Fats Waller - Ain't Misbehavin'

Fats Waller (May 21, 1904 – December 15, 1943), born Thomas Wright Waller, was a jazz pianist, organist, composer, singer, and comedic entertainer.
He came from a Harlem household where his father was a Baptist lay preacher and his mother played piano and organ. Waller took up the piano at age six, playing in a school orchestra. After his mother died when he was 14, Waller moved into the home of pianist Russell Brooks, where he met and studied with James P. Johnson. Later, Waller also received classical lessons from Carl Bohm and the famous pianist Leopold Godowsky.

After making his first record at age 18 in 1922, "Birmingham Blues"/"'Muscle Shoals Blues,"" he backed various blues singers and worked as house pianist and organist at rent parties and in movie theaters and clubs. He began to attract attention as a composer during the early- and mid-'20s, forming a most fruitful alliance with lyricist Andy Razaf that resulted in three Broadway shows in the late '20s, Keep Shufflin', Load of Coal, and Hot Chocolates.

Waller was one of the most popular performers of his era, finding critical and commercial success in his homeland and in Europe. He was also a prolific songwriter and many songs he wrote or co-wrote are still popular, such as "Honeysuckle Rose", "Ain't Misbehavin'" and "Squeeze Me". He died pneumonia aboard the train during a tour in December 1943.

Waller influenced a long line of pianists of and after his time, including Count Basie (who studied with Fats), Teddy Wilson, Art Tatum, Thelonious Monk, Dave Brubeck and countless others and his impact has been truly profound.

"Ain't Misbehavin'" is a 1929 song written by Waller, Harry Brooks (music) and Andy Razaf (lyrics). Waller recorded the original version that year for Victor Records and also later performed the song in the 1943 film Stormy Weather It has been recorded by countless other performers over the years, including Anita O'Day, Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis, Kay Starr, Frankie Laine, Art Tatum, Sonny Stitt, Johnnie Ray, Sidney Bechet, Ray Charles, Elkie Brooks, Bill Haley & His Comets (who recorded a rock and roll version in 1957). In 1960 Tommy Bruce and the Bruisers had a #3 hit in the UK with their version of the song.

The original 1929 recording of "Ain't Misbehavin'", by Fats Waller received the Grammy Hall of Fame Award in 1984, and it was one of fifty recordings selected for inclusion in the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress in 2004. In 2001, it was one of 365 Songs of the Century selected by the RIAA.