Spotlight On: Ella Fitzgerald

[Ojai Sam]

It was almost two years ago that I shined the MG spotlight on John Coltrane. I have just embarked on an Ella Fitzgerald listening project and decided that I might as well bring all y'all along.

As with Trane, there will be a discography, based on a very thorough one that appeared online but seems to have vanished.

And of course, a Spotify playlist:

Back tomorrow with the first installment.

 

[Zeeba Neighba]

Really looking forward to this, Sam. As you know I'm a big Ella fan from her jazzy scatting to her song books. Excited!

 

[Ojai Sam]

Really looking forward to this, Sam. As you know I'm a big Ella fan from her jazzy scatting to her song books. Excited!

Thanks, Zeeb. I will be referencing the Jazz Excursion a lot.

 

[Ojai Sam]

ellafitzgerald.com offers a vivid description of Ella's early years:

Humble but happy beginnings
Ella Jane Fitzgerald was born in Newport News, Va. on April 25, 1917. Her father, William, and mother, Temperance (Tempie), parted ways shortly after her birth. Together, Tempie and Ella went to Yonkers, N.Y, where they eventually moved in with Tempie's longtime boyfriend Joseph Da Silva. Ella's half-sister, Frances, was born in 1923 and soon she began referring to Joe as her stepfather.

To support the family, Joe dug ditches and was a part-time chauffeur, while Tempie worked at a laundromat and did some catering. Occasionally, Ella took on small jobs to contribute money as well. Perhaps naïve to the circumstances, Ella worked as a runner for local gamblers, picking up their bets and dropping off money.

Their apartment was in a mixed neighborhood, where Ella made friends easily. She considered herself more of a tomboy, and often joined in the neighborhood games of baseball. Sports aside, she enjoyed dancing and singing with her friends, and some evenings they would take the train into Harlem and watch various acts at the Apollo Theater.

A rough patch
In 1932, Tempie died from serious injuries that she received in a car accident. Ella took the loss very hard. After staying with Joe for a short time, Tempie's sister Virginia took Ella home. Shortly afterward Joe suffered a heart attack and died, and her little sister Frances joined them.

Unable to adjust to the new circumstances, Ella became increasingly unhappy and entered into a difficult period of her life. Her grades dropped dramatically, and she frequently skipped school. After getting into trouble with the police, she was taken into custody and sent to a reform school. Living there was even more unbearable, as she suffered beatings at the hands of her caretakers.

Eventually Ella escaped from the reformatory. The 15-year-old found herself broke and alone during the Great Depression, and strove to endure.

Never one to complain, Ella later reflected on her most difficult years with an appreciation for how they helped her to mature. She used the memories from these times to help gather emotions for performances, and felt she was more grateful for her success because she knew what it was like to struggle in life.

"What's she going to do?"
In 1934 Ella's name was pulled in a weekly drawing at the Apollo and she won the opportunity to compete in Amateur Night. Ella went to the theater that night planning to dance, but when the frenzied Edwards Sisters closed the main show, Ella changed her mind. "They were the dancingest sisters around," Ella said, and she felt her act would not compare.

Once on stage, faced with boos and murmurs of "What's she going to do?" from the rowdy crowd, a scared and disheveled Ella made the last minute decision to sing. She asked the band to play Hoagy Carmichael's "Judy," a song she knew well because Connee Boswell's rendition of it was among Tempie's favorites. Ella quickly quieted the audience, and by the song's end they were demanding an encore. She obliged and sang the flip side of the Boswell Sister's record, "The Object of My Affections."

Off stage, and away from people she knew well, Ella was shy and reserved. She was self-conscious about her appearance, and for a while even doubted the extent of her abilities. On stage, however, Ella was surprised to find she had no fear. She felt at home in the spotlight.

"Once up there, I felt the acceptance and love from my audience," Ella said. "I knew I wanted to sing before people the rest of my life."

In the band that night was saxophonist and arranger Benny Carter. Impressed with her natural talent, he began introducing Ella to people who could help launch her career. In the process he and Ella became lifelong friends, often working together.

Fueled by enthusiastic supporters, Ella began entering - and winning - every talent show she could find. In January 1935 she won the chance to perform for a week with the Tiny Bradshaw band at the Harlem Opera House. It was there that Ella first met drummer and bandleader Chick Webb. Although her voice impressed him, Chick had already hired male singer Charlie Linton for the band. He offered Ella the opportunity to test with his band when they played a dance at Yale University.

"If the kids like her," Chick said, "she stays."

