On Moonlight Bay

On Moonlight Bay is a popular song of the 20th Century.  The best known version is the one by Doris Day. The song was first published in 1912.  The lyrics were written by Edward Madden, an American lyricist who wrote songs such as What Could Be Sweeter? And Red Rose Rag. The composer was Percy Read More

Shine On Harvest Moon

Shine On Harvest Moon is another popular song from the early 1900s.  This is a favorite when I go to the nursing home to sing. The song is credited to Nora Bayes and Jack Norworth, a married Vaudeville team.   This was another song that was among the moon-related songs of the Tin Pan Alley era, Read More

Sleepy Time Gal

I became familiar with Sleepy Time Gal from a rerun of Petticoat Junction, in which Steve Elliott sings the song to his baby daughter. Sleepy Time Gal was originally published in 1925. The lyrics were written by Raymond B. Egan and Joseph Alden.  The music was written by Richard A. Whiting and Ange Lorenzo. The Read More

Blue Christmas

Blue Christmas was written by Billy Hayes and Jay W. Johnson. The song was first recorded by Doyle O’Dell in 1948. The following year the song was popularized by Ernest Tubb.  His version appeared at #1 on the Billboard magazine’s Country & Western Chart in the first week of January 1950.  His country version included Read More