Glenn Miller reached number one on Billboard with his recording on
Victor Records in 1943 featuring Skip Nelson on vocals.
It was first recorded by
Gordon Jenkins and his Orchestra on July 9, 1942. Shortly thereafter, on July 26, 1942,[3]Judy Garland recorded her own version, which was released as a single in January 1943 – just after the movie's release on December 30, 1942. Five other recordings (also made in 1942) were released as singles within the next two weeks.[4]
Composition
The song was published in
1942 and has become an often-recorded
standard, with versions that include the original single release by
Glenn Miller, by the singers
Margaret Whiting,
Frank Sinatra,
Sammy Davis Jr.,
Mercer himself, and others. Mercer wrote the lyrics with
Judy Garland in mind.[5] Garland recorded the song for
Decca Records in 1942. Mercer recalled wanting to write a song about magic, and while composing, asking Arlen to write more music so the song could go on longer, but that they still wrote the whole song in about three hours.[1]Billy Daniels recorded the song in 1949 and it became his trademark recording.
Recordings
The
Glenn Miller recording was released by
RCA Victor Records as catalog number 20-1523-A, with "A Pink Cocktail For a Blue Lady" as the B side. The vocals were by Skip Nelson and the
Modernaires. Glenn Miller recorded the song on July 15, 1942.[6] The release was Glenn Miller's last number-1 hit. It charted in
1943, spending 14 weeks on the Billboard magazine charts, peaking at position number 1 for the week of May 29.[7][8]
The
Margaret Whiting recording (with the
Freddie Slack Orchestra, which got top billing on the label) was released by
Capitol Records as catalog number 126. It charted in
1943, spending a week at number 10 on the Billboard chart.[7]
The
Sammy Davis Jr. recording was released by
Decca Records as catalog number 29541. It charted in
1955 and spent six weeks on the Billboard charts, peaking at position number 16.[7]
The duet recorded by
Louis Prima and
Keely Smith was released as a
single in
1958 on the Capitol label. It reached a peak of 18 on the
Billboard Hot 100. This particular version was performed on Sam and Friends by Sam and
Kermit the Frog, Sam performing as Prima and Kermit dressing in drag and performing as Smith. This sequence became one of the most well-known episodes of Sam and Friends.
Bobby Rydell had his version released as a single on
Cameo in
1961. It reached number 21 on the Hot 100, and number 13 in Canada with co-chart "Don't Be Afraid".[9]
Bob Dylan recorded a version of the song for his second album of standards, Fallen Angels.
Frank Sinatra recorded studio versions in 1946, with Alex Stordhal for Columbia - later released as a single - and in 1961, for Capitol, with Billy May for the album Come Swing With Me.
Parodies
As part of his album My Name is Allan,
Allan Sherman sang a parody of this song called "That Old Back Scratcher".
Popular culture
Marilyn Monroe famously sang the song in her film Bus Stop (1956). Her character Chérie is singing the song (somewhat out of key) to an audience who is not listening and talking loudly, until
Don Murray quiets them all down.