Doris Day

I just remember the time I walked out of Argy’s with an old scratchy copy of Doris Day’s Greatest Hits, for which I probably paid $1.00. That may have been the same day I bought Eddy Arnold’s Greatest Hits, maybe even that Patty Duke album.

Later I picked up a CD collection called Doris Day: Her Greatest Hits And Finest Performances. It was a Reader’s Digest collection that I found at the Henderson Library. I didn’t go there a lot, but it wasn’t far from the EI office that I had to go to, when I had to go to the EI office.

And all the songs that were on Greatest Hits were on the Reader’s Digest box, so that made it easy. It’s here in its entirety. Move Over Darling comes from a compilation cassette of UK singles from the 60s.

And Doris Day? Well I can’t say I’ve ever felt any particular affinity for her music, though her voice is surprisingly sexy sometimes, and I used to not watch her TV show.

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Doris Day:

• I’ll Never Stop Loving You – This lush ballad was a hit in the summer of 1955.
• It’s Magic
• Whatever Will Be, Will Be (Que Sera Sera) – Her signature song, was a hit in the summer of ’56. She used it as the theme of the TV show she had in the 60s, the one I didn’t watch. It's always been a bit too happy for my tastes.
• A Guy Is A Guy – This was a big one. The lyrics are hilarious. So listen while I tell what this guy did to me, she sings. I can only imagine. He followed her down the street for one thing. Sounds like a stalker.
• Shanghai – It was just a lover’s device. I’ve never been to Shanghai, and neither, apparently, has Doris Day. Another major hit from the early 50s.
• Little Girl Blue – Well, Judy Garland did this too.
• Secret Love – Billy Stewart did an outrageous version of this
• Quiet Night Of Quiet Stars (Corcovado) – How romantic. This is slightly Bossa Nova.
• Fly Me To The Moon – Doris takes a crack at this. She doesn’t do too badly either. A hit for Joe Harnell.
• My Dreams Are Getting Better All The Time
• Teacher’s Pet – Think of Teach Me Tonight by The DeCastro Sisters. Something very unwholesome about this. From the spring of 1958.
• I’m Not At All In Love – I don’t know what musical this is from, but it’s definitely from some musical. It has that la-de-da musical crap written all over it.
• When I Fall In Love – A nice take on this, which was a hit for The Lettermen, and recorded by many.
• I’ll See You In My Dreams
• April In Paris – I’ve never been to Paris, not in April nor at any other time. A hit for Count Basie in 1956.
• Sugarbush – I’m not sure who the guy is on this but I’m guessing Gary Crosby. And what is a sugarbush, anyway?
• The Party’s Over – I’ll take Julie London on this one. From the winter of ’56 / ’57.
• Lover Come Back – From the spring of ’62.
• Everybody Loves A Lover – A big one from the summer of 1958. The Shirelles covered this.
• It Had To Be You – A standard from, like, the 30s. Harry Nilsson recorded it on A Little Touch Of Schmilsson In The Night.
• My One And Only Love
• My Romance
• Love Somebody – Not to be confused with The Bee Gees’ To Love Somebody.
• Lullaby Of Broadway
• Cuttin’ Capers
• Fools Rush In – A very slow reading of this. It was a hit later for Rick Nelson and for Fabian.
• Softly As I Leave You – I don’t know that this songs works all that well when sung by a woman. Still it’s nice.
• Moonlight Bay – We were sailing aloooongggg….
• If I Give My Heart To You – The Beatles rewrote this and called it If I Fell.
• Bewitched – Another of her big ones. Ella Fitzgerald did this also.
• Love Me Or Leave Me – A UK hit in the fall of ’59. A hit also for Sammy Davis Jr.
• Move Over Darling – Another UK hit, this one in the spring of ’64. This has a slight girl-group feel to it.