"Harbor Lights", is a popular song with music by Hugh Williams (the pseudonym of exiled Austrian composer Will Grosz) and lyrics by Northern Irish songwriter

Jimmy Kennedy James Kennedy (20 July 1902 – 6 April 1984) was a Northern Irish songwriter. He was predominantly a lyricist, putting words to existing music such as " Teddy Bears' Picnic" and " My Prayer" or co-writing with composers like Michael Carr, ...

. The song was originally recorded by Roy Fox & his Orchestra with vocal by Barry Gray in London January 29, 1937. Another famous early version was recorded by American singer

Frances Langford Julia Frances Newbern-Langford (April 4, 1913 – July 11, 2005) was an American singer and actress who was popular during the Golden Age of Radio and made film and television appearances for over two decades. She was known as the "GI Nightinga ...

in Los Angeles September 14, 1937, and was published again in

1950 Events January * January 1 – The International Police Association (IPA) – the largest police organization in the world – is formed. * January 5 – Sverdlovsk plane crash: ''Aeroflot'' Lisunov Li-2 crashes in a snowstorm. All 19 ...

. The melody of the song is done in a Hawaiian style, 18 years before this island became a state. several versions featured a ukulele, and a steel guitar.

Lyrics

Kennedy's lyrics describe the sight of harbour lights in the darkness, which signal that the ship carrying the singer's sweetheart is sailing away. The lonely singer hopes that the lights will someday signal the sweetheart's return. Apparently the lyricist Jimmy Kennedy was driving from London (UK) down to Southampton on the South coast along the A3 road which led south to Portsmouth. As he neared the coast a fog descended and he was confused about the direction. He saw some lights on a pub and decided to stop. The pub was called The Harbour Light. Some time later he wrote the lyric and music was added. The song Harbour Lights was recorded by the Platters and many others. A blue plaque is today fixed to the wall of the pub. http://www.michaelcooper.org.uk/C/harbourl.htm

Versions

The song has been recorded by many artists; charting versions were recorded by

Sammy Kaye Sammy Kaye (born Samuel Zarnocay Jr.; March 13, 1910 – June 2, 1987) was an American bandleader and songwriter, whose tag line, "Swing and Sway with Sammy Kaye", became one of the most famous of the Big Band Era. The expression springs fr ...

Guy Lombardo Gaetano Alberto "Guy" Lombardo (June 19, 1902 – November 5, 1977) was an Italian-Canadian-American bandleader, violinist, and hydroplane racer. Lombardo formed the Royal Canadians in 1924 with his brothers Carmen, Lebert and Victor, and oth ...

, Bing Crosby,

Ray Anthony Raymond Antonini (born January 20, 1922), known as Ray Anthony, is an American bandleader, trumpeter, songwriter, and actor. He is the last surviving member of the Glenn Miller Orchestra. Biography Anthony was born to an Italian family in Ben ...

Ralph Flanagan Ralph Elias Flenniken (April 7, 1914 – December 30, 1995), known professionally as Ralph Flanagan, was an American big band leader, pianist, composer, and arranger for the orchestras of Hal McIntyre, Sammy Kaye, Blue Barron, Charlie Barnet, a ...

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 ...

, and Ken Griffin. Other versions were recorded by

The Ink Spots The Ink Spots were an American pop vocal group who gained international fame in the 1930s and 1940s. Their unique musical style presaged the rhythm and blues and rock and roll musical genres, and the subgenre doo-wop. The Ink Spots were widely ac ...

Lawrence Welk Lawrence Welk (March 11, 1903 – May 17, 1992) was an American accordionist, bandleader, and television impresario, who hosted the '' The Lawrence Welk Show'' from 1951 to 1982. His style came to be known as "champagne music" to his radio, te ...

LaVern Baker Delores LaVern Baker (November 11, 1929 – March 10, 1997) was an American R&B singer who had several hit records on the pop chart in the 1950s and early 1960s. Her most successful records were " Tweedle Dee" (1955), " Jim Dandy" (1956), and " ...

The Platters The Platters was an American vocal group formed in 1952. They are one of the most successful vocal groups of the early rock and roll era. Their distinctive sound bridges the pre-rock Tin Pan Alley tradition and the new burgeoning genre. The a ...

, Engelbert Humperdinck,

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'' (1 ...

Jerry Lee Lewis Jerry Lee Lewis (September 29, 1935October 28, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Nicknamed "The Killer", he was described as " rock & roll's first great wild man". A pioneer of rock and roll and rockabilly music, Lewis ma ...

