“Lady Be Good to Me” was painted for the Rourke Art Museum’s Midwestern Exhibition, on the theme, “The American Songbook”.

For those of you who don’t know, “The American Songbook” is a broad term representing music and musicians from the decades of the 20’s all the way to the 60’s and maybe beyond. It highlights the great singers, songwriters and musicians of the time and takes from many styles of music, including jazz standards, Broadway theatre, and Hollywood musicals.

For this theme, I had fully expected to paint a composer’s portrait. Perhaps someone like Cole Porter, or Irving Berlin. Maybe even paint a jazz musician like Duke Ellington or some singer like Ella Fitzgerald. Instead, I opted for choosing a title of a song and painting what that title felt like to me.

The title I chose, was an Ella Fitzgerald song, Lady Be Good, written by George and Ira Gershwin. The singer in the painting, although not Ella, hearkens back to those years of singing in a smoky lounge while listeners perhaps drank cocktails. Some are enthralled with her voice, some listen, some can’t hear for their problems overwhelm. Alcohol and music may just fix what ails them, and soon they are happy again. Maybe they’ll meet a guy, or maybe they’ll meet their girl to be but, Lady Be Good to Me!

Lady Be Good – 1924 – George and Ira Gershwin

Listen to my tale of woe,
it's terribly sad but true,
All dressed up, no place to go
Each ev'ning I'm awf'ly blue.
I must win some handsome guy
Can't go on like this,
I could blossom out I know,
With somebody just like you. So...

Oh, sweet and lovely lady, be good
Oh, lady, be good to me
I am so awf'ly misunderstood
So lady, be good to me

Oh, please have some pity
I'm all alone in this big city

I tell you I'm just a lonesome babe in the wood,
So lady be good to me.

Oh, please have some pity
I'm all alone in this big city

I tell you I'm just a lonesome babe in the wood,
So lady be good to me.

Oh lady be good to me.