JAZZ NOTE # 10 – BABY IT’S FREAKIN COLD OUTSIDE

Baby, It's Cold Outside

The other day I took out the garbage.  And as I headed inside, I noticed a mound of snow, which had been piling since early December, was now over my head.  I took this as a bad sign.  If Punxsutawney Phil lived in Minnesota, he would certainly wait until July before moving to Mexico.  The weatherperson verified this sentiment the other night.  She said that spring will be delayed because the endless acres of fallen snow will act as a giant fridge when warmer winds appear.  But that’s many days away.  Today its four degrees above zero.  Like Vu, I find January to be about survival. 

“Baby, it’s Cold Outside,” a song that toggles between love and frostbite, is an appropriate song for this time of year.  I knew it was a popular ballad, but I was surprised how many people have recorded it.  At I-Tunes I found artists as varied as Tony Bennett, Dean Martin, Lady Antebellum and Jessica Simpson.  For being a song about two lovers there is some strange pairings.  After all, can you mentally picture Norah Jones making out with Willie Nelson?  How about Zooey Deschanel and Leon Redbone?  Then there is the talk show host, Regis Philbin and The Dukes of Hazzard actor, Tom Wopat.  (No, they didn’t sing the duet together. They just appeared in the search.)

Then there is Louis Armstrong and Vilma Middleton with a live rendition on “Satchmo at Pasadena.”  Teamed with his All Stars like Jack Teagarden, Barney Bigard and Earl Hines, Armstrong seems to be more in the mood to entertain than to demonstrate his technical virtuosity.  And although the concert took place on January 30^th, 1951, I don’t think there is anything remarkably brutal when it comes to winter weather in southern California.  No matter.  Armstrong’s jovial tit-a-tat with Middleton and his band mates is a fun time.  Take a listen.  It's pretty funny.  It sure beats being stuck in a snowdrift. 

Dave