"That Lucky Old Sun (Just Rolls around Heaven All Day)" is a 1949

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 with music by

Beasley Smith John Beasley Smith (September 27, 1901 – May 14, 1968)William F. Lee, ''American Big Bands'' (Hal Leonard Corporation, 2005) p50 was an American composer and big band musician. "That Lucky Old Sun" (1949) one of his better known works, was cove ...

and words by

Haven Gillespie James Lamont Gillespie (February 6, 1888 – March 14, 1975) pen name Haven Gillespie, was an American Tin Pan Alley composer and lyricist. He was the writer of "You Go to My Head", "Honey", "By the Sycamore Tree", "That Lucky Old Sun", " Breez ...

Background

Like "

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 ...

", its lyrics contrast the toil and intense hardship of the singer's life with the obliviousness of the natural world.

1949 recordings

*The biggest hit version of the song was by

Frankie Laine Frankie Laine (born Francesco Paolo LoVecchio; March 30, 1913 – February 6, 2007) was an American Singing, singer, songwriter, and actor whose career spanned nearly 75 years, from his first concerts in 1930 with a marathon dance company to hi ...

. This recording was released by

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it is ...

as catalog number 5316. It first reached the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' Best Seller chart on August 19, 1949, and lasted 22 weeks on the chart, peaking at No. 1. *The recording by

Vaughn Monroe Vaughn Wilton Monroe (October 7, 1911 – May 21, 1973) was an American baritone singer, trumpeter, big band leader, actor, and businessman, who was most popular in the 1940s and 1950s. He has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, one for rec ...

& His Orchestra 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 Aris ...

as catalog number 20-3531 (78 rpm) and 47-3018 (45 rpm) (in USA) and by

EMI EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At the time of its break-up in 201 ...

on the

His Master's Voice His Master's Voice (HMV) was the name of a major British record label created in 1901 by The Gramophone Co. Ltd. The phrase was coined in the late 1890s from the title of a painting by English artist Francis Barraud, which depicted a Jack Russ ...

label as catalog number B 9836. It first reached the ''Billboard'' Best Seller chart on September 16, 1949, and lasted 14 weeks on the chart, peaking at No. 9. *The recording by

Louis Armstrong Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and several era ...

was released by

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 ...

as catalog number 24752. It first reached the ''Billboard'' Best Seller chart on October 14, 1949, and lasted three weeks on the chart, peaking at No. 24. *

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular ...

released his competing version of the song on the Columbia label catalog number 38608. It reached the best sellers chart on October 29, 1949 and peaked at No. 16. Included on his ''The Best of The Columbia Years 1943–1952'' album. *A recording by

Herb Lance Herbert J. Lance (June 12, 1925 – November 7, 2006) was an American jazz, blues and gospel singer, songwriter, record producer, recording studio owner and radio DJ. As well as recording several hits himself in the late 1940s, he co-wrote ...

peaked at No. 6 on the Most-Played Juke Box Rhythm & Blues Records chart.

Other covers

Bob and Alf Pearson Bob and Alf Pearson were an English musical variety double act, consisting of brothers Robert Alexander Pearson (15 August 1907 – 30 December 1985) and Alfred Vernon Pearson (15 June 1910 – 7 July 2012), who were mainly known for their singi ...

in 1949 *

Pat Boone Patrick Charles Eugene Boone (born June 1, 1934) is an American singer and actor. He was a successful pop singer in the United States during the 1950s and early 1960s. He sold more than 45 million records, had 38 Top 40 hits, and appeared in mo ...

on the album '' ''Howdy!'''' 1957 * The

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...

, a

barbershop quartet A barbershop quartet is a group of four singers who sing music in the barbershop style, characterized by four-part harmony without instrumental accompaniment, or a cappella. The four voices are: the lead, the vocal part which typically carries t ...

, recorded it as a solo for their tenor, Vern Reed. * The rhythm and blues singer

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 "I ...

released a version of the song in 1955 as the "A" side of a release on Atlantic Records. *

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 made ...

recorded an unreleased solo version at Sun Studios in 1956 or 1957 and again in 1989 on the Great Balls of Fire soundtrack album. *

Bobby Darin Bobby Darin (born Walden Robert Cassotto; May 14, 1936 – December 20, 1973) was an American musician and actor. He performed jazz, Pop music, pop, rock and roll, Folk music, folk, Swing music, swing, and country music. He started his car ...

