's iv7–bVII7–bIIImaj7–bVImaj7–iiø–V7–i chord progression is an example of thecircle-of-fifthsprogression.[12]
| "Autumn Leaves" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single byRoger Williams | ||||
| from the album Autumn Leaves | ||||
| B-side | "Take Care" | |||
| Released | 1955 | |||
| Genre | Pop | |||
| Length | 2:59 | |||
| Label | Kapp | |||
| Composer(s) | Joseph Kosma | |||
| Lyricist(s) | Jacques Prévert,Johnny Mercer | |||
| Roger Williams singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Roger Williams was signed by Dave Kapp ofKapp Records when he heard Williams playing in a hotel lounge. He was asked to change his birth name Louis Jacob Weertz to Roger Williams. Williams released an albumThe Boy Next Door, which failed to make an impact, and then the song "Autumn Leaves". "Autumn Leaves" was recorded at the suggestion of Kapp one Friday, and Williams, who had previously thought that the song was titled "Falling Leaves", said: "The first thing that came to mind was to play all those runs down the keyboard, I tried to make it sound like falling leaves."[13] He created the arrangement that Friday and the following Saturday night, and recorded the song on Monday.[13] Williams played the tune with descendingarpeggios its dominant feature, backed by an orchestra conducted byGlenn Osser. The first recording was just over 3 minutes long, and Kapp suggested that it be sped up to keep it under 3 minutes, which Williams duly did.[13]
The song became anumber-one hit in the U.S. in 1955,[8] the first piano instrumental to reach number one.[14] It stayed at No. 1 for four weeks in the bestsellers chart. The song is said to have sold two million copies around the world,[15] and it remains the best-selling piano record of all time.[16]
Williams re-recorded the tune for Kapp, in stereo and with choral and orchestral backings, to celebrate its 10th anniversary in 1965.[17]
| Chart (1955) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| USBest Seller in Stores (Billboard)[18] | 1 |
| USCash Box[19] | 1 |
The song was recorded steadily throughout the 1950s by leading pop vocalists includingSteve Conway (1950),[20]Bing Crosby (1950),Nat King Cole (included in the 1955 album re-release ofNat King Cole Sings for Two in Love, and used in the 1956 filmAutumn Leaves whose title was inspired by the song),Doris Day (1956), andFrank Sinatra (1957). It was also used in the 1959 filmHey Boy! Hey Girl! performed byLouis Prima andKeely Smith.[3]
Following the success of Roger Williams' version of the tune, competing pop versions were released late in 1955 bySteve Allen, theRay Charles Singers,Jackie Gleason,Mitch Miller, andVictor Young, with only Allen's reaching theBillboard Top 40.[21]
A half-French half-English version was released byÉdith Piaf in 1951.
The song was also quickly adopted by many instrumental jazz artists, includingArtie Shaw (1950);Stan Getz (1952);Cal Tjader in his 1954 album "Mambo with Tjader" with Cal Tjader's Modern Mambo Quintet;[22]Ahmad Jamal (1955);Erroll Garner in his 1955 albumConcert by the Sea,Duke Ellington (1957,Ellington Indigos);Cannonball Adderley in his 1958 albumSomethin' Else featuringMiles Davis who also recorded it live forMiles Davis in Europe in 1964;Vince Guaraldi (1958);Bill Evans (1959,Portrait in Jazz);John Coltrane (1962); andRyo Fukui (1976).[3][8] It became the signature tune ofBen Webster in his later career. A few jazz vocalists have also recorded the song, includingSarah Vaughan in her 1982 albumCrazy and Mixed Up.[3]
ComposerTerry Riley has written acontrafact of the song (1965), using the same principle of small repetitive cells of melody and rhythm first put in use in his breakthrough piece,In C (1964).[23]
SaxophonistVincent Herring recorded the song on his 1992 albumSecret Love.
American artistDiamanda Galás recorded the song for her 2008 live albumGuilty Guilty Guilty.
In 2012, jazz historian Philippe Baudoin called the song "the most important non-American standard" and noted that "it has been recorded about 1400 times by mainstream and modern jazz musicians alone and is the eighth most-recorded tune by jazzmen."[2]
The song is the official corps song of theBluecoats Drum and Bugle Corps.[24]
