“Tea for Two”

March 2nd, 2021

For an ode to innocence and domestic bliss, the story of ‘Tea For Two’ surprisingly leads us to financial embezzlement, the Manson murders, a dilapidated East Hampton mansion, and heroin addiction.

But no dramatic life event should overshadow the talent and spirit of vocalists Doris Day, Anita O’Day, and Edith Beale; each woman brought something unique to ‘Tea For Two.’ And in telling the story of the song, we are treated to the insights of legendary Nashville jazz pianist Beegie Adair.

Sources:
‘Tea For Two,’ Marion Harris, 1924
‘Let Me Off Uptown,’ the Gene Krupa Band with Anita O’Day and Roy Eldridge, 1942
‘Tea For Two,’ Duke Ellington, 1943
‘Tea For Two,’ the Gene Krupa Band with Anita O’Day, 1946
‘It’s A Great Feeling,’ Doris Day, 1949
‘Tea For Two,’ Doris Day, 1950
‘Have You Met Miss Jones,’ Ella Fitzgerald, 1956
‘Let’s Face The Music and Dance,’ Anita O’Day, 1956
‘Tea For Two,’ Anita O’Day, 1958
‘Tea For Two (live at the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival),’ Anita O’Day, 1958
‘Pillow Talk,’ Doris Day, 1959
‘The Way You Look Tonight,’ Anita O’Day, 1959
‘Have You Met Miss Jones,’ Anita O’Day, 1960
‘The Way You Look Tonight,’ Ella Fitzgerald, 1963
‘God Only Knows (instrumental),’ The Beach Boys, 1966
‘Tea For Two,’ Edith Beale from the film Grey Gardens, 1975
‘Tea For Two,’ Beegie Adair and Jack Jezzro, 2010

Dick Cavett, March 1979
The Tomorrow Show with Tom Snyder, January 1980
60 Minutes, June 1980
Fresh Air with Terry Gross, 1987

‘Anita O’Day: Yesterday and O’Day,’ Lara Pellegrinelli Jazz Times April 25, 2019
Singing Jazz: The Singers and Their Styles, Bruce Crowther and Mike Pinfold
Heroes and Villians: Essays on Music, David Hajdu
High Times, Hard Times, Anita O’Day
‘Doris Day’s Public Image,’ Hadley Freeman The Guardian May 14, 2019
The Poets of Tin Pan Alley, Philip Furia

Theme Songs
‘Let’s Face The Music And Dance,’ Ella Fitzgerald, 1958 ‘Let’s Face The Music And Dance,’ Nelson Riddle, 1966