"My Melancholy Baby" is a

popular Popularity or social status is the quality of being well liked, admired or well known to a particular group. Popular may also refer to: In sociology * Popular culture * Popular fiction * Popular music * Popular science * Populace, the total ...

song published in 1912 and first sung publicly by

William Frawley William Clement Frawley (February 26, 1887 – March 3, 1966) was an American vaudevillian and actor best remembered for playing landlord Fred Mertz in the American television sitcom '' I Love Lucy'', "Bub" O'Casey in the television comedy ser ...

. The music was written by Ernie Burnett (1884–1959), the lyrics by

George A. Norton George Addison Norton (April 18, 1880 – November 18, 1923), usually credited as George A. Norton, was an American lyricist and composer of popular songs. Biography He was born in St. Louis, Missouri. His earliest credits came in 1899, with ...

Background

Ernie Burnett, who composed the music, was wounded fighting in the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, from which he lost his memory and his identity dog tags. While recuperating in hospital, a pianist entertained the patients with popular tunes including "Melancholy Baby". Burnett rose from his sickbed and exclaimed, "That's my song!" He had regained his memory.

William Frawley version

, who played

Fred Mertz Frederick Hobart Mertz, played by William Frawley, is a fictional character in the 1950s American sitcom '' I Love Lucy''. Character Fred was born and raised on a farm in the Midwest; in one episode, Ethel says that Fred's mother comes to visit o ...

on ''

I Love Lucy ''I Love Lucy'' is an American television sitcom that originally aired on CBS from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes, spanning six seasons. The show starred Lucille Ball, her husband, Desi Arnaz, along with ...

'', stated that he was the first person to perform the song publicly, in 1912 in the Mozart Cafe at 1647 Curtis Street in Denver, Colorado. Frawley revealed this during a May 3, 1965, appearance on the TV game show ''

I've Got a Secret ''I've Got a Secret'' is an American panel game show produced by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman for CBS television. Created by comedy writers Allan Sherman and Howard Merrill, it was a derivative of Goodson-Todman's own panel show, ''What's My Line ...

''. In 1958, Frawley performed the song again on the '' Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour'' on the episode "Lucy Goes to Sun Valley". Frawley, as Fred Mertz, was asked by Ricky to perform "an old-fashioned ballad" for his band's appearance on a TV show. Mertz sang the song in the rehearsal scene for the musical number.

Other performances

The song was recorded by

Walter Van Brunt Walter Van Brunt (22 April 1892 – 11 April 1971) was an American tenor known initially for his recordings on Thomas Alva Edison's Blue Amberol Records and later for his role in a scandal involving a stage name and case of adultery. Biogr ...

(1915),

Gene Austin Lemeul Eugene Lucas (June 24, 1900 – January 24, 1972), better known by his stage name Gene Austin, was an American singer and songwriter, one of the early "crooners". His recording of " My Blue Heaven" sold over 5 million copies and was for a ...

(1928),

Jane Froman Ellen Jane Froman (November 10, 1907 – April 22, 1980) was an American actress and singer. During her thirty-year career, she performed on stage, radio and television despite chronic health problems due to injuries sustained in a 1943 plane cra ...

for

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label * Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label * Decca Studios, a recording facility in W ...

(1934),

Al Bowlly Albert Allick Bowlly (7 January 1898 – 17 April 1941) was a Mozambican-born South African– British vocalist and jazz guitarist, who was popular during the 1930s in Britain. He recorded more than 1,000 songs. His most popular songs includ ...

(1935), and

Teddy Wilson Theodore Shaw Wilson (November 24, 1912 – July 31, 1986) was an American jazz pianist. Described by critic Scott Yanow as "the definitive swing pianist", Wilson had a sophisticated, elegant style. His work was featured on the records of ma ...

. The song can be heard often throughout the 1939 Warner Brothers gangster movie ''

The Roaring Twenties ''The Roaring Twenties'' is a 1939 American crime thriller film directed by Raoul Walsh and starring James Cagney, Priscilla Lane, Humphrey Bogart, and Gladys George. The film, spanning the periods between 1919 and 1933, was written by Jerry ...

'', where a vocal rendition of the song is performed by costar

Priscilla Lane Priscilla Lane (born Priscilla Mullican, June 12, 1915 – April 4, 1995) was an American actress, and the youngest sibling in the Lane Sisters of singers and actresses. She is best remembered for her roles in the films ''The Roaring Twenties'' ...

