I chose “All of Me,” by Billie Holiday because I knew she was one of a few jazz vocalists to sing the song, and I could not get the Frank Sinatra version out of my head. I have always liked the message that this song has, which I believe is one of a spent body used up by an ended romance. Billie Holiday’s voice adds a more somber tone to the song, which I didn’t get with the Sinatra version.
The lyrics of the song are interesting because the person in the song is throwing herself at the feet of the lover. She cannot go on without the lover, so she rhetorically asks the lover why he doesn’t take all of her since he already took her heart. Then, she adds drama to the situation by listing the body parts that he can take one at a time (“Billie Holiday,” 2009). It’s classic romantic tragedy.
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"Jazz History – “All of Me” by Billie Holiday".
This is a slow jazz song of honest expression. She is expressing her defeat and her heartbreak. Her voice comes out like a melodic moan, and she does a great job of keeping her voice at the same tempo as the music. In defeat, the song almost reads like a finalization of the emotion. By asking, “Why not take all of me?” the singer identifies that she has been wronged by her lover (“Billie Holiday,” 2009). She places the blame on the lover, and in so doing pushes him into the past.
This song is played in medium swing. This can be heard on a YouTube video, and I detected it through the cymbals, which are played lightly throughout the song. I could hear the triplets containing one quarter note followed by two eight notes. It complements the tone of the song, which is a classic jazz piece.