Vera Lynn Dame Vera Margaret Lynn (; 20 March 191718 June 2020) was an English singer and entertainer whose musical recordings and performances were very popular during World War II. She is honorifically known as the " Forces' Sweetheart", having giv ...

, Clyde McPhatter,

Arthur Tracy Arthur Tracy (25 June 1899 – 5 October 1997) was an American vocalist and actor, billed as The Street Singer. His performances in theatre, films and radio, along with his recordings, brought him international fame in the 1930s. Late evening r ...

and Jon Rauhouse. A Polish version titled "Portowe światła", with lyrics by Herold (pseudonym for Henryk Szpilman), was recorded in 1938 by Mieczysław Fogg (released as Syrena Electro 2035), shortly after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

by Tadeusz Miller (released as Melodje 118), and by

Irena Santor Irena Wiśniewska-Santor (Polish pronunciation: ; born 9 December 1934), known professionally as Irena Santor, is a Polish singer, musical performer and actress. Her career started in 1950. She's noted for singing in clear mezzo-soprano, consid ...

in 1966 (released as Muza XL0311). The biggest-selling version was recorded by the

orchestra. The recording was released by Columbia Records as a 78 rpm single and a 45 rpm single. The record first reached the '' Billboard'' charts on September 1, 1950, and lasted 25 weeks, peaking at #1. The

orchestra recording of August 24, 1950 was released by Decca Records. The record first reached the ''Billboard'' charts on October 6, 1950, and lasted 20 weeks, peaking at #2. The Bing Crosby recording of September 5, 1950 with

Lyn Murray Lyn Murray (born Lionel Breeze, August 13, 1909 – May 20, 1989) was a composer, conductor, and arranger of music for radio, film and television. Early years Born in London, Murray was the son of a violinist. Before entering a career in music, ...

and his Orchestra and Chorus was released by Decca Records. The record first reached the ''Billboard'' charts on November 3, 1950, and lasted 11 weeks, peaking at #10. The

orchestra recording was released by Capitol Records. The flip side was " Nevertheless". The record first reached the ''Billboard'' charts on October 20, 1950, and lasted 15 weeks on the chart, peaking at #15. The

orchestra recording was released by

RCA Victor Records RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also Ari ...

. The record first reached the ''Billboard'' charts on October 27, 1950, and lasted 5 weeks, peaking at #27. The Ken Griffin recording was released by Columbia Records. The record reached the ''Billboard'' charts on October 20, 1950, and lasted only one week, charting at #27. The Marco T. y Los Gatos Montañeros recording was released by Tulsan Records Private on September 14, 1987. The song was also recorded by Pat Boone on the 1957 album '' Howdy!''

Rudy Vallée Hubert Prior Vallée (July 28, 1901 – July 3, 1986), known professionally as Rudy Vallée, was an American singer, musician, actor, and radio host. He was one of the first modern pop stars of the teen idol type. Early life Hubert Prior Vall ...

recorded his rendition in 1937. In 1960,

recording peaked at #8 on the '' Billboard'' Hot 100 charts and #15 on the Hot R&B Sides chart. Overseas, this version, peaked at #11 in the UK. The Platters version featured the recorded sounds of ship bells ringing, plus the sounds of ocean waters splashing, which is heard at both the beginning and the ending of the song, before it fades out. In later years,

Ace Cannon John Henry "Ace" Cannon (May 5, 1934 – December 6, 2018) was an American tenor and alto saxophonist. He played and toured with Hi Records stablemate Bill Black's Combo, and started a solo career with his record "Tuff" in 1961, using the Black ...

recorded an instrumental version for his 1994 album ''Entertainer''.

In popular culture

In an episode of

M*A*S*H ''M*A*S*H'' (Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) is an American media franchise consisting of a series of novels, a film, several television series, plays, and other properties, and based on the semi-autobiographical fiction of Richard Hooker. Th ...

("Your Retention, Please"), Klinger (

Jamie Farr Jamie Farr (born Jameel Joseph Farah; July 1, 1934) is an American comedian and actor. He is best known for playing the cross-dressing Corporal turned Sergeant Maxwell Q. Klinger in the CBS television sitcom ''M*A*S*H''. He was inducted to ...

), while nursing a broken heart, plays the song over and over again on a jukebox. In the final scene, he smashes the record.

References

{{authority control 1937 songs Songs with lyrics by Jimmy Kennedy Songs with music by Wilhelm Grosz Columbia Records singles Decca Records singles Capitol Records singles RCA Records singles Mercury Records singles Bing Crosby songs Elvis Presley songs The Platters songs Willie Nelson songs Vera Lynn songs Number-one singles in the United States Guy Lombardo songs