I Loves You, Porgy is a duet from the 1935 opera Porgy and Bess, with music by George Gershwin and lyrics by Ira Gershwin and DuBose Heyward. It appears in act 2, scene 3 on Catfish Row, where Porgy promises to protect Bess from her abusive lover Crown, as Bess longs for safety and a life with him. The number was introduced at the opera's premiere on September 30, 1935 at the Colonial Theatre in Boston, performed by Anne Brown as Bess and Todd Duncan as Porgy, and they recorded it for Selections from George Gershwin's Folk Opera Porgy and Bess, volume 2, released in 1943. The tune blends opera and jazz and is often described as part of a folk opera; it became a jazz standard after Nina Simone popularized a version on her 1959 debut Little Girl Blue. It has been recorded by many artists including Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Miles Davis with Gil Evans, and Bill Evans.
