"Get Happy" is a song composed by Harold Arlen, with lyrics written by Ted Koehler. It echoes themes of a Christian evangelical revivalist meeting song. It was the first song they wrote together, and was introduced in ''The Nine-Fifteen Revue'' in 1930. Influenced by the Get Happy tradition, it is most associated with

Judy Garland Judy Garland (born Frances Ethel Gumm; June 10, 1922June 22, 1969) was an American actress and singer. While critically acclaimed for many different roles throughout her career, she is widely known for playing the part of Dorothy Gale in '' The ...

, who performed it in her last MGM film '' Summer Stock'' (1950) and in live concert performances throughout the rest of her life. The versions from ''Summer Stock'' finished at #61 in AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs survey of top tunes in American cinema. An instrumental, hot jazz arrangement of the song, performed by

Abe Lyman Abe Lyman (August 4, 1897 – October 23, 1957) was a popular bandleader from the 1920s to the 1940s. He made recordings, appeared in films and provided the music for numerous radio shows, including ''Your Hit Parade''. His name at birth was Abra ...

's Brunswick Recording Orchestra, served as the original theme music for

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...

' '' Merrie Melodies'' cartoons from 1931 to 1933. The song lyrics incorporate the title phrase in the longer phrase "Come on, get happy", but it should not be confused with the ''Partridge Family'' theme song "C'mon Get Happy". English musician

Elvis Costello Declan Patrick MacManus OBE (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. He has won multiple awards in his career, including a Grammy Award in 2020, and has twice been nomi ...

named his fourth studio album, released in 1980, after the song.

Notable recordings

Nat Shilkret Nathaniel Shilkret (December 25, 1889 – February 18, 1982) was an American musician, composer, conductor and musical director. Early career Shilkret (originally named Natan Schüldkraut) was born in New York City, United States, to parents ...

& the Victor Orchestra (1930) *

Benny Goodman Benjamin David Goodman (May 30, 1909 – June 13, 1986) was an American clarinetist and bandleader known as the "King of Swing". From 1936 until the mid-1940s, Goodman led one of the most popular swing big bands in the United States. His co ...

(1936) *

Art Tatum Arthur Tatum Jr. (, October 13, 1909 – November 5, 1956) was an American jazz pianist who is widely regarded as one of the greatest in his field. From early in his career, Tatum's technical ability was regarded by fellow musicians as extraord ...

(1939) *

Red Norvo Red Norvo (born Kenneth Norville; March 31, 1908 – April 6, 1999) was an American musician, one of jazz's early vibraphonists, known as "Mr. Swing". He helped establish the xylophone, marimba, and vibraphone as jazz instruments. His rec ...

and his Selected Sextet (including

Charlie Parker Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" or "Yardbird", was an American jazz saxophonist, band leader and composer. Parker was a highly influential soloist and leading figure in the development of bebop, a form ...

) (1945) * Harry James with vocals by Doris Day – '' Young Man with a Horn'' ( Columbia, 1950) *

Bud Powell Earl Rudolph "Bud" Powell (September 27, 1924 – July 31, 1966) was an American jazz pianist and composer. Along with Charlie Parker, Thelonious Monk, Kenny Clarke and Dizzy Gillespie, Powell was a leading figure in the development of modern j ...

– ''

Jazz Giant ''Jazz Giant'' is a studio album by jazz pianist Bud Powell, released on Norgran in 1950, featuring two sessions that Powell recorded for Norman Granz in 1949 and 1950. The album was remastered and re-released on CD in 2001 by Verve as a Verv ...

'' (1950) *

– Summer Stock (1950) * Frankie Laine (1951) * Frank Sinatra – '' Swing Easy!'' (1954) *

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, musician and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. He was a ...

recorded the song in 1955 for use on his radio show and it was subsequently included in the box set ''The Bing Crosby CBS Radio Recordings (1954-56)'' issued by Mosaic Records (catalog MD7-245) in 2009. * Eddie Costa – ''Eddie Costa Vinnie Burke Trio'' (1956) * Jerry Lewis (1956) * Ella Fitzgerald – ''

Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Harold Arlen Songbook ''Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Harold Arlen Song Book'' is a 1961 (see 1961 in music) album by the American jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald, with a studio orchestra conducted and arranged by Billy May. This album marked the only time that Fitzgerald w ...

