"Happy, Happy Birthday Baby" is a 1957 song written by Margo Sylvia & Gilbert Lopez. "Happy, Happy Birthday Baby" was originally performed by

The Tune Weavers The Tune Weavers were an American vocal group formed in 1957. They had a US top ten hit in 1957 with "Happy, Happy Birthday Baby". After first splitting up in 1962, the group has continued to perform with two original members. Career The group f ...

, who had their only hit with this song. Both Margo Sylvia and Gilbert Lopez were members of The Tune Weavers. The single went to number four on the R&B chart and went to number five on the

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...

. The B-side of "Happy, Happy Birthday Baby, was The Tune Weavers version of "

Ol' Man River "Ol' Man River" is a show tune from the 1927 musical ''Show Boat'' with music by Jerome Kern and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II. The song contrasts the struggles and hardships of African Americans with the endless, uncaring flow of the Mississipp ...

" The inspiration for the song came from Margo's then-boyfriend, Donald Clements, who was a member of a group called the Sophomores. When he broke up with her, Margo came up with the lyrics to express how she wanted to stay with him. "The words came so easily. It was real," she recounted to Wayne Jancik in ''The Billboard Book of One-Hit Wonders''. Margo and the rest of the Tune Weavers recorded it and "Ol' Man River" in an 18-hour session on March 7, 1957, in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, with Margo eight months pregnant. Seven months later, the song reached its peak of popularity in the United States. Based on the similarities in melody, "Happy, Happy Birthday Baby" appears to have inspired two future Top 20 hits. " I'm On The Outside (Looking In)" by

Little Anthony and the Imperials Little Anthony and the Imperials is an American rhythm and blues/soul vocal group from New York City founded by Clarence Collins in the 1950s and named in part for its lead singer, Jerome Anthony "Little Anthony" Gourdine, who was noted for his h ...

(#15 1964) appears inspired by the main tune of this song, and "

Wasted Days and Wasted Nights "Wasted Days and Wasted Nights" is an American country and pop song recorded by Freddy Fender. It is considered by many to belong to the swamp pop idiom of south Louisiana and southeast Texas that had such a major musical impact on Fender. Song ...

" by

Freddy Fender Freddy Fender (born Baldemar Garza Huerta; June 4, 1937 – October 14, 2006) was an American Tejano, country and rock and roll musician, known for his work as a solo artist and in the groups Los Super Seven and the Texas Tornados. He was bes ...

(#8 1975) appears inspired by the chorus of this song. The track was originally released on the Casa Grande label. It was later re-released on the Checker label, but this later version omitted the final four saxophone notes (at the coda) which were part of the song's signature. In 1988, Margo Sylvia recorded a Christmas version of the song called "Merry Merry Christmas Baby" for Classic Records. It was included on the ''Ultimate Christmas Album'' by Collectables Records.

Cover versions

Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, actress, philanthropist, and businesswoman, known primarily for her work in country music. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton made her album d ...

covered the song in 1965, and it became her first charting single, though it peaked at only #8 on the

Bubbling Under Hot 100 Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (also known as Bubbling Under the Hot 100) is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. The chart lists the top songs that have not yet charted on the main ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Chart ...

chart; in 1982, a duet recording of the song was included on the album ''

The Winning Hand ''The Winning Hand'' is a collaborative compilation album by Kris Kristofferson, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton and Brenda Lee. It was released on November 1, 1982, by Monument Records. The album was produced by Fred Foster, founder and chairman of t ...

,'' featuring Parton and

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country musician. The critical success of the album ''Shotgun Willie'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of ''Red Headed Stranger'' (1975) and '' Stardust'' (197 ...

(though the recording featured Parton's original 1965 vocals, with new vocals from Nelson edited in to create a "duet"). *

Sandy Posey Sandy Posey (born Sandra Lou Posey, June 18, 1944) is an American popular singer who enjoyed success in the 1960s with singles such as her 1966 recording of Martha Sharp's compositions "Born a Woman" and "Single Girl". She is often described as a ...

hit #36 on the country charts with a remake in 1971. *In 1986,

Ronnie Milsap Ronnie Lee Milsap (born Ronald Lee Millsaps; January 16, 1943) is an American country music singer and pianist. He was one of country music's most popular and influential performers of the 1970s and 1980s. Nearly completely blind from birth, ...

had his twenty-eighth number one on the country chart with his version of the song. *

Wanda Jackson Wanda LaVonne Jackson (born October 20, 1937) is an American singer and songwriter. Since the 1950s, she has recorded and released music in the genres of rock, country and gospel. She was among the first women to have a career in rock and roll, ...

performed the song for her 1958 eponymous debut album. In 1960, it was released as a single but did not chart. * Rosie & the Originals released a previously unreleased version on their 2000 album ''The Best of Rosie & the Originals''. *

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

's private recording of the song, at a home in

Waco, Texas Waco ( ) is the county seat of McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is situated along the Brazos River and I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin. The city had a 2020 population of 138,486, making it the 22nd-most populous city in the ...

, in May 1958, can be found in some albums, including Elvis' listening and "rehearsels" getting ready to sing Happy, Happy Birthday Baby himself. (Off Duty With Privat Presley) (Private Home Recordings - Eddie Fadal Residence, Waco Texas - May 1958) Dodie Stevens covered this song for the holidays with almost the same lyrics titled Merry Merry Christmas Baby

Chart performance

In other media

*The song replaced "

16 Candles ''Sixteen Candles'' is a 1984 American coming-of-age story, coming-of-age comedy film starring Molly Ringwald, Michael Schoeffling, and Anthony Michael Hall. Written and directed by John Hughes (filmmaker), John Hughes in his List of directorial ...

" in the 1997 reissue of the 1972 film, ''

Pink Flamingos ''Pink Flamingos'' is a 1972 American film directed, written, produced, narrated, filmed, and edited by John Waters. It is part of what Waters has labelled the "Trash Trilogy", which also includes ''Female Trouble'' (1974) and ''Desperate Livin ...

.'' *The song is sung by “

Michael Shannon Michael Corbett Shannon (born August 7, 1974) is an American actor, producer, musician, and theater director. He is an off beat actor known for his on-screen versatility, performing in both comedies and dramas. He became known for his frequent ...

” in season 1 episode 5 of the Hulu original “

Nine Perfect Strangers ''Nine Perfect Strangers'' is a 2018 novel by Australian author Liane Moriarty. It was published on September 18, 2018 by Macmillan Australia. It is a ''New York Times'' Bestseller. Synopsis Nine people from different walks of life attend a ...

.”

References

{{authority control 1957 singles 1971 singles 1986 singles 1957 songs Dolly Parton songs Wanda Jackson songs Sandy Posey songs Ronnie Milsap songs Song recordings produced by Tom Collins (record producer) RCA Records singles Checker Records singles Songs about birthdays