Goodnight, Irene “Goodnight, Irene” or “Irene, Goodnight,” is a 20th-century American folk standard, written in 3/4 time, first recorded by American blues musician Huddie ‘Lead Belly’ Ledbetter in 1933. The lyrics tell of the singer’s troubled past with his love, Irene, and express his sadness and frustration. Several verses make explicit references to suicidal fantasies, …
I Wanna Be Loved “I Wanna Be Loved” (from 1933 version of the 1931 revue Billy Rose’s Crazy Quilt) is a popular song with music by Johnny Green and lyrics by Edward Heyman and Billy Rose, published in 1933. The song is a standard, with many recorded versions. Billy Eckstine – Passing Strangers (2009)1940s? The …
Sentimental Me – 1950 “Sentimental Me” is a popular song. It was written by James T. Morehead and James Cassin and published in 1949. The most popular version was recorded by The Ames Brothers. Other versions were recorded by Elvis Presley, the Russ Morgan Orchestra and in England by Jackie Brown and his Quartet. The …
Hoop-Dee-Doo – 1950 “Hoop-Dee-Doo” is a popular song published in 1950 with music by Milton De Lugg and lyrics by Frank Loesser. The lyrics of this song are sometimes cited for their use of the phrase “soup and fish”, meaning a man’s formal dinner suit. This phrase is commonly thought to have originated with P.G. …
The Cry of the Wild Goose – 1950 “The Cry of the Wild Goose” is a 1950 song written by Terry Gilkyson. Originally performed by Frankie Laine, the song was the third of three consecutive number-one hits for him, following the previous year’s hits “That Lucky Old Sun” and “Mule Train”. The song was released …
Mule Train – 1950 “Mule Train” is a popular song written by Johnny Lange, Hy Heath, Ramblin’ Tommy Scott and Fred Glickman. It’s a cowboy song, with the singer filling the role of an Old West wagon driver, spurring on his team of mules pulling a delivery wagon. As he goes about his work, the …
Rag Mop – 1950 “Rag Mop” was a popular American song of the late 1940s-early 1950s. The song, a 12-bar blues, was written by Tulsa Western Swing bandleader Johnnie Lee Wills and steel guitarist Deacon Anderson and published in 1949. Considered a novelty song, the lyrics consisted mostly of spelling out the title of the …
I Can Dream, Can’t I? – 1950 “I Can Dream, Can’t I?” is a popular song written by Sammy Fain with lyrics by Irving Kahal. The song was published in 1937, included in a flop musical, Right This Way. Tommy Dorsey released a hit recording of it the same year, but it was in the …
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer – 1950 “Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer” is a song written by Johnny Marks based on the 1939 story Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer published by the Montgomery Ward Company. In 1939 Marks’ brother-in-law, Robert L. May, created the character Rudolph as an assignment for Montgomery Ward, and Marks decided to adapt the …
Cold, Cold Heart – 1950 “Cold, Cold Heart” is a country music and popular music song, written by Hank Williams. This blues ballad is both a classic of honky-tonk and an entry in the Great American Songbook. Hank Williams version Williams adapted the melody for the song from T. Texas Tyler’s 1945 recording of “You’ll …