Song Story: Pennies from Heaven

Pennies from Heaven is one of my personal favorites and I recently heard Regis Philbin singing the song and thought this would be a great song to explore.

Pennies from Heaven was written by Johnny Burke {lyrics} and Arthur Johnson {music}.  The song was first introduced in the 1936 film Pennies from Heaven, which introduced Bing Crosby.

Pennies from Heaven was the first of many hits Johnny Burke would write for Bing Crosby

Crosby’s recording in 1936 topped the charts for ten weeks.

The song reflects the time period of the 1930s.  Hoping for the best of things from the Roaring Twenties and encouragement to wait out the storm and not give up the hardships they were facing with the Great Depression.

Bing Crosby would later record the song with Louis Armstrong, Frances Langford and Jimmy Dorsey and his Orchestra.

Numerous other performers went on to record the song including Billie Holliday, Louis Armstrong, Tony Bennett, Dean Martin, Dinah Washington, Frank Sinatra, Regis Philbin, Michael Buble, Mel Torme, Billie Holiday, Harry James, and many others.

The song was featured on The Muppet Show, Captain Kangaroo, The Mickey Mouse Club, an episode of Roseanne, the movie Corina, Corina and by Philbin for Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.

In 2004, the song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.