The Girl I Love
- Appears on: Come Explore With Me
- Composer: George Gershwin
- Lyricist: Ira Gershwin
- Year Written: 1924
About This Recording (AKA The Man I Love)
The Girl I Love (often known as The Man I Love) has always felt compelling and special to me, but I wasn’t sure how to approach it from the male perspective until Tony Bennett showed me the way. His interpretation proved that the emotional core of The Girl I Love transcends gender.
It’s remarkable how deep and moody popular music became in the 1920s. The Girl I Love almost begins with a vamp, then shifts mysteriously to minor without the melody changing. That harmonic twist gives the piece its haunting, slightly unsettled feel.
Barbra Streisand and Sarah Vaughan also informed my approach. From them, I learned how to let the yearning in the lyric breathe while keeping the phrasing elegant. But I also wanted to bring something unexpected. I heard an almost thumping, simple punk bassline beneath the drama that could anchor the performance in styles I understood, but without overwhelming it.
Around that time, I had recently discovered Dominican bachata and was inspired by its rhythmic possibilities. The result was an unusual but well-defined acoustic guitar strum pattern that underpins my version of The Girl I Love, weaving a subtle Latin pulse beneath the jazz standard’s refined melody.
Craig Levy and I did consider whether the key might be too low, but the logistics of the fretboard — and my desire to avoid using a capo (yes, I did for “Stardust”) — convinced us to keep it. I like leaving space in the key so as not to strain the voice when the high notes come, a technique I learned from Sinatra.
The Girl I Love – ChordPro
mathematicaCopyEdit{title:The Girl I Love}
{subtitle:George and Ira Gershwin}
[E]Someday she'll come along [Em]the girl I love; [Bm]Her smile will be a song, [C#+]the girl I love; [Am]And when she comes my way, [B7]I'll do my best to [Emaj7]make [F-]her [F#9]stay.[B7]
[E]I'll look at her and smile, [Em]she'll understand; [Bm]And in a little while [C#+]I'll take her hand; [Am]And though it seems absurd, [B7]I know we both won't [E]say [Am]a [E]word.[G#7]
[C#m]Maybe I shall meet her [Eb7]Sunday, [G#7]maybe [C#m]Monday, maybe [G#7]not. [C#m]Still I'm sure to meet her [Eb7]one day; [G#7]maybe [C#m]Tuesday [F-]will be [Amaj7]my good [B7]news day.
[E]I'll build a little home, [Em]just meant for two, [Bm]from which we'll never roam; [C#+]Who would, would you? [Am]And so all else above, [B7]I'm waiting for the [F#7]girl [Fmaj7]I [E]love.
{define: F#7 5 1 1 1 2}
{define: Fmaj7 4 1 1 1 3}
{define: Emaj7 3 1 1 1 3}
{tag: George & Ira Gershwin}
{tag: 1924}
Related Songs from Come Explore With Me
Learn more about the history of “The Man I Love” on the official Gershwin website.
