Barbra Streisand – “It Had to Be You”: A Standard in the Hands of a Master Interpreter
When Barbra Streisand recorded “It Had to Be You” for her 2011 album What Matters Most and later revisited it on Partners (2014), she added her voice to a song that has lived at the very heart of the Great American Songbook for nearly a century. Originally composed in 1924 by Isham Jones with lyrics by Gus Kahn, the song had been recorded by countless greats — from Billie Holiday to Frank Sinatra to Tony Bennett. But in Streisand’s hands, it became not just another rendition but a fresh exploration of a timeless theme: the inevitability of love, even when it comes with flaws and frustrations.
The song’s history gives it weight. Born in the Jazz Age, “It Had to Be You” became an enduring standard precisely because of its conversational lyric and its mix of tenderness and realism. It doesn’t idealize love; instead, it acknowledges the quirks and imperfections of relationships before arriving at the inevitable conclusion: that despite everything, “it had to be you.” This blend of humor and romance has made the song universally appealing for nearly a hundred years.
Streisand’s interpretation leans into that honesty. By the time she recorded it, she was already decades into one of the most storied careers in music and film. Her voice had matured — less about dazzling technical peaks, more about nuance, warmth, and emotional intelligence. That maturity makes her version especially poignant. Where younger singers might deliver the lyric with playful charm, Streisand sings it with the authority of someone who has lived its truth, who understands both the frustrations and the inevitabilities of lasting love.
Musically, her arrangement is elegant and lush. A gentle piano introduction sets the tone, soon joined by strings and soft brass that wrap around her voice like velvet. The tempo is unhurried, giving her room to shape each phrase with care. Streisand has always had an instinct for phrasing that borders on conversational speech, and here she uses it to full effect — pausing, leaning into certain words, and letting others fall away as though confiding directly in the listener.
The lyrics themselves — “It had to be you, wonderful you, it had to be you” — gain a new weight in her delivery. Rather than playful irony, she emphasizes gratitude and inevitability. Her voice communicates the sense of someone looking back with perspective, acknowledging not just the sweetness of love but also the challenges overcome along the way. In this way, her version of the song feels less like a declaration and more like a reflection.
In the larger story of Barbra Streisand’s career, “It Had to Be You” connects her with the lineage of great interpreters she has always admired. From her earliest albums in the 1960s, she built her reputation by reimagining standards, blending Broadway theatricality with the intimacy of cabaret. Decades later, returning to a classic like this was not about proving her vocal range but about deepening her connection to the tradition she had long represented.
Commercially, her recordings of the song helped introduce it once again to modern audiences. The duet version with Michael Bublé on Partners added another layer, blending Streisand’s seasoned interpretation with Bublé’s contemporary crooner style. It reminded listeners that the Great American Songbook is not frozen in time but continues to live through reinterpretation.
Today, “It Had to Be You” remains one of those rare songs that feels both timeless and ever new, depending on who sings it. Streisand’s version, with its warmth and gravitas, stands as one of the most distinguished modern interpretations. It is not flashy, not designed to overshadow the song itself, but rather to honor it — to let its humor, tenderness, and inevitability shine through.
In the story of Barbra Streisand, “It Had to Be You” is both a tribute and a statement: a reminder of her lifelong dialogue with the American song tradition, and her unmatched ability to make a standard feel personal, lived-in, and profoundly human.