Céline Dion - Summertime - 2006 - MDA Telethon

Summertime" is an aria composed in 1934 by George Gershwin for the 1935 opera Porgy and Bess. The lyrics are by DuBose Heyward, the author of the novel Porgy on which the opera was based, and Ira Gershwin.[1]

The song soon became a popular and much-recorded jazz standard, described as "without doubt ... one of the finest songs the composer ever wrote ... Gershwin's highly evocative writing brilliantly mixes elements of jazz and the song styles of blacks in the southeast United States from the early twentieth century".[2] Composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim characterized Heyward's lyrics for "Summertime" and "My Man's Gone Now" as "the best lyrics in the musical theater".
Statistics for the number of recordings of "Summertime" vary by source; while older data is restricted to commercial releases, newer sources may include versions self-published online. The Jazz Discography in 2005 listed 1,161 official releases, ranking the song fourth among jazz standards.[12] Joe Nocera in 2012 said there were "over 25,000" recordings.[13] Guinness World Records lists the website's 2017 figure of 67,591 as the world record total.[14]

Other versions to make the pop charts include those by:

In September 1936, a recording by Billie Holiday was the first to hit the US pop charts, reaching no. 12.[6]
Sam Cooke (US no. 81, 1957)
Al Martino (UK no. 49, 1960)
The Marcels (US no. 78, 1961)
Ricky Nelson (US no. 89, 1962)
The version, perhaps, considered the ultimate standard for this song is that sung by Mahalia Jackson, known as The Queen of Gospel, who infused the lyrics with her powerful and spiritual voice. Additionally, she has sung Summertime and Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child in tandem; and, there are recordings of this.
The Chris Columbo Quintet (US no. 93, 1963).[15][16]
The most commercially successful version was by Billy Stewart, whose scat-laden R&B version reached no. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100, and no. 7 on the R&B chart in 1966;[17] his version reached no. 39 in the UK[18] and no. 13 in Canada.
Big Brother and the Holding Company's version featuring Janis Joplin on vocals has been highly praised.[19][20]
In Britain, a version by the Fun Boy Three reached no. 18 on the UK Singles Chart in 1982.[21]
In 1998, Chaka Khan's contribution on Joe Henderson's 1997 album Porgy & Bess earned a nomination for the 40th Grammy Awards for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.[22]
In 2005,Fantasia Barrino's version earned a nomination for the Grammy Award for Best Traditional R&B Performance.[23]
In 1997, American ska punk band Sublime released the single "Doin' Time", which sampled the Herbie Mann recording of "Summertime". "Doin' Time" peaked at number 87 on the Hot 100 in 1998.[24]
The version by Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald, released on their 1959 album Porgy and Bess, was certified Silver by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) in 2022