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Blues in the Night

January 22, 2023

This article is about the song. For other uses, see Blues in the Night (disambiguation).

"Blues in the Night" is a popular blues song which has become a pop standard and is generally considered to be part of the Great American Songbook. The music was written by Harold Arlen, the lyrics by Johnny Mercer, for a 1941 film begun with the working title Hot Nocturne, but finally released as Blues in the Night. The song is sung in the film by William Gillespie.[6]

"Blues in the Night"
Single by Woody Herman and His Orchestra
B-side"This Time the Dream's On Me"[1]
PublishedSeptember 18, 1941 (1941-09-18) by Harms, Inc., New York[2]
ReleasedOctober 1941 (1941-10)
RecordedSeptember 10, 1941 (1941-09-10)[3]
StudioDecca Studios, 5505 Melrose Avenue, Los Angeles
Venuefrom movie, "Blues in the Night"
GenrePopular music, Blues
Length3:14
LabelDecca 4030
Composer(s)Harold Arlen
Lyricist(s)Johnny Mercer
"Blues in the Night"
Single by Dinah Shore
B-side"Sometimes"
ReleasedJanuary 23, 1942 (1942-01-23)[4]
RecordedJanuary 12, 1942 (1942-01-12)[5]
StudioVictor Gramercy Recording Studio #2, New York City
Length3:07
LabelBluebird 11436

Composition

 
"Blues in the Night" (1941)
African-American baritone William Gillespie's original rendition of the Arlen-Mercer composition "Blues in the Night."
Problems playing this file? See media help.

Arlen and Mercer wrote the entire score for the 1941 film Blues in the Night. One requirement was for a blues song to be sung in a jail cell.[7] As usual with Mercer, the composer wrote the music first, then Mercer wrote the words. Arlen later recalled:

The whole thing just poured out. And I knew in my guts, without even thinking what Johnny would write for a lyric, that this was strong, strong, strong! When Mercer wrote "Blues in the Night", I went over his lyric and I started to hum it over his desk. It sounded marvelous once I got to the second stanza but that first twelve was weak tea. On the third or fourth page of his work sheets I saw some lines—one of them was "My momma done tol' me, when I was in knee pants." I said, "Why don't you try that?" It was one of the very few times I've ever suggested anything like that to John.[8]

When they finished writing the song, Mercer called a friend, singer Margaret Whiting, and asked if they could come over and play it for her. She suggested they come later because she had dinner guests—Mickey Rooney, Judy Garland, Mel Tormé, and Martha Raye. Instead, Arlen and Mercer went right over. Margaret Whiting remembered what happened then:

They came in the back door, sat down at the piano and played the score of "Blues in the Night". I remember forever the reaction. Mel got up and said, "I can't believe it." Martha couldn't say a word. Mickey Rooney said, "That's the greatest thing I've ever heard." Judy Garland said, "Play it again." We had them play it seven times. Judy and I ran to the piano to see who was going to learn it first. It was a lovely night.[8]

After the song was composed and the lyrics were written, African-American baritone William Gillespie (1908-1968) was hired to perform the song in the jail cell for the film.[6] In his review of the film, critic Howard Thompson of The New York Times argued that Gillespie's "superbly chanted" version of the Arlen-Mercer song transformed the motion picture and arguably "nailed the film down for posterity."[9]

Academy Award nomination

In 1942 "Blues in the Night" was one of nine songs nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song.[10] Observers expected that either "Blues in the Night" or "Chattanooga Choo Choo" would win, so that when "The Last Time I Saw Paris" actually won, neither its composer, Jerome Kern, nor lyricist, Oscar Hammerstein II, was present at the ceremony. Kern was so upset at winning with a song that had not been specifically written for a motion picture and that had been published and recorded before the film came out that he petitioned the Motion Picture Academy to change the rules. Since then, a nominated song has to have been written specifically for the motion picture in which it is performed.[11]

Critical comment

Composer Alec Wilder said of this song, "'Blues in the Night' is certainly a landmark in the evolution of American popular music, lyrically as well as musically."[12]

Famous phrases from the lyrics

  • "My momma done tol' me"
  • "when I was in knee pants"
  • "worrisome thing"
  • "a woman'll sweet talk"

Recorded versions

Charting versions

Listed below are known versions of "Blues In the Night" that have made Billboard magazine's charts in the United States since 1941.[13]

Recorded versions in the United Kingdom were by Shirley Bassey and Helen Shapiro.

