JazzWax

JazzWax

2007-2025

Perfection: Keely Smith - 'The Song Is You' (1958)

Marc Myers's avatar
Marc Myers
Jun 26, 2025
∙ Paid
Share


Few pop singers in the 1950s could swing like Keely Smith. Anita O'Day was certainly one of them, but Smith was the finer vocalist and surely knew more songs and required fewer takes in the studio. In some respects, Smith was the female Frank Sinatra, able to move ahead of the beat, behind it and go a different way on song lines and pull them off.

So man…

Keep reading with a 7-day free trial

Subscribe to JazzWax to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.

Already a paid subscriber? Sign in
© 2025 Marc Myers
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start writingGet the app
Substack is the home for great culture