I Don't Know Enough About You
“I Don’t Know Enough About You” is the first song co-written by Peggy to become a chart hit, reaching the #7 position on Billboard’s charts in May of 1946. She recorded it for commercial release by Capitol Records on December 26, 1945, and revisited it for a radio transcription version in July 1946. She sang it regularly on radio in the 1940s, filmed it for Snader Telescriptions in 1950 (see “Listen” link above), recorded a new version for Decca Records in 1956, and included it in nightclub and concert performances throughout her long career.
Describing her development as a songwriter in her autobiography, Peggy wrote that “it was Johnny Mercer who felt the songs had strong potential. He was right. When I was working on ‘I Don’t Know Enough About You’ he made some wonderfully constructive comments. He advised me to tear it all apart and do it over again. It really was fun reconstructing it, and it was a vast improvement. That was probably one of my best instructions on construction – by a master.” This is one of six Lee lyrics selected by Robert Gottlieb and Robert Kimball for inclusion in their anthology Reading Lyrics (Pantheon Books, 2000).
The Mills Brothers were among the first to cover “I Don’t Know Enough About You,” for Decca Records in 1946, after Dave Barbour played it for them one day in a recording studio. Benny Goodman and His Orchestra recorded it for Columbia in 1946 with vocalist Art Lund, who had been Peggy’s duet partner during her 1941-43 employment with Goodman. Georgia Gibbs performed it on radio in 1946. Later vocal versions include Brook Benton, Stephen Bishop, Jeanie Bryson, Paul Carrack, Rita Coolidge, Johnny Desmond, Connie Evingson, Lannie Garrett, Banu Gibson, Jack Jones, Diana Krall, Russell Malone, Jessica Molaskey, Maria Muldaur, Della Reese, Janet Seidel, Ian Shaw, Stacy Sullivan and Laura Theodore.
Describing her development as a songwriter in her autobiography, Peggy wrote that “it was Johnny Mercer who felt the songs had strong potential. He was right. When I was working on ‘I Don’t Know Enough About You’ he made some wonderfully constructive comments. He advised me to tear it all apart and do it over again. It really was fun reconstructing it, and it was a vast improvement. That was probably one of my best instructions on construction – by a master.” This is one of six Lee lyrics selected by Robert Gottlieb and Robert Kimball for inclusion in their anthology Reading Lyrics (Pantheon Books, 2000).
The Mills Brothers were among the first to cover “I Don’t Know Enough About You,” for Decca Records in 1946, after Dave Barbour played it for them one day in a recording studio. Benny Goodman and His Orchestra recorded it for Columbia in 1946 with vocalist Art Lund, who had been Peggy’s duet partner during her 1941-43 employment with Goodman. Georgia Gibbs performed it on radio in 1946. Later vocal versions include Brook Benton, Stephen Bishop, Jeanie Bryson, Paul Carrack, Rita Coolidge, Johnny Desmond, Connie Evingson, Lannie Garrett, Banu Gibson, Jack Jones, Diana Krall, Russell Malone, Jessica Molaskey, Maria Muldaur, Della Reese, Janet Seidel, Ian Shaw, Stacy Sullivan and Laura Theodore.