Artie Shaw recorded the first version on September 2, 1941 for RCA Victor Records, which was released as Victor 27609 on October 3.[14] It debuted at #10 on Billboard magazine's "Best Selling Retail Records chart" (BS chart) on November 21, 1941, but dropped to #21 the next week, then off.[15]

The Woody Herman recording was released by Decca Records as catalog number 4030 in October 1941.[6][16] It reached the BS chart in November, and hit #1 on February 14, 1942, finishing with a 21-week chart run..[13][15]

Dinah Shore's version[7] was released by Bluebird Records as catalog number 11436[6][17] on January 23, 1942.[4] It reached the BS chart on February 14, 1942 to start an 11 week run, peaking at #4. It was the #27 BS record of 1942, and went on to sell one million records.[18]

Jimmie Lunceford's two-sided platter was recorded on December 22, 1941, and released on Decca 4125 in January.[6][16] Starting January 31, 1942, it ran 10 weeks on the BS chart, peaking at #4.[18]

The Cab Calloway recording was released by OKeh Records as catalog number 6422.[6][19] It reached the BS chart on January 31, 1942 to start a 9 week run, peaking at #8.[15]

The Benny Goodman Sextet, with Peggy Lee on vocals, recorded "Blues in the Night" on December 24, 1941, released on Okeh 6553 in January 1942. It made the chart on February 14 at #20, but was never seen again.[18]

The Rosemary Clooney recording was released by Columbia Records as catalog number 39813.[20] The record first reached the Billboard magazine charts on September 26, 1952 and lasted 2 weeks on the chart, peaking at #29.[15]

Other notable versions

In addition, the song was recorded at least three times by Jo Stafford. Her previously unreleased 1942 version with the Tommy Dorsey orchestra[21] was included in the 1966 Reader's Digest box set The Glenn Miller Years.[22] On October 15, 1943, she recorded it with Johnny Mercer, the Pied Pipers, and Paul Weston's Orchestra, in a version released as a single (catalog number 10001[23]) and on an album (Songs by Johnny Mercer, catalog number CD1) by Capitol Records. On February 20, 1959, she recorded it with The Starlighters in a version released on an album (Ballad of the Blues, catalog number CL-1332) by Columbia Records.

Another version was by Billy Eckstine in his album Once More with Feeling (1960)

Dick Monda released a version of the song as a single in 1967.[24]

Carlos Montoya recorded a flamenco version.[25]

In 1995, the rock group Chicago included the song on their "Night & Day: Big Band" album. The arrangement by vocalist Bill Champlin features a guitar solo by Aerosmith's Joe Perry.

Ray Charles for his album Ain't It So (1979)

Additional recorded versions (and further details on above versions)

(This is the first of four records in Capitol Records' first album, Songs by Johnny Mercer.)[23])

In popular culture

  • The song was frequently quoted by composer Carl Stalling in his musical scores for the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons for Warner Bros. studios in the 1940s and 1950s. The then-recent hit song is sung incessantly by Daffy Duck in the ironically-titled 1942 cartoon My Favorite Duck, in which Porky Pig is tormented by the duck while on a camping trip. Porky's preferred number in that cartoon is "On Moonlight Bay". At one point, Porky unconsciously starts to sing "My Mama Done Tol' Me," then stops, looks into the camera with a "Harumph!" and returns to "Moonlight Bay."
Additionally, the musical riff "my mama done tol' me" is used to identify a black duck from 'South' Germany in the 1942 Looney Tunes cartoon The Ducktators, and the song is featured prominently (with revised lyrics) in the 1943 Merrie Melody cartoon Fifth Column Mouse as well as in Coal Black and de Sebben Dwarfs. In the 1942 cartoon, Bugs Bunny Gets the Boid, Bugs Bunny half-mutters the song, changing the lyrics to, "My mamma done told me, a buzzard is two faced..." The melody is also heard in Porky Pig's Feat, Early to Bet, The Hypo-Chondri-Cat, and others.

