Body and Soul musical count:

Anita O’Day –  live Art Fords Jazz Party
Barry Harris – Solo Piano
Billie Holiday – 3 versions two live
Carmen McRae – Live Mt.FUJI Jazz Fes in Japan, 1986 ( a surprising favorite)
Charles Mingus
Coleman Hawkins
Jimmy Forrest 2 live performances with the Count Basie Band (the absolute favorite being the longer 6:34 version)
Dexter Gordon
Diana Krall  (well done)
Ella Fitzgerald- two versions, one live on a Frank Sinatra television show
Frank Sinatra
John Coltrane
Julie London
Louis Armstrong
Sarah Vaughan 2 versions (the older Jazzier Sarah with the deeper voice is the choice)
– and of course the version the started it all:
Tony Bennet & Amy Winehouse
All told the Total Number of plays of  Body and Soul over the last few weeks is over 250 and counting.

It is hard to break away from the music.  It will linger on.

Listening to Make Someone Happy – Chris Botti.

In short this is considered a good effort.  Maybe it is the color blue. The words were well chosen to reflect the artist and the music. The signature is hard to miss.  That is done on purpose.  It is all about that day.  It is about walking into the Art Museum.  It is about floating through galleries.  And then, it is about entering another gallery, and there across the room, is Body and Soul.  And you know the name, because even from the other side of the room you can read that signature.

The only lingering question has to do with the treatment of the background.  Although a considerable effort was put into this background, it appears, in the end, to be similar to previous works.  That may not be bad, but this artist likes a challenge. Maybe, there is a little holding back going on here.  Hopefully, more experiments with better ideas will finally open up those creative doors and let the light in.

Listening to Al Green – Love and Happiness.

In short, maybe its the color blue. Body seems to work better then the effort with Heart of the Matter. Hearts background was pushed to create more interest, but now seems, at times, to drown the music.  You do not see that in Body, with a background that is more in sync with the flow of the music. The understanding with Heart was to not pop the music, but to unite. So, it could be a matter of taste or the choice of the music, which, no doubt, did have a great effect on the results of both of these images.

The Christmas 2011 canvas is next, and maybe because of this conversation, the background is going to be influence by the art of Jean-Bapiste-Simeon Chardin.   Mark Rhothko can take a canvas off.

Ending this blog with Sarah Vaughan – Body and Soul

Scott Von Holzen