This paper examines three landmark recordings of the 1934 Rodgers and Hart standard "Blue Moon," tracing the song's evolution from its origins at MGM through covers by the Boswell Sisters, Elvis Presley, and Rod Stewart. By analyzing each version's instrumentation, phrasing, lyrical choices, and emotional tone, the paper demonstrates how a single composition can be radically transformed by its interpreters. The Boswell Sisters' 1935 recording stays close to the original's hopeful spirit; Elvis's 1954 Sun Studios version strips the song to its loneliest core; and Rod Stewart's 2008 collaboration with Eric Clapton returns to the song's optimistic roots while adding new introductory verses.
An American popular music classic, "Blue Moon" has been covered countless times. The most famous version is arguably the one performed by Elvis Presley, but both older and newer recordings offer unique interpretations. The original "Blue Moon" was written by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart in 1934, when the songwriters were under contract to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM). The song underwent four incarnations before Rodgers and Hart penned the version that would become a commercial success.
The first incarnation of the song was entitled "Prayer," and was written for a film called Hollywood Party. According to the LorenzHart.org website, "In its second life the 'Prayer/Blue Moon' tune was given new lyrics and became the title song of the 1934 MGM film Manhattan Melodrama, which starred Clark Gable, William Powell, and Myrna Loy… the song was also known as 'It's Just That Kind of Play,' but was cut from the film before it was ready for release" ("Blue Moon: by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart," n.d.).
One of the earliest commercial recordings of "Blue Moon" not performed for the movie industry was by the Boswell Sisters. A New Orleans-based jazz trio, the Boswell Sisters recorded "Blue Moon" in 1935. During the famed 1954 Sun recording studio sessions, Elvis Presley recorded a haunting version of "Blue Moon" that remains an industry standard. Elvis's first "Blue Moon" recording was released in 1956. Since then, "Blue Moon" has been covered by numerous artists, including Rod Stewart. In spite of Stewart's rock and roll background, his 2008 cover of the Rodgers and Hart ballad comes across as a soft jazz tune. Each of these three versions testifies to the extraordinary versatility of the original song.
The Boswell Sisters' version may be truer to the original than any other, given that it was recorded only a year after Rodgers and Hart wrote the first version of "Prayer." In the Boswell Sisters' 1935 recording, the phrasing is nicely relaxed, almost syncopated. The overall feel is languid, which evokes the theme of moonlight. Instrumentation is sparse, including strings, some upper-register woodwinds, and soft piano in the background playing both rhythm and bass line. The Boswell Sisters' recording is a pleasant and gentle version, yet without assuming a blues pattern. The Victor Young Orchestra plays the accompanying instruments, giving the song the feel of classic American lounge jazz. That jazzy tone is in keeping with the New Orleans roots of the Boswell Sisters.
Tinged with a touch of melancholy, the sisters sing lines like "without a dream in my heart, without a love of my own" in a heartfelt way. Yet the sisters also express the song's theme of hope and the fulfillment of prayer beautifully. Most notably, the sisters sing the line "when I looked, the moon had turned to gold." The emphasis on the word "gold" is offered in a slightly higher register than the rest of the line. This uplifting note parallels the implication that the narrator's prayers for finding "a love of my own" were answered — even if it took a rare blue moon.
When Elvis Presley recorded "Blue Moon" at the Sun recording sessions in the mid-1950s, the blues had become part of the American music vocabulary. It can be said that the "blue" was being put into "Blue Moon." Ironically, however, Elvis's recording is not played to a blues scale. The phrasing remains relatively true to the original version. What Elvis does to change the song, though, is nothing short of remarkable; his cover is wholly unique.
"Sparse bass and drums evoke lone cowboy imagery"
"2008 cover restores hopefulness with added verses"
Each of these three versions of a 1934 composition by movie music producers Rodgers and Hart conveys a slightly different message. The mood of "Blue Moon" is decidedly melancholy no matter the version. About loneliness and the rarity of true love, "Blue Moon" is packed with emotion even in versions sung with the original lyrics, when the prayer has been answered. Elvis Presley's version takes "Blue Moon" a step further by retaining the lonely theme and skipping over the lines in which the moon turns to gold. All three versions offer valid and moving interpretations of an American classic ballad.
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