Stormy Weather - Lena Horne

And now time for another classic - Stormy Weather.  The song was written in 1933, but the book gives us its seminal version as sung by Lena Horne for the 1943 movie of the same name.  Miss Lena was a legend of stage and screen, performing on Broadway (even winning herself a Tony award) and being in movies.  Lena's life had its own 'stormy weather' (see what I did there?) and she met with difficulties not only because she was mixed race (White, Black, First Nations) but she was also blacklisted in the 1950s due to her political inclinations and her friendship with fellow leftist sympathizer Paul Robeson.  Lena was able to recover from this and maintained her popularity right until her death in 2010.

Stormy Weather is a classic - some of you fellow high school music nerds probably remember drippy arrangements for 'jazz' band and choir, thanks to the likes of Sammy Nestico and Kirby Shaw.  As mentioned before,  the melancholy song was originally written in 1933, but was made famous by the version heard here, as well as Billie Holiday's version (which we are mercifully not listening to.  Sorry Billie.)  Lena's version was included in AFI's 100 Years 100 Songs, ranking at number 30.

Our thoughts now.

Holly:

Stormy Weather (Lena Horne): Stormy Weather is another Harold Arlen classic. It sounds a lot like a less optimistic Somewhere Over the Rainbow. I’m going to admit to never having been a big Lena Horne fan. She always seems a bit syrupy and lacking in real emotion in her music. This song is not bad, but there are much better arrangements out there in my opinion. Just listen to Billie Holiday’s version, for instance. The instrumentation and backing band are well less cheesy as well. Admittedly a good song, but not my favourite version. 2.5/5

Kelly:

I like this song.  I also have penchant for things that are a little more on the sad side of life, but I love the video of Lena in her billowy dress, singing of her troubles.  Musically speaking, I think it's a really interesting melody, and the orchestration is pretty good.  I'm not super crazy about Lena's voice, but again, I think it's just the aesthetic of the times.  This song also holds a special place in my heart, as my best friend plays a really great Bill Evans-inspired version on the ol' piano.  It's a classic, but I shan't be adding it to the song library.  3/5

Stormy Weather - Lena Horne