Willow Weep for Me

 It’s uncommon for a songwriter to dedicate a composition to another composer, but Ann Ronell said she had to dedicate her 1932 masterpiece to her friend and mentor George Gershwin. ““George was sacred to me,” she said many years later. “He was my idol. I became like a sister to the family, and I was his protege.” And, man, what a wonderful song to speak to anybody’s memory. Ann’s “Willow Weep for Me” has been lovingly treated by nearly every jazz great of the past 90 years, from Art Tatum and Sarah Vaughn to Louis Armstrong and Billie Holiday, from Wes Montgomery and Tony Bennett to Oscar Peterson and Etta James. So, here’s the tune from a recent Flood rehearsal. Listen as Veezy Coffman sketches out Ronell’s beautiful melody and takes the first flight, then hands it off to Doug Chaffin for a couple of choruses before the two of them bring it on back home.