Jump to content

Baubles, Bangles, & Beads

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"Baubles, Bangles, & Beads" is a popular song from the 1953 musical Kismet, credited to Robert Wright and George Forrest. It's based on an 1881 piece by Russian composer Alexander Borodin.

Background

[edit]

Like almost all the music in that show, the melody was based on works by Alexander Borodin,[1][2] in this case the second theme of the second movement of his String Quartet in D. The "Kismet" setting maintains the original's 3/4 waltz rhythm; pop music settings change the rhythm to a moderate four-beat accompaniment. Jazz musicians are especially drawn to the song's beguiling melody and advanced harmonic structure. The familiar AA'BA+Coda structure of the song is energized by a key change up a major third interval for every section; the transition is marked by a harmonic progression from the central major key of one section to the tritone minor key of the following section.[citation needed]

1953 recordings

[edit]

The best-selling version of the song was recorded by Peggy Lee on September 16, 1953[3] and charted briefly that year.[4] Other versions were recorded that year by Lu Ann Simms and Georgia Gibbs.

Other recordings

[edit]

The song has appeared on numerous albums over the years including:

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Kaye, Colin. Classical Connections: Stolen melodies, www.pattayamail.com, September 3, 2021.
  2. ^ McHugh, Dominic “I’ll Never Know Exactly Who Did What”: Broadway Composers as Musical Collaborators. Journal of the American Musicological Society, Vol. 68, Number 3, pp. 605–652 ISSN 0003-0139, electronic ISSN 1547-3848.
  3. ^ "peggyleediscography.com". peggyleediscography.com. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
  4. ^ Whitburn, Joel (1986). Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890-1954. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 270. ISBN 0-89820-083-0.
  5. ^ "Discogs.com". Discogs.com. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
  6. ^ "The Kirby Stone Four Baubles, Bangles And Beads Chart History". Billboard.com. Archived from the original on May 31, 2019. Retrieved October 28, 2019.
  7. ^ "Discogs.com". Discogs.com. 1960. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
  8. ^ "Borodin, Bangles & Beads" (Borodin's Scherzo from the Quartet n° 2/Baubles, Bangles & Beads) is also on the album Mischief with Mozart - Comical Combat with the Classics (Stradivari Classics).
  9. ^ "SOFIA HOFFMANN NA SMOOTH FM: ENTREVISTA E NOVO ÁLBUM!". Retrieved October 25, 2023.