"I Dreamt I Dwelt in Harlem" is a 1941 jazz and pop song recorded by Glenn Miller and His Orchestra. The song was released as a 78 single on RCA Bluebird by Glenn Miller.

Background

The music was written by composer and arranger

Jerry Gray Jerry Don Gray (born December 16, 1962) is an American football coach and former player who is the defensive backs coach and passing game coordinator for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). Gray played college footbal ...

, Ben Smith, and Leonard Ware. The lyrics were written by Robert B. Wright, the pseudonym of

Buddy Feyne Buddy Feyne (born Bernard Feinstein, June 9, 1912 – December 10, 1998) was an American lyricist during the swing era. He wrote the lyrics for "Tuxedo Junction", which went to No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' chart in 1940 when Glenn Miller recorded ...

, who also wrote the lyrics to "

Tuxedo Junction "Tuxedo Junction" is a popular song written by Erskine Hawkins, Bill Johnson, and Julian Dash with lyrics by Buddy Feyne. The song was introduced by Erskine Hawkins & His Orchestra, a college dance band previously known as the Bama State Collegi ...

". The instrumental was recorded on January 17, 1941 in the studio, but had been previously performed live during a November, 1940 NBC radio remote broadcast from the Cafe Rouge, Hotel Pennsylvania, in New York City. The instrumental features a trumpet solo by Billy May. The arrangement was by Jerry Gray. The band performed the song live for radio broadcast on November 4, 18, 20, 23, 1940 and on December 28, 1940. "I Dreamt I Dwelt in Harlem" was recorded a month before Duke Ellington recorded "Take the 'A' Train" on February 15, 1941. The November 23, 1940 Saturday night live radio broadcast from the Cafe Rouge in Hotel Pennsylvania was introduced by announcer Alan Robinson: "Glenn Miller's finale this evening, something that he cooked up to fit in with his ideas about

Lenox Avenue Lenox Avenue – also named Malcolm X Boulevard; both names are officially recognized – is the primary north–south route through Harlem in the upper portion of the New York City borough of Manhattan. This two-way street runs from F ...

, "I Dreamt I Dwelt in Harlem'." In 1987, Lenox Avenue was co-named

Malcolm X Malcolm X (born Malcolm Little, later Malik el-Shabazz; May 19, 1925 – February 21, 1965) was an American Muslim minister and human rights activist who was a prominent figure during the civil rights movement. A spokesman for the Nation of I ...

Boulevard. The single, released as an RCA Bluebird A side 78, B-11063-A, reached number three on the ''Billboard'' Best Sellers charts on April 5, 1941, staying for five weeks on the charts. The B side was "A Stone's Throw from Heaven". The recording was also released as a 78 single in the UK in October, 1943 on His Master's Voice as B.D. 5817 featuring "Sun Valley Jump" as the B side. The recording appeared on the 1989 compilation collection ''Glenn Miller: The Popular Recordings, 1938-1942'', a career retrospective on Bluebird, RCA, and BMG as 9785-2-RB in a 3 CD and a 4 disc vinyl boxed set LP format released in the U.S., Europe, and Germany.

Personnel

The personnel on the 1941 Glenn Miller studio recording were: Dale McMickle,

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 ...

, John Best, Billy May (tp), Glenn Miller, Paul Tanner, Jimmy Priddy, Frank D'Annolfo (tb), Hal McIntyre, Wilbur Schwartz (cl, as), Ernie Caceres (as, bar), Tex Benneke, Al Klink (ts), Chummy McGregor (p), Jack Lathrop (g), Trigger Alpert (sb), and Maurice Purtill (dm).

Other recordings

The song was also recorded by the

Delta Rhythm Boys The Delta Rhythm Boys was an American vocal group active from 1934 to 1987. The group was formed at Langston University in Langston, Oklahoma, in 1934 by Carl Jones, Traverse Crawford, Otha Lee Gaines, and Kelsey Pharr. They moved to Dillard U ...

Erskine Butterfield Erskine Butterfield (February 9, 1913 – July 11, 1961) was an American pianist, singer, bandleader and composer, active in the 1930s to the 1950s, and best known for his boogie-woogie and swing piano style. Butterfield was credited with " ...

and His Blue Boys on Decca Records with vocals in the U.S. and on Brunswick in the UK, Kenny Graham, Herb Miller and His Orchestra, the Syd Lawrence Orchestra, and the

King Sisters The King Sisters were an American big band-era vocal group consisting of six sisters: Alyce, Donna, Luise, Marilyn, Maxine, and Yvonne King. History Born and raised in Pleasant Grove, Utah, the King sisters were part of the Driggs family of e ...

. The Delta Rhythm Boys also performed the song with the lyrics in a 1941 soundie or film short by Storyville Films directed by Robert R. Snody.I Dreamt I Dwelt in Harlem (1941). IMDB.
/ref> Sheet music was released by Fowler Music in New York to accompany the Glenn Miller and Erskine Butterfield recordings. The Alan Glasscock Orchestra has performed the song live in concert in 2013.

Album appearances

* The Complete Glenn Miller, Vol. 6 (1940-1941), Bluebird RCA, 1975 * Glenn Miller: The Popular Recordings (1938-1942), Bluebird RCA, 1989 * Glenn Miller: Reader's Digest: His Greatest Hits & Finest Performances, Reader's Digest Music, 1994 * Glenn Miller: Marvellous Miller Magic, Hallmark, 1995 * Glenn Miller: The 100 Greatest Titles, EMI Music Distribution, 2001

References

Sources

*Flower, John (1972). Moonlight Serenade: A Bio-Discography of the Glenn Miller Civilian Band. New Rochelle, NY: Arlington House. . *Miller, Glenn (1943). Glenn Miller's Method for Orchestral Arranging. New York: Mutual Music Society. ASIN: B0007DMEDQ *Simon, George Thomas (1980). Glenn Miller and His Orchestra. New York: Da Capo paperback. . *Simon, George Thomas (1971). Simon Says. New York: Galahad. . *Schuller, Gunther (1991). The Swing Era: The Development of Jazz, 1930–1945, Volume 2. New York: Oxford University Press. .

External links

1941 Glenn Miller and His Orchestra recording on RCA Bluebird recorded January 17, 1941.

1941 recording by Erskine Butterfield and His Blue Boys recorded April 29, 1941.
{{Authority control Glenn Miller songs Songs with lyrics by Buddy Feyne 1941 compositions Instrumentals Jazz compositions Songs with music by Jerry Gray (arranger)