"The Shadow of Your Smile", also known as "Love Theme from The Sandpiper", is a popular song and jazz standard with music by Johnny Mandel and lyrics by Paul Francis Webster. The song was introduced in the 1965 film The Sandpiper and later became an Easy Listening hit for Tony Bennett in a version arranged and conducted by Mandel. It won the Grammy Award for Song of the Year and the Academy Award for Best Original Song.
Background Johnny Mandel wrote the "Love Theme from The Sandpiper" as part of the score for the film, and his first choice to write the lyrics was Johnny Mercer. The film's producer, however, was unhappy with what Mercer submitted and hired Paul Francis Webster. After Mercer heard what Webster wrote, he said, "I figured with 'The Shadow of Your Smile' he was in love with a lady with a mustache."
In The Sandpiper The music from the film was conducted by Robert Armbruster and produced by Quincy Jones. The song is heard over the opening credits as an instrumental with jazz trumpeter Jack Sheldon playing the melody. A chorus sings the song over the closing credits. In a review of the soundtrack album, the editors of Billboard magazine described the song as "wistful".
Tony Bennett version The first rendition of the song to become a chart hit was by Tony Bennett, who recorded it on September 26, 1965, with piano accompaniment by Jimmy Rowles and an orchestra conducted by Mandel, who also arranged the music. It was produced by Ernie Altschuler and Allen Stanton and included on The Movie Song Album in 1966.
Chart performance Bennett's recording debuted on Billboard's Easy Listening chart in the issue dated November 13, 1965, and got as high as number 28 during its 13 weeks there. Select Adult Contemporary from drop down list. The November 20 issue included its first appearance on the Billboard Hot 100, where it peaked at number 95 over the course of six weeks.
Critical reception In their review column, the editors of Cash Box magazine featured the single as a Pick of the Week, which was their equivalent to a letter grade of A for both "The Shadow of Your Smile" and its B-side, "I'll Miss Her When I Think of Her". They described Bennett's recording of "The Shadow of Your Smile" as a "top-drawer reading" and wrote, "The chanter dishes up the moody, romantic ballad in his distinctive, full-bodied commanding style." The editors of Billboard wrote that it was "given the special warm Bennett treatment with the potential and appeal of 'I Left My Heart in San Francisco'. A winner all the way!" In a retrospective review for AllMusic, William Ruhlmann wrote that "in 'The Shadow of Your Smile'…, Bennett found material worthy of him".
Charts + Weekly chart performance for "The Shadow of Your Smile" by Tony Bennett Chart (1965) PeakpositionUS Billboard Easy Listening8
Awards and accolades At the 8th Annual Grammy Awards, "The Shadow of Your Smile" was recognized in three categories. Bennett received a nomination for Best Vocal Performance, Male. His recording was also up for Record of the Year. Mandel and Webster won for Song of the Year, beating out "Yesterday" by the Beatles.. Alan Livingston, the head of Capitol Records (the Beatles' US label), complained about the decision, saying that "Yesterday" losing Song of the Year "makes a mockery of the whole event".
"The Shadow of Your Smile" also won the Academy Award for Best Original Song at the 38th Academy Awards, where it was sung by Barbara McNair.. It was also nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song. In 2004, it finished at number 77 in AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs poll of the top tunes in American cinema.
Johnny Mathis version Johnny Mathis recorded the song on January 12, 1966, with an orchestra conducted by Jack Elliott, who also arranged the music. It was produced by Don Rieber for his album The Shadow of Your Smile.
Chart performance Mathis's recording of the song "The Shadow of Your Smile" debuted on Music Vendor magazine's Going Up – Heading for the Top 100 chart in the issue dated April 23, 1966, and peaked at number 117 during its seven weeks there..
Critical reception In reviews of the album of the same name, Variety wrote, "Mathis does very well by the title song". Billboard noted, "The beautiful ballad from The Sandpiper serves as the title tune and basis for the LP."
Charts + Weekly chart performance for "The Shadow of Your Smile" by Johnny Mathis Chart (1966) Peakposition US Going Up – Heading for the Top 100 (Music Vendor)117
Lou Rawls version Lou Rawls recorded the song in front of an invited audience at Capitol Studios in Hollywood for his 1966 album Live! on January 31 and February 1 of that year. It was produced by David Axelrod and featured Tommy Strode on piano, Herb Ellis on guitar, Jimmy Bond on bass and Earl Palmer on drums.
Chart performance Rawls's recording spent two weeks in July 1966 on Billboards R&B chart, during which time it peaked at number 33. It reached number 23 on Cash Box magazine's R&B chart.
Critical reception In their review of Live!, the editors of Billboard described the recording as a "memorable rendition". In a retrospective review, AllMusic's Craig Lytle described the arrangement as "moderately paced" and wrote, "But Rawls loses no steam; he romances the lyric with vehemence."
Charts + Weekly chart performance for "The Shadow of Your Smile" by Lou Rawls Chart (1966) PeakpositionUS Billboard R&B Singles33 US Cash Box Top 50 R&B23
Boots Randolph version Boots Randolph recorded "The Shadow of Your Smile" for his 1966 album Boots with Strings on which his saxophone provided the melody before a chorus assisted with background vocals. The album was produced by Fred Foster.