References

  1. ^ "Decca 4030 (10-in. double-faced) - Discography of American Historical Recordings". adp.library.ucsb.edu. Retrieved 2022-05-18.
  2. ^ Library of Congress. Copyright Office. (1941). Catalog of Copyright Entries 1941 Music New Series Vol 36 Pt 2 Last Half of 1941. United States Copyright Office. U.S. Govt. Print. Off.
  3. ^ "Decca matrix DLA 2746. Blues in the night / Woody Herman Orchestra - Discography of American Historical Recordings". adp.library.ucsb.edu. Retrieved 2022-05-18.
  4. ^ a b "Bluebird B-11436 (10-in. double-faced) - Discography of American Historical Recordings". adp.library.ucsb.edu. Retrieved 2022-05-18.
  5. ^ "Victor matrix BS-068853. Blues in the night / Dinah Shore - Discography of American Historical Recordings". adp.library.ucsb.edu. Retrieved 2022-05-18.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g Gardner, Edward Foote (2000). Popular Songs of the 20th Century: Chart Detail & Encyclopedia, 1900-1949. St. Paul, Minnesota: Paragon House. ISBN 1-55778-789-1.
  7. ^ a b Gilliland, John (1994). Pop Chronicles the 40s: The Lively Story of Pop Music in the 40s (audiobook). ISBN 978-1-55935-147-8. OCLC 31611854. Tape 2, side B.
  8. ^ a b Lahr, John (September 19, 2005). "Come Rain Or Come Shine: The Bittersweet Life of Harold Arlen". The New Yorker. pp. 92–93.
  9. ^ Biesen, Sheri Chinen (2014). Music in the Shadows: Noir Musical Films. United States: Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 37 – via Google Books.
  10. ^ "Awards for Blues in the Night (1941)". imdb. Retrieved 2007-01-25.
  11. ^ Sacket, Susan (1995). Hollywood Sings!. New York: Billboard Books. pp. 42–43. ISBN 9780823076239.
  12. ^ Wilder, Alec (1972). American Popular Song: The Great Innovators, 1900-1950. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 272. ISBN 0-19-501445-6.
  13. ^ a b Whitburn, Joel (1999). Joel Whitburn Presents a Century of Pop Music. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research. ISBN 0-89820-135-7.
  14. ^ a b Victor Records in the 27500 to 27999 series
  15. ^ a b c d It was the #8 Best-Selling Record of 1942. Whitburn, Joel (1973). Top Pop Records 1940-1955. Record Research.
  16. ^ a b c d e f g Decca Records in the 4000 to 4461 series
  17. ^ a b c Bluebird Records in the 11000 to 11499 series
  18. ^ a b c Whitburn, Joel (1986). Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890-1954 page 181. Record Research.
  19. ^ a b OKeh Records in the 6000 to 6499 series
  20. ^ a b Columbia Records in the 39500 to 39999 series
  21. ^ "Jo Stafford Discography". Jo Stafford Discography. Retrieved June 19, 2017.
  22. ^ "Discogs.com". Discogs.com. Retrieved June 19, 2017.
  23. ^ a b Capitol Records in the 10001 to 10210 series
  24. ^ Dick Monda, "Blues in the Night" single release Retrieved February 14, 2016.
  25. ^ "Montoya's Farewell Tour Arrives in Irvine Tonight". Los Angeles Times. 13 October 1989. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  26. ^ Decca Records in the 23500 to 23999 series
  27. ^ RCA Victor Records in the 20-4000 to 20-4499 series
  28. ^ RCA Victor Records in the 20-3500 to 20-3999 series
  29. ^ Columbia Records in the 40000 to 40499 series
  30. ^ Columbia Records in the 41000 to 41500 series
  31. ^ OKeh Records in the 6500 to 6747 series
  32. ^ Harmony Records in the 1001 to 1087 series
  33. ^ Decca Records in the 24000 to 24499 series
  34. ^ Decca Records in the 25000 to 25514 series
  35. ^ Columbia Records in the 37500 to 37999 series
  36. ^ a b Columbia Records in the 36500 to 36999 series
  37. ^ Elite Records in the 5000 to 5045 series
  38. ^ Decca Records in the 28000 to 28499 series
  39. ^ Decca Records in the 29000 to 29499 series
  40. ^ Capitol Records in the 1500 to 1999 series
  41. ^ Capitol Records in the 2500 to 2999 series
  42. ^ "Pop Chronicles 1940s Program #5". 1972.
  43. ^ RCA Victor Records in the 20-1500 to 20-1999 series
  44. ^ Decca Records in the 18000 to 18499 series
  45. ^ Decca Records in the 8500 to 8999 series
  46. ^ Atlantic Records listing
  47. ^ Decca Records in the 29009 to 29255 series