Despite the tough crowd, Ella was a major success, and Chick hired her to travel with the band for $12.50 per week.

 

[Ojai Sam]

PART I - THE DECCA YEARS (1935-1955)

Ella began her recording career as an 18-year old "girl singer" with Chick Webb's hot band which had an extended residency at Harlem's Savoy Ballroom. Between 1935 and Webb's death in 1939, her vocal style matured rapidly over the dozens of sides she waxed.

Here is a nice collection that includes a few instrumentals to give a sense of why Buddy Rich referred to Webb as "the daddy of them all". Dig the drum intro to "Liza":

Ella Fitzgerald with Chick Webb - Swingsation (rec. 1936-39, comp. 1995)

Date: 7 April 1936
Location: New York
Ella Fitzgerald (vc), Mario Bauza, Taft Jordan, Bobby Stark (tp), Claude Jones, Sandy Williams (th), Pete Clark, Edgar Sampson (as), Wayman
Carver (ts), Don Kirkpatrick (p), John Trueheart (g), Bill Thomas (b), Chick Webb (d, end)
61002-A When I Get Low I Get High - 02:27 (Marion Sunshine)
Decca Records 78: 1123

Date: 2 June 1936
Location: New York
Ella Fitzgerald (vc), Mario Bauza, Taft Jordan, Bobby Stark (tp), Claude Jones, Sandy Williams (tb), Pete Clark, Edgar Sampson (as), Wayman
Carver (ts), Don Kirkpatrick (p), John Trueheart (g), Bill Thomas (b), Chick Webb (d, end)
61124-A Sing Me A Swing Song (And Let Me Dance) - 02:58 (Hoagland Howard "Hoagy" Carmichael, Stanley Adams)
Decca Records 78: 830
61125-A A Little Bit Later On - 03:07 (Jarry Levinson, Al Nieberg)
Decca Records 78: 831

Date: 29 October 1936
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald (vc), Mario Bauza, Taft Jordan, Bobby Stark (tp), Claude Jones, Sandy Williams (tb), Pete Clark, Louis Jordan (as), Wayman
Carver (ts), Tommy Fulford (p), John Trueheart (g), Beverly Peer (b), Chick Webb (d, end)
61364-A Vote For Mr. Rhythm - 02:28 (Leo Robin, Ralph Rainger, Al Siegel)
Decca Records 78: 1032

Date: 14 January 1937
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald, Mario Bauza, Taft Jordan, Bobby Stark (tp), Claude Jones, Sandy Williams (tb), Pete Clark, Louis Jordan (as), Wayman Carver (ts), Tommy Fulford (p), Bernard Addison, John Trueheart (g), Beverly Peer (b), Chick Webb (d, end)
61527-A Take Another Guess - 02:43 (Al Sherman, Charles Newman, Murray Mencher)
Decca Records 78: 1123

Date: 24 March 1937
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald (vc), Mario Bauza, Taft Jordan, Bobby Stark (tp), Nat Story, Sandy Williams (tb), Pete Clark (as), Louis Jordan (as, vl), Wayman
Carver (ts), Ted Mcrae (ts, cl), Tommy Fulford (p), John Trueheart (g), Beverly Peer (b), Chick Webb (d, end)
62068-A Clap Hands Here Comes Charlie (Billy Rose, Joseph Meyer, Ballard MacDonald)
Decca Records 78: 1220

Date: 1 November 1937
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald (vc), Mario Bauza, Taft Jordan, Bobby Stark (tp), Claude Jones, Sandy Williams (tb), Pete Clark, Louis Jordan (as), Wayman
Carver (ts), Tommy Fulford (p), Bernard Addison, John Trueheart (g), Beverly Peer (b), Chick Webb (d, end)
62740-A Harlem Conga (Harry White)
Decca Records 78: 1681

Date: 17 December 1937
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald (vc), Mario Bauza, Taft Jordan, Bobby Stark (tp), Nat Story, Sandy Williams (tb), Garvin Bushell, Louis Jordan (as), Wayman
Carver, Ted Mcrae (ts), Chauncey Haughton (cl), Tommy Fulford (p), Bobby Johnson (g), Beverly Peer (b), Chick Webb (d, end), Charlie Dixon
(arr)
62886-A I Want To Be Happy - 04:27 (Vincent Millie Youmans, Irving Caesar, Otto Harbach)
Decca Records 78: 15039

