I Will Always Love You was a signature song for Whitney Houston, after she performed the song in her movie, The Bodyguard. However, the song was written by another big known star, Dolly Parton. This would become the biggest song of her career as both a performer and songwriter. The song was the second single Read More
Category: Story behind the Song
Blueberry Hill
If you’ve ever seen Happy Days, you’ll probably remember Richie Cunningham singing “I found my thrill….” These are the opening lines to the 1940 hit Blueberry Hill. The tune to Blueberry Hill was written by Vincent Rose. Rose, who was born in Italy, was a musician and bandleader. He conducted the Montmartre Orchestra in the Read More
Behind the Song: Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas was almost cut from the film that made it popular. The song was sung in the 1944 MGM musical, Meet Me in St. Louis. In the film, Judy Garland’s character sings the song to her despondent little sister, played by Margaret O’Brien. The song was written by Hugh Martin Read More
Behind the Song: White Christmas
White Christmas is the most popular Christmas song of all time. The Irving Berlin song is reminiscing about an “old fashioned Christmas.” Accounts vary as to when and where Berlin wrote the song. He often stayed up all night writing or would ask his secretary to write down what he dictated. Both La Quinta Hotel Read More
Behind the Song: Over the River and Through the Woods
The popular children’s song, Over the River and Through the Woods, was written by Lydia Maria Child as a Thanksgiving poem. The lyrics represented in the song is often associated with cold. In the early 19th Century, New England winters were colder and had earlier winters than they do in the present day. The poem Read More
Rock of Ages
Rock of Ages was written by Reverend Augustus Montague Toplady in 1763. The song was first published in The Gospel Magazine in 1775. Rev. Toplady father died when he was a child. He was sixteen when he accepted Christ while on a trip to Ireland, however he’d already been preaching for four years and writing Read More
Let Me Call You Sweetheart
Let Me Call You Sweetheart is a longtime favorite. Every time I go to the nursing homes to perform, the residents LOVE this song. One time we sang this song through about a dozen times in a row. As we sing through the song, we would dance {usually with them sitting in their chair} with Read More
God Bless America
Irving Berlin’s patriotic love song to his adopted homeland was hidden away for over twenty years before being publicly made known. Irving Berlin was a Russian immigrant living in New York City. Growing up, Berlin often heard his mother say “God Bless America.” Berlin later said about his mother, “without America, her family would have Read More
The Untold Story: The Star Spangeled Banner
We all know our National Anthem, but do you know how it originated? The author, Francis Scott Key, was at Fort McHenry when the British Royal Navy bombed the fort in 1814. Francis Scott Key, a lawyer, and amateur poet, and John Stuart Skinner were on a mission for President James Madison on Read More
Jesus Loves Me
Jesus Loves Me is the best loved children’s song of all time. The words were written by Anna Bartlett Warner, who was born in 1827. Warner could trace her lineage back to the Puritan Pilgrims on both sides. Her father was Henry Warner, a well known New York City lawyer originally from New England, and Read More