I've Never Been In Love Before

Frank Loesser composed this lyrical ballad for the 1950 Broadway musical Guys and Dolls, where it serves as a duet between the gambler Sky Masterson and the mission worker Sister Sarah Brown. The song arrives at a pivotal dramatic moment, immediately following Sky's reflective solo "My Time of Day," marking the point where both characters admit their vulnerability. The show, with a book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows based on Damon Runyon's short stories, ran for 1,200 performances and won the Tony Award for Best Musical. Billy Eckstine made the first recording on August 8, 1950, with an orchestra conducted by Russ Case, releasing it as the B-side of "I'll Know" on MGM before the show even opened on October 14. Notably, the song was cut from the 1955 film adaptation and replaced with "A Woman in Love," written specifically for the movie. The tune became a jazz standard largely through Chet Baker's understated vocal version on his 1956 album Chet Baker Sings, which gave it an intimate, conversational quality far removed from its theatrical origins. The Oscar Peterson Trio, George Shearing Quintet, and Eddie Costa Quartet with Bill Evans also recorded notable versions in the late 1950s and early 1960s. More recently, Laufey included it on her 2022 album Everything I Know About Love, introducing the song to a new generation. Its graceful melody and emotionally direct lyric continue to attract jazz musicians, who treat it as both a ballad vehicle and a medium-tempo swinger.