Date: 2 May 1938
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald (vc), Mario Bauza, Taft Jordan, Bobby Stark (tp), Georges Matthews, Nat Story, Sandy Williams (tb), Garvin Bushell, Louis
Jordan (as), Wayman Carver, Ted Mcrae (ts), Chauncey Haughton (cl), Tommy Fulford (p), Bobby Johnson (g), Beverly Peer (b), Chick Webb (d,
end), Charlie Dixon (arr)
63693-A A-Tisket A-Tasket - 02:35 (Ella Fitzgerald, Van Alexander)
Decca Records 78: 1840
63695-A I'm Just A Jitterbug - 03:18 (Mack David, Jerry Livingstone)
Decca Records 78: 1899

Date: 3 May 1938
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald (vc), Taft Jordan (tp), Sandy Williams (tb), Pete Clark, Louis Jordan (as), Ted Mcrae (bs), Tommy Fulford (p), Bobby Johnson (g),
Beverly Peer (b), Chick Webb (d)
63708-A Liza (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin, Gus Kahn)
Decca Records 78: 1840

Date: 17 August 1938
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald (vc), Mario Bauza, Taft Jordan, Bobby Stark (tp), Georges Matthews, Nat Story, Sandy Williams (tb), Garvin Bushell, Hilton
Jefferson (as), Wayman Carver, Ted Mcrae (ts), Tommy Fulford (p), Bobby Johnson (g), Beverly Peer (b), Chick Webb (d, end)
64459-A Wacky Dust - 03 :04 (Stanley Adams, Oscar Levant)
Decca Records 78: 2021

Date: 17 February 1939
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald (vc), Taft Jordan, Bobby Stark, Dick Vance (tp), Georges Matthews, Nat Story, Sandy Williams (tb), Garvin Bushell, Hilton
Jefferson (as), Wayman Carver, Ted Mcrae (ts), Tommy Fulford (p), Bobby Johnson (g), Beverly Peer (b), Chick Webb (d, end)
65039-A Undecided - 03:15 (Charles Shavers, Sidney "Sid" Robin)
Decca Records 78: 2323
65040-A 'Tain't What You Do (It's The Way That You Do It)- 03:02 (James Young, Sy Oliver)
Decca Records 78: 2310

 

[Ojai Sam]

On the death of Chick Webb in 1939, Ella took over his band despite being just 22 years old. She rebranded it as "Ella Fitzgerald and Her Famous Orchestra", continuing to develop her vocal style over the course of a strenuous recording schedule for Decca.

This comprehensive collection from GRP begins with a few late Webb sides and then sallies forth into the Famous Orchestra era. Play special attention to the "Savoy Eight" songs. Most of the big bands at the time had small breakout groups. Think Benny Goodman's Trio and Quartet, Tommy Dorsey's Clambake Seven, Artie Shaw's Gramercy Five and so on. Ella had a different focus, though. Where the other "bands within a band" concentrated on small group jazz instrumentals, The Savoy Eight arrangements were designed strictly to highlight Ella's vocals. They represent the earliest rumblings of the tidal wave that would in a few years sweep away the big band era in favor of solo vocalists.

Ella Fitzgerald - The Early Years Part 2 (rec. 1939-41, comp. 1993)

Date: 17 February 1939
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald (vc), Taft Jordan, Bobby Stark, Dick Vance (tp), Georges Matthews, Nat Story, Sandy Williams (tb), Garvin Bushell, Hilton
Jefferson (as), Wayman Carver, Ted Mcrae (ts), Tommy Fulford (p), Bobby Johnson (g), Beverly Peer (b), Chick Webb (d, end)
65039-A Undecided - 03:15 (Charles Shavers, Sidney "Sid" Robin)
Decca Records 78: 2323
65040-A 'Tain't What You Do (It's The Way That You Do It)- 03:02 (James Young, Sy Oliver)
Decca Records 78: 2310
65043-A My Heart Belongs To Daddy - 03:07 (Cole Albert Porter)
Decca Records 78: 2309

Date: 2 March 1939
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Replace Bobby Johnson with John Truehart (g)
65097-A Chew-Chew-Chew (Chew Your Bubble Gum) - 03 :02 ( Chick Webb, Buck Ram, Ella Fitzgerald)
Decca Records 78: 2389

