*** Welcome to piglix ***

So Rare

"So Rare"
Song by Carl Ravell and his Orchestra

Henry King & His Orchestra
Gus Arnheim and his Coconut Grove Orchestra
Jimmy Ray & the Southern Serenaders

Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians
Published 1937
Genre Popular song
Writer(s) Jack Sharpe
Composer(s) Jerry Herst
"So Rare"
Single by Jimmy Dorsey with Orchestra and Chorus
from the album The Fabulous Jimmy Dorsey
B-side "Sophisticated Swing"
Released January 1957 (1957-01)
Format 7-inch single
Recorded November 11, 1956 (1956-11-11) Capitol studios, New York, NY
Genre Big band
Length 02:30
Label Fraternity

Henry King & His Orchestra
Gus Arnheim and his Coconut Grove Orchestra
Jimmy Ray & the Southern Serenaders

"So Rare" is a popular song published in 1937 by composer Jerry Herst and lyricist Jack Sharpe. It became a hit for Jimmy Dorsey in 1957.

The version by Carl Ravell and his Orchestra, from a session on 4 June 1937, may be the earliest recording of the song, although it is unclear whether it was the first released version. The earliest popular versions of "So Rare" were the 1937 releases by Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians and by Gus Arnheim and his Coconut Grove Orchestra.

Before it had been recorded or even published, Fred Astaire had sung "So Rare" on his radio show The Packard Hour. This was the recollection of Jess Oppenheimer, then a writer for the show, who recommended the song on behalf of his friend Jerry Herst, then an "aspiring songwriter". According to Oppenheimer, this led to "So Rare" being "snapped up by a publisher who heard it on the program".

Since 1937 "So Rare" has been recorded by numerous artists, but it notably became a late-career hit in 1957 for Jimmy Dorsey, reaching #2 on Billboard magazine's pop charts. Recorded on 11 November 1956 and released on the Cincinnati label Fraternity, Jimmy Dorsey's version, which had a decidedly rhythm and blues feel unlike the earlier versions, became the highest charting song by a big band during the first decade of the rock and roll era. Credited on the label to "Jimmy Dorsey with Orchestra and Chorus", the vocals are by the Artie Malvin Singers.Billboard ranked this version as the No. 5 song for 1957.


...
Wikipedia

...