January 22, 2023
blues, night, this, article, about, song, other, uses, disambiguation, popular, blues, song, which, become, standard, generally, considered, part, great, american, songbook, music, written, harold, arlen, lyrics, johnny, mercer, 1941, film, begun, with, workin. This article is about the song For other uses see Blues in the Night disambiguation Blues in the Night is a popular blues song which has become a pop standard and is generally considered to be part of the Great American Songbook The music was written by Harold Arlen the lyrics by Johnny Mercer for a 1941 film begun with the working title Hot Nocturne but finally released as Blues in the Night The song is sung in the film by William Gillespie 6 Blues in the Night Single by Woody Herman and His OrchestraB side This Time the Dream s On Me 1 PublishedSeptember 18 1941 1941 09 18 by Harms Inc New York 2 ReleasedOctober 1941 1941 10 RecordedSeptember 10 1941 1941 09 10 3 StudioDecca Studios 5505 Melrose Avenue Los AngelesVenuefrom movie Blues in the Night GenrePopular music BluesLength3 14LabelDecca 4030Composer s Harold ArlenLyricist s Johnny Mercer Blues in the Night Single by Dinah ShoreB side Sometimes ReleasedJanuary 23 1942 1942 01 23 4 RecordedJanuary 12 1942 1942 01 12 5 StudioVictor Gramercy Recording Studio 2 New York CityLength3 07LabelBluebird 11436 Contents 1 Composition 2 Academy Award nomination 3 Critical comment 4 Famous phrases from the lyrics 5 Recorded versions 5 1 Charting versions 5 2 Other notable versions 5 3 Additional recorded versions and further details on above versions 6 In popular culture 7 ReferencesComposition Edit Blues in the Night 1941 source source African American baritone William Gillespie s original rendition of the Arlen Mercer composition Blues in the Night Problems playing this file See media help Arlen and Mercer wrote the entire score for the 1941 film Blues in the Night One requirement was for a blues song to be sung in a jail cell 7 As usual with Mercer the composer wrote the music first then Mercer wrote the words Arlen later recalled The whole thing just poured out And I knew in my guts without even thinking what Johnny would write for a lyric that this was strong strong strong When Mercer wrote Blues in the Night I went over his lyric and I started to hum it over his desk It sounded marvelous once I got to the second stanza but that first twelve was weak tea On the third or fourth page of his work sheets I saw some lines one of them was My momma done tol me when I was in knee pants I said Why don t you try that It was one of the very few times I ve ever suggested anything like that to John 8 When they finished writing the song Mercer called a friend singer Margaret Whiting and asked if they could come over and play it for her She suggested they come later because she had dinner guests Mickey Rooney Judy Garland Mel Torme and Martha Raye Instead Arlen and Mercer went right over Margaret Whiting remembered what happened then They came in the back door sat down at the piano and played the score of Blues in the Night I remember forever the reaction Mel got up and said I can t believe it Martha couldn t say a word Mickey Rooney said That s the greatest thing I ve ever heard Judy Garland said Play it again We had them play it seven times Judy and I ran to the piano to see who was going to learn it first It was a lovely night 8 After the song was composed and the lyrics were written African American baritone William Gillespie 1908 1968 was hired to perform the song in the jail cell for the film 6 In his review of the film critic Howard Thompson of The New York Times argued that Gillespie s superbly chanted version of the Arlen Mercer song transformed the motion picture and arguably nailed the film down for posterity 9 Academy Award nomination EditIn 1942 Blues in the Night was one of nine songs nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song 10 Observers expected that either Blues in the Night or Chattanooga Choo Choo would win so that when The Last Time I Saw Paris actually won neither its composer Jerome Kern nor lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II was present at the ceremony Kern was so upset at winning with a song that had not been specifically written for a motion picture