" Speak Low" (1943) is a popular music song composed by Kurt Weill, with lyrics by Ogden Nash.
Background
It was introduced by
Mary Martin and Kenny Baker in the
Broadway theatre musical theatre One Touch of Venus (1943). The 1944 hit single was by
Guy Lombardo and his orchestra, with vocal by Billy Leach.
Ava Gardner (dubbed by
Eileen Wilson) and
Dick Haymes sang the song in the feature film version of
One Touch of Venus (1948).
The tune is a jazz standard that has been widely recorded, both by vocal artists from Billie Holiday and Tony Bennett to the Miracles and Dee Dee Bridgewater, and such instrumentalists as James Moody,
Barbra Streisand version
In 1993, American singer, songwriter, actress and director
Barbra Streisand released a cover of "Speak Low", taken from her twenty-sixth studio album,
Back to Broadway (1993).
Critical reception
Larry Flick from
Billboard magazine wrote, "Tune from
One Touch of Venus has a seductive, shuffling rhythm that blends well with
Johnny Mandel's lush orchestration. As always, Streisand is in exemplary vocal form, and this track will prove a total joy to her devoted legion of fans."
Sam Wood from
Philadelphia Inquirer complimented it as a "lusciously arranged
ballad", and "a sinuous
rhythm-and-blues reinterpretation" that's "probably Streisand's best chance for a radio hit" since "Memory".
[Wood, Sam (29 June 1993). "Streisand is Brilliant with Broadway Tunes". Philadelphia Inquirer.] Richard Harrington from
The Washington Post felt that with Streisand singing low over Mandell's "supple orchestrations, it feels more like a pop song than a show standard."
[Harrington, Richard (27 June 1993). "Streisand's Return: Nothing Subtle, Nothing New". The Washington Post. p. G06.]
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