# Angel Eyes (1946 song)

"Angel Eyes" is a 1946 popular song composed by Matt Dennis, with lyrics by Earl K. Brent. It was introduced in the 1953 film Jennifer. In the film, Matt Dennis sings the song and accompanies himself on piano, while Ida Lupino and Howard Duff among others are dancing to it.

## Composition

"Angel Eyes" is a jazz standard which has inspired many interpretations. Many singers have recorded versions of the song, including Nat King Cole (already in 1953), Frank Sinatra, June Christy with Stan Kenton, Chet Baker, Shirley Bassey, Neil Sedaka, Willie Nelson with Ray Charles, and Sting. Ella Fitzgerald, who recorded "Angel Eyes" at least four times, named it her favorite song. Instrumental versions were recorded not as often as vocal takes, by the likes of Benny Carter, the Modern Jazz Quartet, Dave Brubeck, Kenny Burrell, McCoy Tyner, Joe Lovano, Gary Thomas, and more recently by Tyshawn Sorey, and Pat Metheny.

## Selected recorded versions

| Performer | Album | Year |
| Karrin Allyson | In Blue | 2002 |
| Gene Ammons | Angel Eyes | 1960 |
| Ernestine Anderson | Ernestine Anderson Swings the Penthouse | 2015 |
| Chet Baker with Len Mercer and His Orchestra | Chet Baker with Fifty Italian Strings | 1960 |
| Shirley Bassey | Shirley Bassey | 1961 |
| Cheryl Bentyne and Rob Wasserman | Duets | 1988 |
| James Booker | Classified | 1982 |
| Dee Dee Bridgewater | Keeping Tradition | 1993 |
| The Dave Brubeck Quartet | Angel Eyes | 1966 |
| Ray Bryant | Ray Bryant Trio | 1957 |
| Kenny Burrell | Blues – The Common Ground | 1968 |
| Royce Campbell | Trioing | 2002 |
| Benny Carter | Cosmopolite | 1954 |
| June Christy | Impromptu | 1977 |
| Nat King Cole with Billy May and His Orchestra | single | 1953 |
| Chris Connor | Chris in Person | 1959 |
| Hank Crawford | More Soul | 1961 |
| Sonny Criss | Saturday Morning | 1975 |
| Matt Dennis | Matt Dennis Plays and Sings Matt Dennis | 1954 |
| Paul Desmond | Glad to Be Unhappy | 1965 |
| Ray Draper with John Coltrane | A Tuba Jazz | 1959 |
| Kat Edmonson | Take to the Sky | 2009 |
| Eliane Elias | Love Stories | 2019 |
| Ella Fitzgerald | Ella in Rome: The Birthday Concert | 1958 |
| Roberta Flack | Roberta | 1994 |
| Fonseca | Sinfónico | 2014 |
| The Four Freshmen | Four Freshmen and 5 Trombones | 1955 |
| Earl Grant | Beyond the Reef | 1962 |
| Jim Hall | Jim Hall Live! | 1975 |
| Jack Jones | Wives and Lovers | 1959 |
| Stan Kenton and June Christy | Road Show | 1959 |
| Moe Koffman | Devil's Brew | 1996 |
| k.d. lang | We All Love Ella: Celebrating the First Lady of Song | 2007 |
| Yusef Lateef | The Dreamer | 1959 |
| Joe Lovano | Rush Hour | 1994 |
| Barry Manilow | Manilow Sings Sinatra | 1998 |
| Wynton Marsalis with Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers | Wynton Marsalis' First Recordings | 1980 |
| Johnny Mathis | Johnny Mathis | 1956 |
| Pat Metheny | MoonDial | 2024 |
| Mina Mazzini | Mina | 1964 |
| Carmen McRae | Book of Ballads | 1960 |
| Helen Merrill with Gary Peacock Trio | Sposin' | 1971 |
| The Modern Jazz Quartet | Fontessa | 1956 |
| Mark Murphy | Rah! | 1961 |
| Willie Nelson with Ray Charles | Angel Eyes | 1984 |
| Willie Nelson | American Classic | 2009 |
| Phineas Newborn Jr. | Phineas' Rainbow | 1957 |
| Anita O'Day | Waiter, Make Mine Blues | 1960 |
| Duke Pearson | Angel Eyes | 1968 |
| Oscar Peterson | Pastel Moods | 1956 |
| Sue Raney | Breathless! | 1997 |
| Jimmy Scott | All the Way | 1992 |
| Neil Sedaka | Circulate | 1961 |
| George Shearing | Favorite Things | 1997 |
| Frank Sinatra | Frank Sinatra Sings for Only the Lonely | 1958 |
| Jimmy Smith | Angel Eyes: Ballads & Slow Jams | 1996 |
| Tyshawn Sorey | Continuing | 2023 |
| Kandace Springs with Norah Jones | The Women Who Raised Me | 2020 |
| Sting | Leaving Las Vegas | 1995 |
| Gary Thomas | Till We Have Faces | 1992 |
| Bob Thompson | Just for Kicks | 1959 |
| Rebecka Törnqvist | A Night Like This | 1993 |
| McCoy Tyner | The Turning Point | 1991 |
| Nancy Wilson | Welcome to My Love | 1968 |
| Pat Metheny | MoonDial | 2024 |