I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart is a 1938 Duke Ellington composition in the swing big band style, with lyrics later added by Irving Mills, Henry Nemo and John Redmond. Ellington recorded the instrumental version for Brunswick in New York on March 3, 1938, and a vocal take followed later that month. It became Ellington’s number one hit in 1938, and the song was featured in The Cotton Club Parade of 1938. Other charting versions that year came from Benny Goodman with Martha Tilton, Jimmy Dorsey with June Richmond, Connee Boswell, Hot Lips Page, and Mildred Bailey. The tune is known for its beguiling melody and lush Ellington arrangement, with solo highlights from Johnny Hodges and Harry Carney and a memorable band feel throughout. Over the years it has been recorded by many artists and appears on various albums and arrangements, including a notable 1955 version by Conrad Gozzo, making it a lasting standard of the jazz and swing repertoire.