Date: 21 April 1939
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Replace John Trueheart with Bobby Johnson (g)
65441-A Don't Worry About Me - 03:09 (Theodore "Ted" Koehler, Rube Bloom)
Decca Records 78: 2451
65444-A If You Ever Change Your Mind- 03 :02 (Mayme Watts, Green, Sigler)
Decca Records 78: 2481
65446-A Little White Lies - 02:56 (Walter Donaldson)
Decca Records 78: 2556
65447-A Coochi-Coochi-Coo - 03 :03 (Kay Werner, Sue Werner)
Decca Records 78: 2803

Date: 29 June 1939
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Replace Bobby Johnson with John Trueheart (g), Chick Webb with Bill Beason (d)
65903-A Betcha Nickel - 02:57 (Ella Fitzgerald, Chick Webb)
Decca Records 78: 2904
5904-A Stairway To The Stars - 03: 12 (Frank Signorelli, Matt Malnek, Mitchell Parish)
Decca Records 78: 2598
65905-A I Want The Waiter (With The Water) - 03:08 (Kay Werner, Sue Werner)
Decca Records 78: 2628
65907-A Out Of Nowhere - 02:54 (Johnny Green, Edward Heyman)
Decca Records 78: 2598

Date: 18 August 1939
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Same personnel
66134-A My Last Goodbye - 03 :20 (Bart Howard)
Decca Records 78: 2721
66135-A Billy (I Always Dream Of Billy) - 02:42 (James Kendis, Herman Paley, Joe Goodwin)
Decca Records 78: 2769

Date: 12 October 1939
Location: Chicago
Label: Decca Records
Same personnel
91836-A You're Gonna Lose Your Gal - 03:06 (James Monaco, Victor Young)
Decca Records 78: 2816
91837-A What Can I Say After I Say I'm Sorry - 02:48 (Walter Donaldson, Abe Lymen)
Decca Records 78: 2826
91841-A Moon Ray - 03:03 (Nat Madison, Artie Shaw, Arthur Quenzer)
Decca Records 78: 2904

Date: 26 January 1940
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
same personnel
67120-A Sugar Blues - 02:50
Decca Records 78: 3078
67121-A The Starlit Hour - 03:09 (Peter DeRose, Mitchell Parish)
Decca Records 78: 2988
67122-A What's The Matter With Me - 02:58 (Terry Shand, Samuel M. Lewis)
Decca Records 78: 3005

Date: 15 February 1940
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Replace Bobby Stark with Irving Randolph (tp), Nat Story with John Haughton (tb), Gavin Bushell & Hilton Jefferson with Eddie Barefield (as) and Chauncey Haughton (as, cl), add Sam Simmons (ts), replace Tommy Fulford with Roger Ramirez (p)
67195-A Baby, Won't You Please Come Home - 02:31 (Clarence Williams, Charles Warfield)
Decca Records 78: 3186
67196-A If lt Weren't For You - 03:00 (Vic Mizzy, Irving Taylor)
Decca Records 78: 3126
67198-A Imagination - 02:59 (Johnny Burke, Jimmy Van Heusen)
Decca Records 78: 3078

Date: 9 May 1940
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald (vc), Taft Jordan, Irving Randolph, Dick Vance (tp), Jimmy Archey, Floyd Brady, John McConnell (tb), Pete Clark, Chauncey
Haughton (as, cl), Ted Mcrae (ts, bs), Sam Simmons (ts), Tommy Fulford (p), John Trueheart (g), Beverly Peer (b), Bill Beason (d)
67699-A Deedle-Dee-Dum - 02:40 (Ella Fitzgerald, Donald Kahn, Flynn, Waters)
unissued
67700-A Shake Down The Stars - 02:48 (Jimmy Van Heusen, Edgar "Eddie" Delange)
Decca Records 78: 3199
67701-A Gulf Coast Blues - 03:01 (Clarence Williams)
unissued

Date: 25 September 1940
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald (vc), Taft Jordan, Irving Randolph, Dick Vance (tp), Earl Hardy, Georges Matthews, John McConnell (tb), Pete Clark, Chauncey
Haughton (as, cl), Ted Mcrae (ts, bs), Sam Simmons (ts), Tommy Fulford (p), Ulysses Livingston (g), Beverly Peer (b), Bill Beason (d)
68146-A The Five O'Clock Whistle - 02:53 (Josef Myrow, Kim Gannon, Gene Irwin)
Decca Records 78: 3420
68148-A Louisville, K-Y - 03:06 (Skyler)
Decca Records 78: 3441

