"Ain't Misbehaving"
By Thomas "Fats" Waller
As with many jazz songs, “Ain’t Misbehavin’” leaves a lot of room for the performer to add their own personality into their performance of the song. When Thomas “Fats” Waller performs this song, he does just that. His performance almost makes the love song seem more humorous than other performances make it out to be. He adds in a few extra “for you”s, a blubber to his version of the line “believe me,” and he excites the bridge that he adds into the song. Even his facial expressions add a little bit of "Waller spice" to the song.
The bridge in Fats’ performance is unforgettable. He completely changes the tone of the song after the first chorus for a moment that gets the listener to get up and dance. It adds a swing style to an otherwise “small movement dance” song. This recording of his performance shows the changes in dance style that go along with the changes in music.
I love the style of Thomas “Fats” Waller’s performance of this song. His voice easily captures the attention of the listener. He puts a large amount of energy into his performance. He engulfs the intended, common sound of a love song from the early twentieth century, while also making an original sound that is expected in jazz music.
Good choice! This is a great jazz standard, and I'm so glad that you mentioned the special flair that Fats provided in his performance. I agree with pretty much everything that you said, and especially liked your observation of the humor added by Waller to an otherwise more serious song. Very clever. One of my personal favorite aspects of this selection is the piano solo over the drum track after Waller takes a break in his singing.
ReplyDeleteI loved this song! I think it's a fantastic piece that not only sounds wonderful with the jazzy menagerie that joins the solo instrumentalists later in the song, but Fats is able to tell a story with so much emotion that after listening to it multiple times I don't know if I should feel sad, happy, optimistic, all of the above, or none of the above. Thank you for your input on such a wonderful song
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