"Easy Living" is a ballad composed by Ralph Rainger with lyrics by Leo Robin in 1937. Written for the Paramount screwball comedy film of the same name directed by Mitchell Leisen, the song was used only instrumentally in the movie and did not initially attract widespread attention from the film itself. The composition follows a standard 32-bar AABA form, typically performed in F major, featuring a lyrical, flowing melody that conveys a mood of relaxed romantic contentment. The harmony is warm and accessible, with a notable modulation in the second ending that adds a touch of harmonic sophistication without disrupting the tune's gentle ballad character. Rainger and Robin were a prolific Hollywood songwriting team under contract to Paramount during the 1930s, responsible for numerous film songs including the Academy Award-winning "Thanks for the Memory." The song achieved lasting popularity largely through Billie Holiday's 1937 recording with Teddy Wilson and His Orchestra, which charted at number fifteen and introduced the tune to a broad audience. It subsequently became a widely performed jazz standard, attracting instrumental and vocal interpretations from artists including Clifford Brown, Bill Evans, Paul Desmond with Jim Hall, Sarah Vaughan with Oscar Peterson, Stan Getz, and Chet Baker. The tune has also appeared in later films, including Remember the Night in 1939.
