1935 · Album
In a Sentimental Mood
Composed and Recorded: 1935 · Composer: Duke Ellington · Lyrics: Manny Kurtz
The Session That Caught a Mood
Ellington composed, recorded, and shared 'In a Sentimental Mood' all in 1935—a song that became jazz standard.
Duke Ellington walked into the recording studio in 1935 with a composition he'd just finished. The piece came together quickly, and he brought his orchestra in to capture it the same year. There was no deliberation, no months of rehearsal—just a composer with an idea and the players ready to execute it. That immediacy matters. Ellington had the standing and the resources to move fast, and "In a Sentimental Mood" benefited from that directness.
The melody opens with notes that echo George Gershwin's "Someone To Watch Over Me" from 1926, a nod rather than a theft, and it sets the tone for something reflective and slightly nostalgic. Manny Kurtz provided lyrics, and Irving Mills, Ellington's manager, took a cut of the publishing along with his own songwriting credit. The business side was typical of the era—opaque, tilted toward the people with leverage—but the result was a song that stuck. Benny Goodman and the Mills Blue Rhythm Band both cut versions in 1935 and 1936, which meant the tune had legs almost immediately.
"In a Sentimental Mood" has become a standard, recorded countless times and in countless ways. Ellington's original version captures it at the moment of creation, before interpretation layered over it. That's worth hearing.
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