"Tiny Bubbles" is a song written by Leon Pober and performed by
Don Ho.[1] It comes from
the album of the same name. The single peaked at #57 on the
Billboard Hot 100[2] and #14 on the
Easy Listening charts in March 1967.[3] By 1968, "Tiny Bubbles" was covered about 34 times.[4] It was considered to be Ho's signature song.
Production
The song was requested by producer
Sonny Burke after Ho couldn't successfully perform the song "
Born Free". "Tiny Bubbles" was originally written for
Lawrence Welk, since he tended to perform "champagne music". Welk turned it down, although he later performed the song several times on his
television show after it became a hit.[5]
Legacy
"Tiny Bubbles" was considered to be Ho's signature song:[1][6] *During one performance, after nearly thousands, Ho reportedly quipped "God, I hate that song".[1]
The
second season of the American game show The Mole incorporated the song in a creative way - one test had a contestant confined to sleeping or staying on a bed while "Tiny Bubbles" was played on repeat in various versions (sped up, slowed down, backwards, etc). By its fans it is considered an iconic moment of the short-lived series.[7]
Alongside Ho's other songs, "E Le Ka Lei Lei (Beach Party Song)" and "Wish They Didn't Mean Goodbye", "Tiny Bubbles" was featured in the Season 7 Hawaii Five-0 episode, "Elua la ma Nowemapa",[9]
The song alone was also featured in the Season 3 episode, "Mohai".[10]