Chart performance Randolph's recording debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 in the issue of the magazine dated December 24, 1966, and peaked at number 93 during its three weeks there. In that same issue, it became his first song to appear on the magazine's Easy Listening chart, where it spent six weeks and got as high as number 28.. It reached number 91 on Cash Box magazine's best seller list and number 90 on the Top 100 Pop Sales and Performance chart in Music Vendor magazine..
Critical reception "The Shadow of Your Smile" was singled out in two reviews of Boots with Strings. The editors of Cash Box listed the song as one on which Randolph "plays a smooth, flowing sax which is backed by lush string arrangements". The editors of Billboard wrote that it was "highly danceable".
Charts + Weekly chart performance for "The Shadow of Your Smile" by Boots Randolph Chart (1966–1967) PeakpositionUS Billboard Easy Listening28US Billboard Hot 10093 US Top 100 Best Selling Tunes on Records (Cash Box)91 US Top 100 Pop Sales and Performance (Music Vendor)90
Notable cover versions In his 2012 book The Jazz Standards: A Guide to the Repertoire, jazz critic Ted Gioia describes the structure of "The Shadow of Your Smile" in relation to how it should be performed:
Gioia gives Astrud Gilberto, who covered the song on her 1965 album of the same name, as an example of a singer whose "intimate delivery is perfectly suited for the song". He recommended the recordings on 1965's Bumpin' by Wes Montgomery and 1966's I'm All Smiles by Hampton Hawes and had comments on three versions from 1967. The Bill Evans recording on Further Conversations with Myself "possessed the right temperament", the rendition on Blues Etude by Oscar Peterson "shines", and "a very sensitive reading" was performed by Lou Donaldson with Blue Mitchell and Dr. Lonnie Smith on Mr. Shing-a-Ling.
Gioia also noted, "The retrospective nature of the lyrics, which celebrate a love past rather than a current passion, perhaps endears this song to performers in their golden years." He recommended three covers from albums recorded by musicians who had reached a certain age: Benny Carter was 87 in 1995 when he recorded New York Nights; Hank Jones was 83 when he cut the song with Elvin Jones for Someday My Prince Will Come in 2002; and the original trumpeter on "The Shadow of Your Smile", Jack Sheldon, was in his 70s when he rerecorded it for his 2006 album Listen Up.
Billboard reviews Various versions of "The Shadow of Your Smile" have been praised by the editors of Billboard in reviews of the albums or singles on which they appear. The editors described the song as a "plaintive ballad" when Peggy Lee's recording was issued as a single in 1965 and wrote, "Sensitive, smooth Lee performance." Several covers were released in 1966, including one on Latin Pulse by Nancy Ames, which was one of the songs to which she brought "added refreshment". They described Lou Christie's rendition of the song on Painter of Hits as "well done". Regarding Bobby Darin Sings The Shadow of Your Smile, they wrote that he performed the five songs nominated for an Academy Award "with excitement, understanding and respect for the importance of each composition." They wrote that it received a "lush treatment" on Ferrante and Teicher's You Asked for It! The rendition on Here's That Rainy Day by the Paul Horn Quintet was "lush and beautiful".
Other 1966 reviews mentioned the song. The instrumental recording on The Academy Award-Winning Shadow of Your Smile & Other Great Themes by Andre Kostelanetz was one of the tracks that was "solidly built". Barbara Lewis had a "softly beautiful" arrangement of the song on her album It's Magic. In their review of pianist Peter Nero's album The Screen Scene, they wrote that it was "performed brilliantly". The song was included on a list of those that "really light up" on Come Alive! by Joanie Sommers. They thought it received an "exceptional brass treatment" on Billy Strange's In the Mexican Bag. It was one of the songs on Sarah Vaughan's The New Scene about which they wrote, "[H]er interpretations are both entertaining and refreshing". The Two Sides of Mary Wells had "a smooth 'Shadow of Your Smile' standing out in the ballad half." The editors felt Nancy Wilson gave an "exceptional interpretation" on A Touch of Today.
Four albums from 1967 included noteworthy covers. The recording on Clare Fischer's Songs for Rainy Day Lovers was "[f]ascinating". Barbara McNair's version was a "standout" on Here I Am. The song received the "Garneresque treatment" on That's My Kick by Erroll Garner. The Latin rendition on Golden Hits by Roger Williams was described as "excellent". Two reviews from 1968 mentioned the song. The rendition on La La Means I Love You by The Delfonics was "slick and silky". Regarding This Is Al Martino, they wrote, "Persuasive, romantic, his rich baritone moves with personality through such [songs] as… 'The Shadow of Your Smile'."
Cash Box reviews Cash Box magazine editors also highlighted many 1966 recordings of the song. What Now My Love by Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass included an "inimitable interpretation". Regarding Ed Ames Sings the Hits of Broadway and Hollywood, they wrote, "The chanter's rich, warm tones enrich such outings as… 'The Shadow of Your Smile'." It was part of a "well-chosen selection" on Ray Anthony's Hit Songs to Remember. The song received the "popular mariachi treatment" on The Brass Ring's Love Theme from The Flight of the Phoenix. In their review of That Lovin' Feeling by King Curtis, they wrote, "Curtis's excellent sounds recreate the mystique of the likes of 'The Shadow of Your Smile'." When Ella Fitzgerald's recording was released as a single, they felt she did a "lovely job of interpreting" it.
In reviewing 1966's The Further Adventures of El Chico by Chico Hamilton, the editors wrote, "Chico’s latest outing features such personnel as Gabor Szabo [and] Ron Carter… wailing their way through tunes like… 'The