I posted this on the Evening Melancholy Facebook page but wanted to include it here as well. I first heard this song while sitting in a darkened movie theater back in 1988. The movie was Biloxi Blues; the song was the frequently covered “How High the Moon.” I’d heard the song hundreds of times before seeing this movie and thousands of times since. Still, no version crumples me quite like this one. Absolutely stunning in it’s delicate sparseness and emotion.

If you’ve never seen the movie, check it out. It had a profound effect on me, even more so than the Neil Simon play on which it is based. Despite the twenty-plus years that have passed, this song has not lost a bit of its luster.

Ms. Suzuki is still with us. I hope she knows how much she is appreciated.