Too Young to Go Steady is a 1950s pop and jazz standard written by Jimmy McHugh with lyrics by Harold Adamson. It was first released as a single by Nat King Cole with an orchestra conducted by Nelson Riddle in February 1956. The song, sung in English, is built on a classic 32-bar AABA form with a bridge in the mediant and is known for using the I-vi-ii-V progression that defined many tunes of the era. Over the years it has been recorded by a wide range of artists from vocalists like Patti Page and James Darren to instrumentalists such as John Coltrane and Pharoah Sanders, illustrating its enduring flexibility. The tune is celebrated for its opportunities for harmonic variation and its status as a beloved jazz standard from the 50s.
