When you hear the words “Great American Songbook,” which artists immediately leap to mind? Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole, Ella Fitzgerald, and Tony Bennett, to name a few, would be the most likely candidates. But one more worthy singer can be added to the list: Johnny Hartman, an under appreciated baritone jazz singer who never experienced the success he deserved.
Born in Chicago in 1923, Hartman began singing in the church choir and high school glee club before receiving a scholarship for the Chicago Musical College. However, he was soon drafted into the Army, serving during World War II. After his tour of duty he resumed his music career, winning a singing contest run by pianist and bandleader Earl “Fatha” Hines. Subsequently he joined Hines’ band,; after that group disbanded, he toured with legends Dizzy Gillespie and Erroll Garner. Not feeling comfortable with bebop, he established a solo career and recorded several respected but low-selling albums.
The turning point in his career arrived when he recorded an album with John Coltrane; their stunningly bare arrangements lent new emotion to songs such as “Lush Life” and “Isn’t It Wonderful.” Despite the album’s accolades, Hartman still struggled to find success, but he kept recording until his death in 1981.
I first encountered Hartman when watching the film The Bridges of Madison County (a rare instance of a film dramatically improving upon the novel, but I digress). During the scene where Meryl Streep’s and Clint Eastwood’s characters finally succumb to temptation, Hartman’s “I See Your Face Before Me” plays in the background. His deep, rich voice immediately captured my attention; his simple but effective phrasing conveys unabashed romanticism and desire. When that film ended, I knew I had to delve into the Hartman catalog to explore further.
A wonderful starting point is Priceless Jazz Collection: Johnny Hartman, which provides a complete overview of his most important recordings. “The More I See You” demonstrates that he can swing as well as croon ballads, while “In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning” contains a perfectly sleepy, lonely, late night feeling with Hartman’s warm vocals. The Johnny Hartman Collection also culls material from his many albums, particularly his early material. As previously mentioned, The Bridges of Madison County soundtrack includes many Hartman recordings, including “I See Your Face Before Me” as well as the breathtakingly gorgeous “For All We Know.” His smooth, deep voice drips with sensuality and pure romance, which makes this version among the best.
Article comments
1 - Karen Stoessel
Hey Kit. Thanks for the discovery. I'll have to check out Mr. Hartman although not much of a jazz fan. I'm enjoying your columns and find it fascinating that you keep finding the complete unknowns...at least to me...and am making them known to one that thought she knew them all! Thanks and keep up the good work!
2 - bliffle
IMO Hartman is better than Sinatra, who I consider overrated. One never grows tired of Hartmans clean open sound, whereas Sinatras little stunts grow irritating over time.
FWIW, I think Sinatras best recording was "All or Nothing At All", the one he recorded solo during the Petrillo music strike. I think it was 1942.
3 - Beth Ann
Great American songbook? Don't forget Judy Garland!!!
4 - Buzz
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5 - Blackmon
mr HARTMAN WAS A VERY DYNAMIC VOCALIST WITH A VOICE EVEN BETTER THAN OLE BLUE EYES ,DUE TO RAMPANT RACISIM ,HE WEA IGNORED.TOO BAD ANOTHER OPPERTUNITY LOST TO AMERICKA,DUE TO STUPIDITY,AND FEAR.
6 - bliffle
Johnny Hartman didn't always have the best material, for whatever reason. The songs weren't always as well written as "They Say That Falling In Love Is Wonderful", for example, and I don't know whether that was because of repertoire choices or because he didn't have writers of the astuteness of Sinatra. There are a number of songs that were well suited to Hartman that he never recorded.
Maybe Sinatra got good collaboration because he was a million dollar property early on, whereas Hartman, being black, was just a thousand dollar property.
7 - Rob J
Johnny Hartman's problem was that his vocal style was out of sync in the late 50s and early 60s,with the emergence of Soul music via Tamla Motown. He was heavily influenced by Billy Eckstine, another glorious singer who was also in commercial decline.
To be fair to Sinatra, he would have recognised Hartman as a great talent, but FS had a head start careerwise and in his heyday rarely picked a dud song.
As good as his joint venture with Coltrane, black audiences in the US would have been checking out Ray Charles, Motown and James Brown.
Sadly, Johnny was out of place and time....
8 - John Wilson
Too bad that Norman Granz or someone like that didn't put together some superlative Hartman sessions.
9 - Gregg Akkerman
Greetings Kit. It seems this is an appropriate place to mention Johnny Hartman's biography that will be released July 3, 2012. It addresses everything mentioned in comments here and much more. "The Last Balladeer: The Johnny Hartman Story."
10 - Igor
I'm looking forward to the Hartman biog, especially if I can get it in audio format.
Meanwhile, "They Say That Falling In Love Is Wonderful".