I Won't Dance is a Jerome Kern tune that has become a jazz standard with two different lyric sets. The original lyrics were written in 1934 by Oscar Hammerstein II and Otto Harbach for the London musical Three Sisters, which flopped. In 1935 Dorothy Fields and Jimmy McHugh rewrote the lyrics for the film Roberta, and the song is best known for Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers performing it there. The piece was first performed live by Adele Dixon in 1934 and first recorded by Eddy Duchin and His Orchestra in February 1935. It is usually classified as a jazz standard or pop standard from the Great American Songbook. Notable recordings include Frank Sinatra on A Swingin' Affair! (1957), Ella Fitzgerald on Ella Swings Brightly with Nelson Riddle (1962), Jane Monheit with Michael Bublé on Taking a Chance on Love (2004), Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga on Cheek to Cheek (2014), and Willie Nelson with Diana Krall on That's Life (2021). The Roberta film version helped cement its place in musical film history and the tune continues to be performed in concerts, revivals, and modern recordings.
