You Don't Know What Love Is
This article is about the song written by Gene de Paul. For the song by the White Stripes of the same name, see You Don't Know What Love Is (You Just Do as You're Told).
"You Don't Know What Love Is," a popular song of the Great American Songbook, written by Don Raye (lyrics) and Gene de Paul (music) for the Abbott and Costello picture Keep 'Em Flying (1941), in which it was sung by Carol Bruce. The number was deleted prior to release.
Universal later added the song into the Raye/de Paul score of one of its B musicals, the 60-minute Behind the Eight Ball (1942), starring the Ritz Brothers and re-teaming Carol Bruce and Dick Foran from "Keep 'Em Flying." "You Don't Know What Love Is" was again sung by Carol Bruce; it was her third and final film until the 1980s.
Notable recordings
| Date | Main recording artist | Featured vocalists (or instrumental) |
Album title, notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1939 | Earl Hines and His Orchestra feat. Billy Eckstine | Billy Eckstine | |
| 1941 | Ella Fitzgerald | Ella Fitzgerald | 10" shellac single (Decca) |
| 1941 | Harry James and His Orchestra | Dick Haymes | 10" shellac single (Columbia), recorded on October 29, 1941 in New York |
| 1945 | Billy Eckstine Orchestra | Billy Eckstine | |
| 1952 | Billy Eckstine with the MGM Orchestra | Billy Eckstine | |
| 1949-54 | Teddi King | (instrumental) | In the Beginning, 1949-1954 (compilation, 2000) |
| 1954 | Miles Davis All Stars | (instrumental) | Walkin' |
| 1955 | Chet Baker (Quartet) | Chet Baker | Chet Baker Sings and Plays |
| 1955 | Dinah Washington | Dinah Washington | For Those in Love with a septet arranged by Quincy Jones |
| 1956 | J.J. Johnson & Kai Winding | (instrumental) | Jay and Kai + 6: The Jay and Kai Trombone Octet, the song arranged by Winding |
| 1956 | Anita O'Day | Anita O'Day | An Evening with Anita O'Day with a quartet |
| 1956 | Sonny Rollins (Quartet) | (instrumental) | Saxophone Colossus, a hard bop classic |
| 1957 | Dick Haymes with orchestra cond. by Ian Bernard | Dick Haymes | Moondreams (Capitol), The Complete Capitol Collection (2006) |
| 1957 | Specs Powell and Co. | (instrumental) | Movin In, big band arranged by Ray Copeland |
| 1958 | Billie Holiday with orch. led by Ray Ellis | Billie Holiday | Lady in Satin, arrangements by Ray Ellis |
| 1959 | Chris Connor | Chris Connor | Witchcraft |
| 1959 | Andy Williams | Andy Williams | Lonely Street |
| 1960 | Linda Lawson | Linda Lawson | Introducing Linda Lawson |
| 1960 | Helen Merrill | Helen Merrill | Parole e musica |
| 1960 | Mal Waldron | (instrumental) | Left Alone |
| 1960 | Lennie Tristano | (instrumental) | The New Tristano |
| 1961 | Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers | (instrumental) | Art Blakey!!!!! Jazz Messengers!!!!! |
| 1961 | Eric Dolphy | (instrumental) | The Latin Jazz Quintet |
| 1962 | John Coltrane | (instrumental) | Ballads |
| 1961 | Marvin Gaye | Marvin Gaye | The Soulful Moods of Marvin Gaye |
| 1964 | Eric Dolphy | (instrumental) | Last Date |
| 1965 | Lennie Tristano | (instrumental) | Concert in Copenhagen (released 1998) |
| 1966 | Booker Ervin | (instrumental) | Heavy!!! |
| 1966 | Eric Kloss | (instrumental) | Grits & Gravy |
| 1968 | Lee Konitz with Joe Henderson | (instrumental) | Duets |
| 1969 | Larry Coryell | (instrumental) | Larry Coryell |
| 1989 | George Benson | (instrumental) | Tenderly |
| 1989 | June Tabor | June Tabor | Some Other Time |
| 1991 | Roy Hargrove | (instrumental) | Public Eye |
| 1991 | Wynton Marsalis | (instrumental) | Standard Time, Vol. 2: Intimacy Calling |
| 1992 | Chuck Brown (and Eva Cassidy) | Chuck Brown | The Other Side |
| 1993 | Giorgia Todrani | Giorgia Todrani | Natural Woman (Live in Rome) |
| 1993 | Cassandra Wilson | Cassandra Wilson | Blue Light 'til Dawn |
| 1994 | Keith Jarrett (Standards Trio) | (instrumental) | Keith Jarrett at the Blue Note |
| 1995 | Rachelle Ferrell | Rachelle Ferrell | First Instrument |
| 1997 | Miki Howard | Miki Howard | Can't Count Me Out |
| 1999 | Etta James | Etta James | Heart of a Woman |
| 1999 | Stéphan Oliva / François Raulin | (instrumental) | Tristano |
| 2000 | John Martyn | John Martyn | Glasgow Walker |
| 2002 | Jimmy Scott | Jimmy Scott | But Beautiful |
| 2003 | Eyran Katsenelenbogen | Eyran Katsenelenbogen | It's Reigning Kats & Dogs & Bogen |
| 2003 | Chucho Valdés | (instrumental) | New Conceptions |
| 2003 | Muriel Zoe | Muriel Zoe | Red and Blue |
| 2009 | Diamanda Galás | Diamanda Galás | You Don't Know What Love Is |
| 2011 | John Scofield (Quartet) | (instrumental) | A Moment's Peace |
| 2011 | Wily Bo Walker Quintet feat. Teddy Charles | Wily Bo Walker | You Don't Know What Love Is, arranged by Danny Flam |
| 2014 | Andrew Cohen feat. Joan Osborne | Joan Osborne | Rite of Passage |