on the album ''For Teenagers Only'' (1960) * A version by

Sam Cooke Samuel Cook (January 22, 1931 – December 11, 1964), known professionally as Sam Cooke, was an American singer and songwriter. Considered to be a pioneer and one of the most influential soul artists of all time, Cooke is commonly referred ...

appeared on his debut LP ''

'' *

The Velvets The Velvets were an American doo-wop group from Odessa, Texas, United States. They were formed in 1959 by Virgil Johnson, a high-school English teacher, with four of his students. Roy Orbison heard the group and signed them to Monument Records i ...

released their doo wop version on Monument records around 1960/61. * A version by

Ray Charles Ray Charles Robinson Sr. (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential singers in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Ge ...

appeared on his 1963 album '' Ingredients in a Recipe for Soul''. It was also released as a single, reaching No. 20 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in January 1964. (This recording is also included as a bonus track on post-1988 CD reissues of Charles' landmark 1962 album '' Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music''.) *

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Referred to as the " Queen of Soul", she has twice been placed ninth in ''Rolling Stone''s "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". With ...

recorded the song for her album ''

The Electrifying Aretha Franklin ''The Electrifying Aretha Franklin'' is the second studio album by American singer Aretha Franklin, released on March 19, 1962 by Columbia Records. The album which is also known under its working title ''The Incomparable Aretha Franklin'', was re ...

'' (1962). *

Grant Green Grant Green (June 6, 1935 – January 31, 1979) was an American jazz guitarist and composer. Recording prolifically for Blue Note Records as both leader and sideman, Green performed in the hard bop, soul jazz, bebop, and Latin-tinged idioms ...

recorded an instrumental version for his album ''

His Majesty King Funk ''His Majesty King Funk'' is a jazz album recorded in 1965 by Grant Green. It features Green with tenor saxophonist Harold Vick, organist Larry Young, drummer Ben Dixon and percussionist Candido. Reception The Allmusic review by Michael Erlewi ...

'' in 1965. * Benzion Witler recorded a cover of the song that includes the lyrics sung in Yiddish * Tom Jones recorded the song on his album ''Tom Jones Live! At the Talk of the Town'' (1967). *

Bill Medley William Thomas Medley (born September 19, 1940) is an American singer and songwriter, best known as one half of The Righteous Brothers. He is noted for his bass-baritone voice, exemplified in songs such as "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'". Med ...

recorded the song as a single in 1967, which would later be released on

The Righteous Brothers The Righteous Brothers are an American musical duo originally formed by Bill Medley and Bobby Hatfield but now comprising Medley and Bucky Heard. Medley formed the group with Hatfield in 1963. They had first performed together in 1962 in the Los ...

album ''Standards'' (1968). *

George Benson George Washington Benson (born March 22, 1943) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He began his professional career at the age of 19 as a jazz guitarist. A former child prodigy, Benson first came to prominence in the 1960s, pla ...

recorded the song for his album '' Goodies'' (1968). *

Big Mama Thornton Willie Mae Thornton (December 11, 1926 – July 25, 1984), better known as Big Mama Thornton, was an American singer and songwriter of the blues and R&B genres. She was the first to record Leiber and Stoller's " Hound Dog", in 1952, which becam ...

recorded the song for her album '' Stronger than Dirt'' in 1969. * Paul Williams recorded a version on the 1972 album '' Life Goes On'' *

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 ...

recorded a version on the 1976 album '' The Sound in Your Mind'' which was also released as an extra track on the reissued '' Stardust: 30th Anniversary Legacy Edition''. * The

Jerry Garcia Band The Jerry Garcia Band was a San Francisco Bay Area rock band led by Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead. Garcia founded the band in 1975; it remained the most important of his various side projects until his death in 1995. The band regularly tour ...

performed a version on the Jerry Garcia Band live album in 1991. * American R&B and

boogie-woogie Boogie-woogie is a genre of blues music that became popular during the late 1920s, developed in African-American communities since 1870s.Paul, Elliot, ''That Crazy American Music'' (1957), Chapter 10, p. 229. It was eventually extended from pian ...

pianist and singer

Little Willie Littlefield Willie Littlefield, Jr., billed as Little Willie Littlefield (September 16, 1931 – June 23, 2013), was an American R&B and boogie-woogie pianist and singer whose early recordings "formed a vital link between boogie-woogie and rock and roll". ...

recorded a version for his 1994 album '' Yellow Boogie & Blues''. *

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American country singer-songwriter. Much of Cash's music contained themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially in the later stages of his ca ...

