How Little We Know and Hoagy Carmichael

The song, How Little We Know, has been playing in my head for days. And I know the reason: Recently, for the umpteenth time (it's definitely in my top 10 favorite movies), we watched Ernest Hemingway's To Have and Have Not starring Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, and Hoagy Carmichael. Set in 1944 on the island of Martinique under occupation of the Vichy regime, the movie focuses on two Americans who for different reasons find themselves on Martinique and are looking for a way out. This was Bacall's first role and needless to say, the chemistry between Bogart and Bacall was electric. And we get a sense of Hoagy Carmichael's great musical talent.

Carmichael's character is the entertainer at a saloon/hotel in Fort de France where the story centers. We are treated to a couple of well-known songs including- How Little We Know with music by Hoagy Carmichael and lyrics by Johnny Mercer. Here is a good spot to interject the How Little We Know scene with Carmichael on the piano and Bacall singing - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFfuUu5xmMA.

For years, I have been searching for a cover of How Little We Know that seems worthy of the original (which does not seem to be available on CD in acceptable condition). The closest we find to the movie version is from the album Hoagy Carmichael - The First of the Singer Songwriters Key Cuts featuring Anita Boyer. Many singers have had a hand at this song - Sinatra's is so-so. Michael Feinstein, who I've always liked, sounds nearly comatose with his rendition. I recently found an uptempo version by Alan Paul. A tad on the lounge side, but it has a little more life than Feinstein's. I think the tempo is key here and in this case, I still contend the original is by far, the best. The best way I can define the tempo is that of a rhumba-type sway.

I've added both the Anita Boyer version and the more uptempo version as well as another song from the movie - Am I Blue? sung by Carmichael- as well as this clip from the movie -http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9C1vJ2Z8aI0. Enjoy!