Ella Fitzgerald, Someone To Watch Over Me | Throwback Vibez

In the 31st edition of Throwback Vibez (2025), we recollect and reflect on “Someone To Watch Over Me” by legendary jazz vocalist, Ella Fitzgerald.   

The vibes, the vibes, those Throwback Vibez ! Throwback Vibez is a column that celebrates awesome songs from the past.  The records that grace this column are older, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re ancient – no fossils ! All genres of music are welcome. In the 31^st edition of Throwback Vibez ️ (2025), we recollect and reflect on “Someone To Watch Over Me” performed by Ella Fitzgerald.

“There’s a saying old, says that love is blind / Still, we’re often told, ‘Seek and ye shall find’ / So, I’m going to seek a certain lad I’ve had in mind.” Aww! Ella Fitzgerald (1917 – 1996) was one of the greatest jazz singers of all-time, PERIOD.  Truly the ‘First Lady of Song,’ she ‘ate’ every time she stepped to the mic – NO CAP! One of her most gorgeous performances is “Someone To Watch Over Me”. “Someone” is the opener from Ella Sings Gershwin released in 1950.  Although the recording is 75 years old, it sounds as beautiful and vibrant as ever. “Someone To Watch Over Me” was famously penned in 1926. George Gershwin (1898 – 1937) composed the music while his brother, Ira Gershwin (1896 – 1983) composed the lyrics.

On “Someone To Watch Over Me,” and the entire Ella Sings Gershwin album, Fitzgerald is accompanied by Ellis Larkin (1923 – 2002) on piano.  The results are magical as Larkin provides a fitting backdrop for Ella to paint those one-in-a-lifetime pipes over. Her tone is radiant – exquisite to the nth degree.  As she sings, nothing sounds forced – everything sounds easy and natural. Her performance is nothing short of stellar.  After setting the tone with the slower pace in the verse (excerpted above), the chorus packs more punch, with a quicker tempo. “There’s a somebody I’m longing to see / I hope that he / Turns out to be / Someone who’ll watch over me,” she sings memorably, continuing, “I’m a little lamb who’s lost in the woods / I know I could / Always be good / To one who’ll watch over me.” “Someone To Watch Over Me” is a timeless standard in the hands of anyone who performs it.  It is extra special in the hands of Ella Fitzgerald.

Ella Fitzgerald // Ella Sings Gershwin // Verve Label Group // 1950

Ella Fitzgerald, Someone To Watch Over Me: Throwback Vibez  No. 31 (2025) [: Brent Faulkner / The Musical Hype; Verve Label Group; AcatXlo, OpenClipart-Vectors, Clker-Free-Vector-Images, Speedy McVroom from Pixabay]