| "In Other Words" | |
|---|---|
 First recording titled "In Other Words" | |
| Song byKaye Ballard | |
| Released | April 1954 |
| Recorded | 1954 |
| Genre | Jazz |
| Length | 2:14 |
| Label | Decca |
| Songwriter(s) | Bart Howard |
"Fly Me to the Moon", originally titled "In Other Words", is a song written in 1954 byBart Howard. The first recording of the song was made in 1954 byKaye Ballard.Frank Sinatra's 1964 version was closely associated with theApollo missions to the Moon.
In 1999, theSongwriters Hall of Fame honored "Fly Me to the Moon" by inducting it as a "Towering Song".[1]
In 1954, when "Fly Me to the Moon" was first presented to the public, Bart Howard had been pursuing a career in music for over 20 years.[2] He played piano to accompanycabaret singers, but also wrote songs withCole Porter, his idol, in mind.[3] In the bookIntimate Nights: The Golden Age of New York Cabaret James Gavin noted that Howard wrote the song "in response to his publisher's plea for a simpler song: why did he have to write such grandiloquent lyrics? 'In Other Words' talked about the verbosity of poets who 'use many words to say a simple thing'; 'hold my hand,' 'Kiss me.'"[4] In response, Howard wrote a cabaret ballad.[5] A publisher tried to make him change some words from "fly me to the Moon" to "take me to the Moon," but Howard refused.[6] Many years later Howard commented that "... it took me 20 years to find out how to write a song in 20 minutes."[6]
He used his position as a piano accompanist and presenter at the Blue Angel cabaret venue to promote the song,[4] and it was soon introduced incabaret performances byFelicia Sanders.[3]
The song was composed in3
4time signature but was changed to4
4 byQuincy Jones in his arrangement.[7][citation needed]
Kaye Ballard made the song's first[8] commercial recording, released byDecca in April 1954.[9] A brief review published on May 8, 1954, inBillboard said that "In Other Words" was "...a love song sung with feeling by Miss Ballard."[10] This recording was released as theflipside of "Lazy Afternoon", which Kaye Ballard was currently performing as star of the stage showThe Golden Apple.[11]
Over the next few years,jazz and cabaret singers releasedcover versions of "In Other Words" onEP orLP recordalbums, includingChris Connor,[12]Johnny Mathis,[13]Portia Nelson,[14] andNancy Wilson.[15]Eydie Gormé sang the song on her 1958 albumEydie In Love (under the title "In Other Words"),[16] which reached No. 20 in theCashbox Album Charts.[17]
In 1960,Peggy Lee released the song on the albumPretty Eyes,[18] then made it more popular when she performed it in front of a large television audience onThe Ed Sullivan Show.[3] As the song's popularity increased, it became better known as "Fly Me to the Moon",[19] and in 1963 Peggy Lee convinced Bart Howard to make the name change official.[6]Connie Francis released two non-English versions of the song in 1963: in Italian as "Portami Con Te"[20] and in Spanish as "Llévame a la Luna".[21]
In 1962,Joe Harnell arranged and recorded an instrumental version in abossa nova style. It was released as a single in late 1962.[22][23] Harnell's version spent 13 weeks on theBillboard Hot 100 chart, reaching No. 14 on February 23, 1963,[24] while reaching No. 4 onBillboard'sMiddle-Road Singles chart.[25][26] It reached No. 30 inCanada.[27] Harnell's version was ranked No. 89 onBillboard's end of year ranking "Top Records of 1963".[28] Harnell's recording won him aGrammy Award at the5th Annual Grammy Awards forBest Performance by an Orchestra – for Dancing.[29][30] His version was included on his albumFly Me to the Moon and the Bossa Nova Pops[31] released in early 1963, which reached No. 3 stereo album on theBillboard Top LP's chart.[32]
In 1963,Julie London included a cover of the song for her albumThe End of the World,[33]Paul Anka released a version of "Fly Me To The Moon", appearing in his albumOur Man Around the World[34] andBrenda Lee covered it for herAll Alone Am I album.[35]
Frank Sinatra included the song on his 1964 albumIt Might as Well Be Swing, accompanied byCount Basie.[36] The music for this album was arranged byQuincy Jones,[36][37] who had worked with Count Basie a year earlier on the albumThis Time by Basie, which also included a version of "Fly Me to the Moon".[38]Will Friedwald commented that "Jones boosted the tempo and put it into an even four/four" for Basie's version, but "when Sinatra decided to address it with the Basie/Jones combination they recharged it into a straight swinger... [which]...all but explodes with energy".[5] Bart Howard estimated that by the time Frank Sinatra covered the song in 1964, more than 100 other versions had been recorded.[5]
Bobby Womack recorded a version that was released in 1968 onMinit Records, from his albumFly Me to the Moon. His rendition reached No. 52 on theBillboard Hot 100 and No. 16 on theR&B chart.[39] Occasionally on theCBS seriesWKRP in Cincinnati, an instrumental sampling of "Fly Me To The Moon" was used as adoorbell melody during scenes taking place in the apartment of characterJennifer Marlowe.[40]
Bengali-Pakistani pop singerAlamgir recorded the Urdu version of this song titledKya Tum Mere Ho (are you mine). The song was released in 1981 for his album Alamgir Sings for Himself.
By 1995, the song had been recorded more than 300 times.[11] According to a poll conducted by Japanese music magazineCD&DL Data in 2016 about the most representative songs associated with the Moon, the cover versions by Claire Littley andYoko Takahashi ranked 7th by 6,203 respondents.[41] The Claire cover version won the Planning Award of Heisei Anisong Grand Prize among the anime theme songs from 1989 to 1999, following its appearance in the end credits ofNeon Genesis Evangelion.[42]
Richard Simmons'slast words were a loose paraphrase of the song's lyrics.[43]
During the67th Annual Grammy Awards on February 2, 2025,Cynthia Erivo andHerbie Hancock performed a cover of the song as a tribute to Quincy Jones.
Frank Sinatra's 1964 recording of "Fly Me to the Moon" became closely associated withNASA'sApollo space program. A copy of the song was played on aSony TC-50 portable cassette player on theApollo 10 mission which orbited the Moon,[44] and also onApollo 11 before the first landing on the Moon.[45][46] The song's association with Apollo 11 was reprised many years later whenDiana Krall sang it at the mission's 40th anniversary commemoration ceremony,[47] and also for mission commanderNeil Armstrong's memorial service in 2012.[48]
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[49] | Gold | 45,000‡ |
| Italy (FIMI)[50] | Gold | 35,000‡ |
| New Zealand (RMNZ)[51] | Platinum | 30,000‡ |
| Spain (PROMUSICAE)[52] | Platinum | 60,000‡ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[53] | Platinum | 600,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
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