Nostalgia for Days Long Past

A terrible nightmare shocked me awake this morning and left a lingering shadow on the rest of the day.

To banish the gloom, I went out for a walk and then sat down to read. A duo on guitar and muted trumpet were playing jazz at 'wichcraft near NYU. The location didn't seem right but the guys strung together standards that got my mind and ear wandering between sets.

Running through my head were some of my favorite versions of Tin Pan Alley hits and crooner classics: "Witchcraft" by Frank Sinatra, "Soon" by Sammy Davis Jr., and probably the hottest 90 seconds in a movie about down and out piano bar players, Michelle Pfeiffer singing "More Than You Know."

The New York that inspired so many of these songs is long gone now, but the music lives on.

Oscar Peterson and Ella Fitzgerald perform the complete piece, written by Vincent Youmans, with lyrics by Billy Rose and Edward Eliscu for the musical "Great Day!"