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 for

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...

on December 12, 1938 and it reached number 14 in the charts of the day. Crosby sang the song in the 1941 Oscar-nominated movie ''

Birth of the Blues ''Birth of the Blues'' is a 1941 American musical film directed by Victor Schertzinger and starring Bing Crosby, Mary Martin and Brian Donlevy. The plot loosely follows the origins and breakthrough success of the Original Dixieland Jass Band i ...

.''

Harry James Harry Haag James (March 15, 1916 – July 5, 1983) was an American musician who is best known as a trumpet-playing band leader who led a big band from 1939 to 1946. He broke up his band for a short period in 1947 but shortly after he reorganized ...

recorded a version in 1941 on Columbia. In the 1942 film ''

Johnny Eager ''Johnny Eager'' is a 1941 film noir directed by Mervyn LeRoy and starring Robert Taylor, Lana Turner and Van Heflin. Heflin won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. The film was one of many spoofed in ''Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid'' (19 ...

'', the song was played during the opening and closing credits, as background music throughout the film, and as dance music by the band at Tony Luce's place. It was not credited. The song appears both incidentally and in thematic background variations in the musical score of

Fritz Lang Friedrich Christian Anton Lang (; December 5, 1890 – August 2, 1976), known as Fritz Lang, was an Austrian film director, screenwriter, and producer who worked in Germany and later the United States.Obituary ''Variety'', August 4, 1976, p. 6 ...

's 1945 film ''

Scarlet Street ''Scarlet Street'' is a 1945 American film noir directed by Fritz Lang. The screenplay concerns two criminals who take advantage of a middle-aged painter in order to steal his artwork. The film is based on the French novel ''La Chienne'' (literal ...

'' starring

Joan Bennett Joan Geraldine Bennett (February 27, 1910 – December 7, 1990) was an American stage, film, and television actress. She came from a show-business family, one of three acting sisters. Beginning her career on the stage, Bennett appeared in more t ...

and Edward G. Robinson.

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 ...

sang it during the "Born in a Trunk" sequence in the 1954 movie '' A Star Is Born'' after a drunken man persistently shouted, "Sing 'Melancholy Baby'!" In the same year

John Serry Sr. John Serry Sr. (born John Serrapica; January 29, 1915 – September 14, 2003) was an American concert accordionist, arranger, composer, organist, and educator. He performed on the CBS Radio and Television networks and contributed to Voic ...

arranged and recorded the song for his swing jazz accordion ensemble for radio broadcasts on NBC.

Connie Francis Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero (born December 12, 1937), known professionally as Connie Francis, is an American pop singer, actress, and top-charting female vocalist of the late 1950s and early 1960s. Called the “First Lady of Rock & Roll” ...

recorded the song in 1958 for inclusion in her first MGM studio album ''Who's Sorry Now'' Many Jazz musicians recorded "My Melancholy Baby", or used its harmonic sequence to improvise: Dave Brubeck with Jimmy Rushing (1958), Bill Evans (1966), Lennie Tristano, Lee Konitz, Warne Marsh (1957), Thelonious Monk (1971), Bert Kaempfert (1973).

Tommy Edwards Thomas Jefferson Edwards (October 15, 1922 – October 23, 1969) was an American singer and songwriter. His most successful gramophone record, record was the multi-million-selling song "It's All in the Game (song), It's All in the Game", becomin ...

' version of the song, from his album ''For Young Lovers'', reached No. 15 in the U.S. Music Vendor charts in 1959.

Copyright dispute

In 1911 Maybelle Watson, the wife of Ernie Burnett, wrote the original lyrics to the song, which was copyrighted under the name "Melancholy." When Burnett sold the song, the publisher insisted songwriter George A. Norton revise the lyrics. Subsequent issues of the sheet music displayed only a dedication to "Miss Maybelle Watson of Berkeley," rather than a lyricist credit. In 1940 Maybelle Watson Bergmann, having by then divorced Burnett and remarried, successfully sued for royalties. For a number of years after that, her name appeared as co-lyricist with Norton.

External links

''My Melancholy Baby''
sheet music at

Ithaca College Ithaca College is a private college in Ithaca, New York. It was founded by William Egbert in 1892 as a conservatory of music and is set against the backdrop of the city of Ithaca (which is separate from the town), Cayuga Lake, waterfalls, and go ...

References

{{authority control 1912 songs Barbra Streisand songs Trini Lopez songs Ella Fitzgerald songs Mildred Bailey songs Al Bowlly songs Vikki Carr songs