This story has been edited to correct for a song being misattributed to Curtis Moore and Tom Mizer.
If you’ve been humming that one song that first appears in the USO scene in season 3 of Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and wondering why you can’t find this throwback tune anywhere online, it’s because the catchy song isn’t as “classic” as it sounds. “One Less Angel,” performed by the charming and talented Shy Baldwin (played by Leroy McClain and vocalized by Darius de Haas) is brand new — so new, it’s not even on Spotify yet.
“One Less Angel” was written for the show by the composing duo Curtis Moore and Tom Mizer. No wonder we can’t imagine anyone else but Baldwin singing “One Less Angel.” The song was created especially for him.
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Commissioned by the show’s creator, Amy Sherman-Palladino, Moore and Mizer wrote a series of songs that sound like they came right out of the late 1950s and early 1960s. After all, it’s the ‘60s, man. According to the composers’ website, this is the first season Sherman-Palladino sought out original songs to help soundtrack the series. The previous two seasons relied on songs released at the time.
The singer is based on a mixture of real-life crooners ranging from Johnny Mathis to Nat “King” Cole to Harry Belafonte. "He's kind of an amalgamation of a lot of different figures who were that successful, but Johnny Mathis comes to mind," Rachel Brosnahan told Refinery29. It turns out the character is a combination of performers in reality as well. Baldwin is played by McClain, but when it comes to his soaring singing voice, that can be credited to Broadway singer, Darius de Haas. de Haas first began performing the singing voice of Baldwin in season 2, when Miriam Maisel first crossed paths with her future tour headliner.
Just like the show mixes real and fictional characters to create a rich and vibrant world for us to enjoy, the soundtrack is a mix of songs that existed at the time the show was set and songs that didn’t. Whether they are new or old, the songs play a huge part in transporting viewers to the bygone era the show is set in.
Moore and Mizer wrote several songs for season 3, one of which, called “Bottle of Pop,” also appears in the first episode. “Make Mine A Double” and "The Boy in the Blue Plaid Pants" are also original songs written for the show. The particularly heartbreaking ballad “No One Has To Know” in episode 6, which sounds like it was made for the show, was in fact made for the show.
So now you can close your exhausted search browser knowing that the song isn’t just waiting out there for you to get the right search phrase. The brand new track is not yet released, which begs the question: when will it be? According to Bustle, the soundtrack with all of Baldwin’s original songs will be released a week after the show’s release on December 13.
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