The year is 1940….. The war in Europe provided the subject for one of the few serious moments in the otherwise humorous Broadway revue “Two For The Show”. Sophisticated composers Nancy Hamilton and Morgan Lewis had created a gorgeously complex song that was originally depicted as being sung by a group of Londoners, walking at night, and singing of the moon, the heavens, the music and the joys of life and love…. Only to look up in terror at the sky at the end of the song, followed by a quick curtain, in an obvious reference to the London Blitz. In years to come, the song would transcend it’s early and very specific topical origins to become a favorite of performers as diverse as Charlie Parker and Benny Goodman, a classic anthem of scat for Ella Fitzgerald and one of Les Paul & Mary Ford’s biggest pop hits. Here’s Minnesota’s voice Nancy Harms with “How High The Moon”.

The year is 1940….. The war in Europe provided the subject for one of the few serious moments in the otherwise humorous Broadway revue “Two For The Show”. Sophisticated composers Nancy Hamilton and Morgan Lewis had created a gorgeously complex song that was originally depicted as being sung by a group of Londoners, walking at night, and singing of the moon, the heavens, the music and the joys of life and love…. Only to look up in terror at the sky at the end of the song, followed by a quick curtain, in an obvious reference to the London Blitz. In years to come, the song would transcend it’s early and very specific topical origins to become a favorite of performers as diverse as Charlie Parker and Benny Goodman, a classic anthem of scat for Ella Fitzgerald and one of Les Paul & Mary Ford’s biggest pop hits. Here’s Minnesota’s voice Nancy Harms with “How High The Moon”.