covered it on the album '' American III: Solitary Man'' in 2000. *

k.d. lang Kathryn Dawn Lang (born November 2, 1961), known by her stage name k.d. lang, is a Canadian pop (music), pop and country music, country singer-songwriter and occasional actress. Lang has won Juno Awards and Grammy Awards for her musical perfor ...

covered it on the album '' A Wonderful World'' in 2002. *

Brian Wilson Brian Douglas Wilson (born June 20, 1942) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer who co-founded the Beach Boys. Often called a genius for his novel approaches to pop composition, extraordinary musical aptitude, and m ...

premiered a song cycle inspired by the song entitled '' That Lucky Old Sun (A Narrative)'' at the Royal Festival Hall, London, England on September 10, 2007. * A duet with

Kenny Chesney Kenneth Arnold Chesney (born March 26, 1968) is an American country music singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He has recorded more than 20 albums and has produced more than 40 Top 10 singles on the US ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' Hot Coun ...

and

is included on Chesney's 2008 album ''

Lucky Old Sun ''Lucky Old Sun'' is the twelfth studio album by American country music artist Kenny Chesney. It was released on October 14, 2008 as the first release for Blue Chair Records, Chesney's personal division of the BNA Records record label. The album ...

''. This version reached No. 56 on the

Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...

chart, based on unsolicited airplay. * In Czech by Hana Hegerova. *

Karel Gott ) Sinatra of the East( cs, Sinatra Východu, link=no)Divine Charlie Chris Isaak Christopher Joseph Isaak (born June 26, 1956) is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional actor. He is widely known for his breakthrough hit and signature song "Wicked Game", as well as other songs such as "Blue Hotel", "Baby D ...

recorded a cover for his 2011 album '' Beyond the Sun''. *

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

recorded a version for his 2015

covers album ''

Shadows in the Night ''Shadows in the Night'' is the 36th studio album by Bob Dylan, released by Columbia Records on February 3, 2015. The album consists of covers of traditional pop standards made famous by Frank Sinatra, chosen by Dylan. Like most of his 21st ...

''. * Barbershop quartet

Crossroads Crossroads, crossroad, cross road or similar may refer to: * Crossroads (junction), where four roads meet Film and television Films * ''Crossroads'' (1928 film), a 1928 Japanese film by Teinosuke Kinugasa * ''Cross Roads'' (film), a 1930 Brit ...

performed Lucky Old Sun en route to the 2009 International Championship. *

Asleep at the Wheel Asleep at the Wheel is an American Western swing group that was formed in Paw Paw, West Virginia, and is based in Austin, Texas. The band has won nine Grammy Awards since their 1970 inception, released over twenty albums, and has charted more t ...

recorded a cover on their 1988 album Western Standard Time. *

Alligatoah Lukas Strobel (born 28 September 1989), better known by his stage name Alligatoah, is a German rapper, singer, producer and DJ signed to the independent German hip hop record label Trailerpark. He also publishes music for his two fictional ch ...

, a German rapper recorded a cover on ''Fremde Zungen'' in 2018. *

Solomon Burke Solomon Vincent McDonald Burke (born James Solomon McDonald, March 21, 1936 or 1940 – October 10, 2010) was an American singer who shaped the sound of rhythm and blues as one of the founding fathers of soul music in the 1960s. He has been ...

covered the song on his 1969 album ''Proud Mary''. *

Lau Lau or LAU may refer to: People * Lau (surname) * Liu (劉/刘), a common Chinese family name transliterated Lau in Cantonese and Hokkien * Lau clan, one of the Saraswat Brahmin clans of Punjab * LAU (musician): Laura Fares Places * Lebane ...

recorded a cover and released it on an EP for their album ''

The Bell That Never Rang ''The Bell That Never Rang'' is the fourth studio album by British folk band Lau, released on 4 May 2015 on Reveal Records. Produced by Joan Wasser, the album's title is taken from the city of Glasgow's coat of arms, and features The Elysian Qu ...

'' in 2015. *

Tommy Womack Tommy Womack (born November 20, 1962 in Sturgis, Kentucky) is an American singer-songwriter and author. Career Early endeavors Womack played with the band Government Cheese from 1985 to 1992. He wrote an engaging memoir about this experience cal ...

covered the song on his 2021 album "I thought I was Fine".

References

{{Authority control 1949 songs 1949 singles Frank Sinatra songs Frankie Laine songs James Brown songs Louis Armstrong songs Nat Stuckey songs Ray Charles songs Vaughn Monroe songs Songs with lyrics by Haven Gillespie Songs written by Beasley Smith Little Willie Littlefield songs