'' (1961) * Judy Garland with

Barbra Streisand Barbara Joan "Barbra" Streisand (; born April 24, 1942) is an American singer, actress and director. With a career spanning over six decades, she has achieved success in multiple fields of entertainment, and is among the few performers awar ...

(medley with " Happy Days Are Here Again") –

The Judy Garland Show ''The Judy Garland Show'' is an American musical variety television series that aired on CBS on Sunday nights during the 1963–1964 television season. Despite a sometimes stormy relationship with Judy Garland, CBS had found success with sever ...

(1963), later released on Streisand's

Duets A duet is a musical composition or piece for two performers. Duets or The Duets may also refer to: Films and television * ''Duets'' (film), a 2000 film, starring Gwyneth Paltrow, Paul Giamatti and Huey Lewis * "Duets" (''Glee''), a 2010 episod ...

(2002) * Tony Bennett – '' esterday I Heard the Rain'' (1968) * Dick Hyman – ''Blues In The Night: Dick Hyman Plays Harold Arlen'' (1990) * June Christy – ''Day Dreams'' (1995), ''A Friendly Session, Vol. 3'' (1998), ''Cool Christy'' (2002) * Jane Horrocks – ''Little Voice (film), Little Voice'' (1998) * Brad Mehldau – ''Anything Goes (Brad Mehldau album), Anything Goes'' (2004) * Rufus Wainwright – ''

Rufus Does Judy at Carnegie Hall ''Rufus Does Judy at Carnegie Hall'' is the sixth album (and first live album) by the Canadian-American singer-songwriter Rufus Wainwright, released through Geffen Records in December 2007. The album consists of live recordings from his sold-out ...

'' (2007) * Johnny Dankworth – ''The Best Of Johnny Dankworth'' (2008) * Lea Michele and

Chris Colfer Christopher Paul Colfer (born May 27, 1990) is an American actor, singer, and author. He gained international recognition for his portrayal of Kurt Hummel on the television musical ''Glee'' (2009–2015). Colfer's portrayal of Kurt received cri ...

(medley with " Happy Days Are Here Again") – '' Glee'' (2010) *

Hugh Laurie James Hugh Calum Laurie (; born 11 June 1959) is an English actor, comedian, writer, and musician. He first gained recognition for his work as one half of the comedy double act Fry and Laurie with Stephen Fry. The two men acted together in a ...

and Lisa Edelstein – '' House'' " Bombshells" (2011) *

Pink Martini Pink Martini is an American band that was founded in 1994 by pianist Thomas Lauderdale in Portland, Oregon. Group members call it a little orchestra that crosses several styles, such as classical, latin, traditional pop, and jazz. The co-lead v ...

(medley with " Happy Days Are Here Again") – '' Get Happy'' (2013) * Billy Porter and

Cyndi Lauper Cynthia Ann Stephanie Lauper Thornton (born June 22, 1953) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and activist. Her career has spanned over 40 years. Her album ''She's So Unusual'' (1983) was the first debut album by a female artist to achi ...

(medley with " Happy Days Are Here Again") – Billy's Back on Broadway (2014) *

Rebecca Ferguson Rebecca Louisa Ferguson Sundström (born 19 October 1983) is a Swedish actress. She began her acting career with the Swedish soap opera '' Nya tider'' (1999–2000) and went on to star in the slasher film '' Drowning Ghost'' (2004). She came to ...

– '' Lady Sings the Blues'' (2015) *

Smoking Popes Smoking Popes is an American pop punk band from the northwest suburbs of Chicago. They are composed of brothers Matt Caterer (bass), Josh Caterer (lead vocals/guitar) and Eli Caterer (guitar/backing vocals) and Mike Felumlee (drums). Histor ...

– ''Into the Agony'' (2018) * Sun Kil Moon – '' This Is My Dinner'' (2018) * Renée Zellweger &

Sam Smith Samuel Frederick Smith (born 19 May 1992) is an English singer and songwriter. After rising to prominence in October 2012 by featuring on Disclosure's breakthrough single "Latch", which peaked at number eleven on the UK Singles Chart, they ...

— '' Judy Soundtrack'' (2019)

References

{{authority control Songs with music by Harold Arlen Pop standards Songs with lyrics by Ted Koehler 1930 songs Judy Garland songs Benny Goodman songs