"It Happened in Sun Valley" is a 1941 song composed by

Harry Warren Harry Warren (born Salvatore Antonio Guaragna; December 24, 1893 – September 22, 1981) was an American composer and the first major American songwriter to write primarily for film. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song ...

, with lyrics by Mack Gordon. It was recorded and featured by

Glenn Miller Alton Glen Miller (March 1, 1904 – December 15, 1944) was an American big band founder, owner, conductor, composer, arranger, trombone player and recording artist before and during World War II, when he was an officer in the US Army Air Forc ...

and his orchestra in the movie '' Sun Valley Serenade''.

Background

Glenn Miller and His Orchestra released the song as an RCA Bluebird 78 rpm single, B-11263-A, in 1941 as a tie-in with the movie, which also featured Glenn Miller and his Orchestra in a performance of the song onscreen with the cast. The B side was "The Kiss Polka", also from the ''Sun Valley Serenade'' soundtrack. While the song makes no mention of

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...

in its lyrics, the winter theme has caused it to become associated with the holiday. Cover versions have been recorded by such artists as

André Previn André George Previn (; born Andreas Ludwig Priwin; April 6, 1929 – February 28, 2019) was a German-American pianist, composer, and conductor. His career had three major genres: Hollywood films, jazz, and classical music. In each he achieved ...

(on his 1955 album ''Let's Get Away from It All''),

Jo Stafford Jo Elizabeth Stafford (November 12, 1917July 16, 2008) was an American traditional pop music singer, whose career spanned five decades from the late 1930s to the early 1980s. Admired for the purity of her voice, she originally underwent classi ...

(on her 1956 album '' Ski Trails''), the Randy Van Horne Singers (on their 1960 album ''Sleighride''), and

Mel Tormé Melvin Howard Tormé (September 13, 1925 – June 5, 1999), nicknamed "The Velvet Fog", was an American musician, singer, composer, arranger, drummer, actor, and author. He composed the music for " The Christmas Song" ("Chestnuts Roasting on an ...

(on his 1992 album ''

Christmas Songs Christmas music comprises a variety of genres of music regularly performed or heard around the Christmas season. Music associated with Christmas may be purely instrumental, or, in the case of carols or songs, may employ lyrics whose subject m ...

''). A version of the song is featured in the 1999 ''

South Park ''South Park'' is an American animated sitcom created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone and developed by Brian Graden for Comedy Central. The series revolves around four boysStan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormickand ...

'' Album "

Mr. Hankey's Christmas Classics "Mr. Hankey's Christmas Classics" is the fifteenth episode of the third season of the animated television series ''South Park'' and the 46th episode of the series overall. An album of the same name consisting of versions of songs from the show a ...

", sung by fictional characters

Stan Marsh Stanley Randell William Marsh is a fictional character in the adult animated television series ''South Park''. He is voiced by and loosely based on series co-creator Trey Parker. Stan is one of the series' four central characters, along with Kyl ...

and Wendy Testaburger. A version of the song was performed by British close harmony singing group The Fraser Hayes Four when they provided the musical interlude during an episode of the long running British comedy radio programme

Round The Horne ''Round the Horne'' is a BBC Radio comedy programme starring Kenneth Horne, first transmitted in four series of weekly episodes from 1965 until 1968. The show was created by Barry Took and Marty Feldman, who wrote the first three series. The ...

Chart history

The Glenn Miller RCA Bluebird recording, B-11263-A, with "Vocal Refrain by Paula Kelly, Ray Eberle, Tex Beneke, and The Modernaires, reached #18 on the ''Billboard'' chart in 1941.Song artist 8 - Glenn Miller.
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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). Volume 2 of The Swing Era:the Development of Jazz, 1930–1945 /. New York: Oxford University Press. . {{authority control Glenn Miller songs Songs with lyrics by Mack Gordon Songs with music by Harry Warren 1941 songs Jo Stafford songs Songs written for films American Christmas songs South Park songs