Free Jazz Standard Sheet Music Downloads

"Lover" was composed by Richard Rodgers with lyrics by Lorenz Hart for the 1932 film Love Me Tonight, where it was sung by Jeanette MacDonald. Originally conceived as a Viennese waltz, it was soon transformed by jazz musicians into a swinging vehicle performed at a variety of tempos.

The tune follows a 32-bar AABA form (with some extended variants), originally in the key of D major. Its most striking feature is the chromatically descending melody line in the A sections, which creates a thrilling sense of unpredictability as it steps down through unexpected harmonic territory. The song works brilliantly both as a waltz and as an up-tempo 4/4 swing, the latter providing a virtuosic platform for high-speed improvisation. The abundant chromatic movement in the harmony demands considerable technical and harmonic sophistication from performers.

Notable jazz recordings include Peggy Lee's vocal version, John Coltrane's aggressive tenor saxophone interpretation, and Ella Fitzgerald's sparkling rendition on Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Rodgers and Hart Songbook (1956).