Irving Berlin

This 1934 song was used in the popular musical film Top Hat released in 1935 and starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. The movie contained several hits, including "Isn't This a Lovely Day?" and the title song, "Top Hat, White Tie and Tails." "Cheek to Cheek" was sung by Astaire in the film and his recording of it for the Brunswick label, with Johnny Green's Orchestra, became a best-seller. During the 1930s, it emerged as the most popular song from that hit film, and it is still widely performed and recorded today. "Cheek to Cheek" opens in a joyous mood, with Berlin's lyrics ("Heaven, I'm in heaven....") perfectly matched by the upbeat, catchy music. The whole brims with a sense of optimism and lighthearted fun, and when the recurrent phrase is sung, "When we're out together/Dancing cheek to cheek," Berlin imparts a carefree manner to the music that gives it a delicious charm. This is the kind of song in which the composer exhibits his masterful way of mixing the strong emotions of love with a playfulness, an almost impish sense that played so well into the personas of performers like Astaire and Rogers.