Free Lead Sheet – Night And Day

Free Lead Sheet – Night And Day

“Night and Day”: All the Time for a Lively Love Song


“Night And Day” is a masterpiece by Cole Porter, which was written for the 1932 musical Gay Divorce. This song has carried Porter into fame and also debuted Fred Astaire’s comeback to Broadway as a solo act. The song was part of the songs for the play’s Act I.


“Night and Day” is a hit on Broadway and it carried its creator and its singer to fame. It entered the Great American Songbook and a favorite recording song for many artists. Also, Alstaire recording with Leo Reisman orchestra was a hit, debuting at no.1 and staying that position for ten weeks. “Night and Day” became a signature song of Astaire, and he re-recorded it for the play’s movie adaptation The Gay Divorcee in 1934.


The origins of the song are murky. Some say that the song was inspired by a Muslim prayer. Others say it was inspired by Moorish architecture of the Alcazar Hotel in Cleveland Heights, Ohio. Some claim it was a product of inspiration from a mosaic in the Mausoleum of Galla Placidia in Ravenna.


The song has seven stanzas with three lines each. The title words are present in every stanzas, either in the first line or the last line. The song is mostly a love song, and it talks about their love interest in a romantic sense in the song’s lines. Despite the romantic theme, this song is all jazz and pop, making the tune a lively piece of music to sing to one’s beloved.


The song’s construction is also a departure for its age. In the 1930’s most songs would feature a 32-bar chorus, divided into four 8-bar sections. The musical structure would be AABA musical structure, with the B section representing the bridge. In the song’s case, the chorus has 48 bars divided into six sections. The structure is also different, ABABCB, with section C as the bridge.

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