Autumn Leaves

Label

Kapp Records

Genre

Standards

Media Type

45

Duration

2:59

Composer(s)

Joseph Kosma

Entered Chart

Aug 20, 1955

Peak Date

Oct 29, 1955

Released

Jun 1955

Recorded

Unknown

Catalog #

Kapp K-116X

B-Side

Take Care

Roger Williams was signed by Dave Kapp of Kapp Records when he heard Williams playing in a hotel lounge. He was asked to change his birth name Louis Jacob Weertz to Roger Williams. Williams released an album The Boy Next Door, which failed to make an impact, and then the song "Autumn Leaves". "Autumn Leaves" was recorded at the suggestion of Kapp one Friday, and Williams, who had previously thought that the song was titled "Falling Leaves", said: "The first thing that came to mind was to play all those runs down the keyboard, I tried to make it sound like falling leaves." He created the arrangement that Friday and the following Saturday night, and recorded the song on Monday. Williams played the tune with descending arpeggios its dominant feature, backed by an orchestra conducted by Glenn Osser. The first recording was just over 3 minutes long, and Kapp suggested that it be sped up to keep it under 3 minutes, which Williams duly did. The song became a number-one hit in the U.S. in 1955, the first piano instrumental to reach number one. It stayed at No. 1 for four weeks in the bestsellers chart. The song is said to have sold two million copies around the world, and it remains the best-selling piano record of all time. Williams re-recorded the tune for Kapp, in stereo and with choral and orchestral backings, to celebrate its 10th anniversary in 1965

instrumental