Johnny Mandel & Johnny Mercer= EMILY: A number of songs have been written using female names in their titles. Along with David Raksin's " Laura", one of the finest is a 1964 movie song from " The Americanization of Emily." It starred Julie Andrews as a British wartime driver and James Garner as and James Garner as a Naval officer who could get anything for anybody, especially his admiral played by Melvin Douglas.
It is a perfect marriage of an exquiste melody and lyrics by Mercer that gently link the words "family, dreamily and Emily with Mandel's repeated main melodic motif centered on the word " Emily."
Johnny Mandel continues to write quality songs like " Where Do You Start?", & " You Are There" in addition to earlier film songs like " The Shadow of Your Smile" and " A Time For Love". Jenness & Velsey have stated that Mandel has " A melodic gift, while controlled, is so stunning that one takes for granted the sophistication of the harmony-until one thinks of how many another composer might have squandered the first by failing at the second." (David Jenness and Don Velsey " Classic American Popular Song. The Second Half Century 1950-2000)
The version you will hear is with Tony Bennett in an arrangement that is also conducted by Johnny Mandel, the composer of the song.
LINK: http://youtu.be/3H00RUW9PI8
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