"''When Sunny Gets Blue''" is a song written by Marvin Fisher (music) and Jack Segal (lyrics), which has become a jazz standard. The song was originally recorded in September 1956 by Johnny Mathis backed by Ray Conniff and his Orchestra, released in February 1957 as the B-side of Mathis's debut single "

Wonderful! Wonderful! "Wonderful! Wonderful!" is a popular music song written by Sherman Edwards, with lyrics by Ben Raleigh. The song was first published in 1956. In the United States, a recording by Johnny Mathis reached number 14 on the ''Billboard'' chart ...

". The song was included on the compilation album '' Johnny's Greatest Hits'', released in April 1958. The album was a smash hit, staying on the ''Billboard'' pop chart for 490 weeks, including 3 weeks at number 1, and 57 weeks in the Top Ten. The song was recorded in January 1957 by June Christy for her album '' Fair and Warmer!'', released later that year.

Pete Rugolo Pietro "Pete" Rugolo (December 25, 1915 – October 16, 2011) was an American jazz composer, arranger and record producer. Life and career Rugolo was born in San Piero Patti, Sicily. His family emigrated to the United States in 1920 and settle ...

arranged and conducted for Christy. Around the same time,

Nat King Cole Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's music career began after he dropped out of school at the age of 15, and continued f ...

recorded it for his album ''

Love Is the Thing ''Love Is the Thing'' is a 1957 album released by American jazz vocalist Nat King Cole. It is the first of four collaborations between Cole and influential arranger Gordon Jenkins. Launching the charting single "Stardust", which peaked at #79, th ...

'', with this rendition praised by music critic

Will Friedwald Will Friedwald (born September 16, 1961) is an American author and music critic. He has written for newspapers that include the ''Wall Street Journal'', ''New York Times'', ''Village Voice'', '' Newsday'', '' New York Observer'', and ''New Yor ...

as displaying Cole's "tenderness, compassion and empathy". Arranger

Gordon Jenkins Gordon Hill Jenkins (May 12, 1910 – May 1, 1984) was an American arranger, composer, and pianist who was influential in popular music in the 1940s and 1950s. Jenkins worked with The Andrews Sisters, Johnny Cash, The Weavers, Frank Sinatra, Lo ...

backed Cole.

Legal case

"When Sunny Gets Blue" begins with the lyrics "When Sunny gets blue, her eyes get grey and cloudy; then the rain begins to fall." In 1984, DJ

Rick Dees Rigdon Osmond Dees III (born March 14, 1950), best known as Rick Dees, is an American entertainer, radio personality, comedian, actor, and voice artist, best known for his internationally syndicated radio show '' The Rick Dees Weekly Top 40 Coun ...

, a radio personality at Los Angeles radio station

KIIS-FM KIIS-FM (102.7 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to Los Angeles, California, United States, and broadcasts to the Greater Los Angeles area. The station airs a top 40 format. Owned by iHeartMedia, KIIS-FM is the origin of the conglome ...

, recorded a parody of the song for an album, including the lyrics "When Sunny sniffs glue, her eyes get red and bulgy, then her hair begins to fall". Dees sought permission to use the lyrics, but was refused; subsequently, he used 8 bars of the song under the fair use doctrine. In 1986, composer Marvin Fisher and lyricist Jack Segal sued Dees for copyright violation, unfair competition, product disparagement, and defamation in U.S. District Court for Los Angeles. At the request of the parties involved, the district court issued a summary judgment, finding for Dees.
Fisher appealed the case to the U.S Court of Appeals for the 9th District, in Pasadena, California. The appellate court affirmed the judgment of the lower court in '' Fisher v. Dees'' 794 F.2d 432 (9th Cir. 1986), stating that the parody was intended to "criticize" for the purposes of humor, not to "copy", and did not damage the marketability of the original because they were two different markets of music. The case has become a landmark one, further refining the doctrine of fair use in U.S. copyright law.

References

{{Authority control 1956 songs 1950s jazz standards Johnny Mathis songs Songs written by Jack Segal