Date: 8 November 1940
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Add George Dorsey (as)
68329-A Taking A Chance On Love - 03:06 (John Latouche, Vernon Duke, Ted Fetter)
Decca Records 78: 3490
68330-A Cabin In The Sky - 02:44 (Vernon Duke, John Latouche)
Decca Records 78: 3490
68331-A I'm The Lonesomest Gal In Town - 02:36 (Von Tilzer, Les Brown)
Decca Records 78: 3666

Date: 8 January 1941
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
same personnel
68558-A Three Little Words - 02:36 (Bert Kalmar, Herman "Hany" Ruby)
Decca Records 78: 3608
68561-A The One I Love Belongs To Somebody Else - 03:01 (Richard Jones, Donald Kahn)
Decca Records 78: 3608
68562-A The Muffin Man - 02:26
Decca Records 78: 3666

Date: 31 March 1941
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
same personnel
68894-A Keep Cool, Fool - 03:03 (Snysow, Doc Rhythm)
Decca Records 78: 3754
68895-A No Nothing - 03:08 (Ben Ryan, Lou Handman, Mann Kurtz)
Decca Records 78: 3754
c. 68896-A My Man - 03:06 (Maurice Yvain, Channing Pollock)
Decca Records 78: 4291

Date: 31 July 1941
Location: Los Angeles
Label: Decca Records
add Elmer Williams (ts), replace Bill Beason with Jesse Price (d)
DLA-2607-A I Can't Believe That You're In Love With Me - 02:30 (Clarence Gaskill, Jimmy McHugh)
Decca Records 78: 18421
DLA-2608- I Must Have That Man - 03 :05 (Jimmy McHugh, Dorothy Fields)
Decca Records 78: 18530
DLA-2609-A When My Sugar Walks Down The Street - 02:38 (Gene Austin, Jimmy McHugh, Irving Mills)
Decca Records 78: 18587
DLA-2610-A I Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good)- 02:53 (Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington, Paul Francis Webster)
Decca Records 78: 3968
DLA-2612-A Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man - 02:45 (Jerome David Kem, Oscar Greeley Glendenning Hammerstein II)
Decca Records 78: 18421

 

[Ojai Sam]

In preparing for next week's post, it occurred to me that The Early Years - Part 2 might seem like Ella overload for such a brief period in her long career.

My thought was that these recordings together offer the best way to understand her rapid evolution from big band appendage to song stylist. However, for those who want only the bottom line, here are two key songs:

"Deedle-De-Dum"

This is the earliest example I've found of Ella singing scat. The song itself is a hopelessly mediocre novelty. Realizing this, Ella tears it apart in the final verse and makes history in the process.

"My Man"

Only Ella was able to warble throwaway big band filler like "No, Nothing" and then in the same session deliver an emotional reading of this French evergreen, popularized here by Fanny Brice.

These two songs would chart Ella's path for the remainder of her career.

 

[Ojai Sam]

With this week's installment, Ella leaves the big band era behind. By the early 40's, swing had become a stylistic dead end, with the notable exception of innovators like Stan Kenton and Duke Ellington. The military draft and travel restrictions imposed by WWII accelerated this trend. These sessions cover the duration of the war perfectly, beginning two months before Pearl Harbor and ending two weeks after V-J Day.

Gone is the Famous Orchestra in favor of the small, jazzy groups she would employ until the end of her career. Tommy Fulford, whose tenure went all the way back to the Chick Webb days, stuck around on piano. Decca Records loved to mix and match their artists, so we find Ella sharing the mic with The Ink Spots, The Delta Rhythm Boys, The Keys and The Song Spinners, male vocal groups that were highly successful in their own right. Randy Brooks' high-powered jazz band pops in for the last date.

Ella Fitzgerald - The War Years, Part 1 (rec. 1941-45, comp. 1994)

Date: 6 October 1941
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald (vc), Ted Mcrae (ts), Tommy Fulford (p), Ulysses Livingston (g), Beverly Peer (b), Kenny Clarke (d)
a. 69784-A Jim - 02:57 (Milton Samuels, Nelson Shawn, Caesar Petrillo)
b. 69785-A This Love Of Mine - 02:52 (Frank Sinatra, Barry Parker, Henry W. Sanicola)
Both titles on: - Decca Records 78: 4007

Date: 28 October 1941
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald (vc), Eddie Barefield (as), Tommy Fulford (p), Ulysses Livingston (g), Beverly Peer (b), Bill Beason (d)
a. 69875-A Somebody Nobody Loves - 03:09 (Ned Miller)
b. 69876-A You Don't Know What Love Is - 03:22 (Gene DePaul, Don Raye)
Both titles on: Decca Records 78: 4082

