Misty (song): History and Key Facts

"Misty" is a jazz standard written and originally recorded in 1954 by pianist Erroll Garner. He composed it as an instrumental in the traditional 32-bar format, and recorded it on July 27, 1954, for the album Contrasts. Lyrics were added later by Johnny Burke. It appeared on Johnny Mathis's 1959 album Heavenly, and this recording reached number 12 on the US Pop Singles chart later that year. It has since become one of Mathis's signature songs.

The song has been recorded by many other artists, including versions by Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan. Ray Stevens released a hit country version in 1975. Recordings by both Johnny Mathis and Erroll Garner have been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. It was ranked number 174 in the list of the Songs of the Century compiled by Recording Industry Association of America and National Endowment for the Arts.

Source and attribution

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