Date: 5 November 1941
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald (vc), Eddie Barefield (as), Tommy Fulford (p), Ulysses Livingston (g), Beverly Peer (b), Bill Beason (d)
c. 69907-A Make Love To Me - 02:45 (Kim Gannon, David Mann, George David Weiss)
Decca Records 78: 4073

Date: 10 April 1942
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald & The Keys (Bill Furness (vc, p), Peck Furness (vc, b), Slim Furness (vc, g), Ernie Hatfield (vc, d)
Tommy Fulford (p)
b. 70653-A Mama Come Home - 02:40 (Edgar Battle, Kim Gannon, Josef Myrow)
Decca Records 78: 18437

Date: 31 July 1942
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald & The Keys (Bill Furness (vc, p), Peck Furness (vc, b), Slim Furness (vc, g), Ernie Hatfield (vc, d)
Tommy Fulford (p)
a. 71286-A My Heart And I Decided - 02:59 (Walter Donaldson)
Decca Records 78: 18530
c. 71288-A He's My Guy- 03:16 (Don Raye, Gene DePaul)
Decca Records 78: 18472

Date: 3 November 1943
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald & The Ink Spots (Charles Fuqua, Orville "Happy" Jones, Bill Kenny, Howard McGhee, Ivory Watson)
Bill Doggett (p), Bernie Mackey (g), Bob Haggart (b ), Johnny Blowers ( d)
a. 71482-A Cow Cow Boogie - 02:52 (Benny Carter, Don Raye, Gene DePaul)
Decca Records 78: 18587

Date: 20 March 1944
Location: Chicago
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald (vc), Unknown Studio Orchestra
a. 71889-A Once Too Often - 02:55 (Mack Gordon, James Monaco)
b. 71890-A Time Alone Will Tell - 03 :05 (Mack Gordon, James Monaco)
Both titles on: Decca Records 78: 18605

Date: 30 August 1944
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald & The Ink Spots (Charles Fuqua, Orville "Happy" Jones, Bill Kenny, Ivory Watson)
Unknown Studio Orchestra
a. 72370-A Into Each Life Some Rain Must Fall - 03:06 (Doris Fisher, Allan Roberts)
b. 72371-A I'm Making Believe - 03:09 (James Monaco, Mack Gordon)
Both titles on: - Decca Records 78: 23356

Date: 6 November 1944
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald & The Song Spinners (vc)
Johnny Long Orchestra
a. 72483-A And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine - 03 :21 (Joe Greene, Stan Kenton, Jack Lawrence)
b. 72484-A I'm Confessin' That I Love You - 03:21 (Don Dougherty, Ellis Reynolds, Al J. Neiburg)
Both titles on: - Decca Records 78: 18633

Date: 26 February 1945
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald & The Ink Spots (Charles Fuqua, Orville "Happy" Jones, Bill Kenny, Ivory Watson),
Unknown Studio Orchestra
a. 72746-A I'm Beginning To See The Light - 02:41 (Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington, Don George, Johnny Hodges, Harry Hagg James)
b. 72747-A That's The Way It Is - 03:15 (Joan Whitney, Alex Kramer)
Both Titles On: Decca Records 78: 23399

Date: 27 March 1945
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald & The Delta Rhythm Boys (Lee Gaines, Carl Jones, Traverse Crawford, Kelsey Pharr)
Renee De Knight (tp), Hi White (g), Haig Stephens (b), George Wettling (d)
a. 72798-A It's Only A Paper Moon - 02:33 (Harold Arlen, Edgar Yzpsel Harburg, Billy Rose)
c. 72800-A Cry You Out Of My Heart - 02:43 (Hi Heath, Richard Loring, Johnny Lange)
Both titles on: Decca Records 78: 23425

Date: 29 August 1945
Location: New York
Label: Decca Records
Ella Fitzgerald (vc)
Randy Brooks Orchestra (Randy Brooks (bl, tp), George Bardon, Ernie Englund (tp), Harry Brooks (tb), Paul Bardon, Eddie Caine (as), Stuart Anderson, John Lesko (ts), Eddie Shomer (bs), Shorty Allen (p), Paul Lajoie (b), Sonny Mann (d))
a. 73020-A A Kiss Goodnight - 03:04 (Reba H. Herman, Floyd Victor, Freddie Slack)
b. 73021-A Benny's Coming Home On Saturday - 03 :22 (Dan Fisher, Jay Roberts)
Both titles on: - Decca Records 78: 18713