and that had been published and recorded before the film came out that he petitioned the Motion Picture Academy to change the rules Since then a nominated song has to have been written specifically for the motion picture in which it is performed 11 Critical comment EditComposer Alec Wilder said of this song Blues in the Night is certainly a landmark in the evolution of American popular music lyrically as well as musically 12 Famous phrases from the lyrics Edit My momma done tol me when I was in knee pants worrisome thing a woman ll sweet talk Recorded versions EditCharting versions Edit Listed below are known versions of Blues In the Night that have made Billboard magazine s charts in the United States since 1941 13 Recorded versions in the United Kingdom were by Shirley Bassey and Helen Shapiro Artie Shaw recorded the first version on September 2 1941 for RCA Victor Records which was released as Victor 27609 on October 3 14 It debuted at 10 on Billboard magazine s Best Selling Retail Records chart BS chart on November 21 1941 but dropped to 21 the next week then off 15 The Woody Herman recording was released by Decca Records as catalog number 4030 in October 1941 6 16 It reached the BS chart in November and hit 1 on February 14 1942 finishing with a 21 week chart run 13 15 Dinah Shore s version 7 was released by Bluebird Records as catalog number 11436 6 17 on January 23 1942 4 It reached the BS chart on February 14 1942 to start an 11 week run peaking at 4 It was the 27 BS record of 1942 and went on to sell one million records 18 Jimmie Lunceford s two sided platter was recorded on December 22 1941 and released on Decca 4125 in January 6 16 Starting January 31 1942 it ran 10 weeks on the BS chart peaking at 4 18 The Cab Calloway recording was released by OKeh Records as catalog number 6422 6 19 It reached the BS chart on January 31 1942 to start a 9 week run peaking at 8 15 The Benny Goodman Sextet with Peggy Lee on vocals recorded Blues in the Night on December 24 1941 released on Okeh 6553 in January 1942 It made the chart on February 14 at 20 but was never seen again 18 The Rosemary Clooney recording was released by Columbia Records as catalog number 39813 20 The record first reached the Billboard magazine charts on September 26 1952 and lasted 2 weeks on the chart peaking at 29 15 Other notable versions Edit In addition the song was recorded at least three times by Jo Stafford Her previously unreleased 1942 version with the Tommy Dorsey orchestra 21 was included in the 1966 Reader s Digest box set The Glenn Miller Years 22 On October 15 1943 she recorded it with Johnny Mercer the Pied Pipers and Paul Weston s Orchestra in a version released as a single catalog number 10001 23 and on an album Songs by Johnny Mercer catalog number CD1 by Capitol Records On February 20 1959 she recorded it with The Starlighters in a version released on an album Ballad of the Blues catalog number CL 1332 by Columbia Records Another version was by Billy Eckstine in his album Once More with Feeling 1960 Dick Monda released a version of the song as a single in 1967 24 Carlos Montoya recorded a flamenco version 25 In 1995 the rock group Chicago included the song on their Night amp Day Big Band album The arrangement by vocalist Bill Champlin features a guitar solo by Aerosmith s Joe Perry Ray Charles for his album Ain t It So 1979 Additional recorded versions and further details on above versions Edit Frank Sinatra on Sinatra Sings For Only The Lonely 1958 Bobby Bland on Here s the Man 1962 Arlen himself recorded the song for his 1966 album Harold Sings Arlen With Friend Larry Adler and the John Kirby Orchestra recorded January 20 1944 released by Decca Records as catalog number 23524 later version of Decca 23524 released as a Larry Adler harmonica solo both versions with the flip side St Louis Blues 26 Luis Arcaraz released by RCA Victor Records as catalog number 20 4418 with the flip side Stormy Weather 27 Louis Armstrong on Louis Armstrong Meets Oscar Peterson 1957 The Four Seasons 1965 Charlie Barnet and his orchestra recorded October 5 1941 released by Bluebird Records as catalog number 11327 with the flip side Isle of Pines 17 Shirley Bassey Tex Beneke as Blues in the Night March released by RCA Victor Records as catalog number 20 3513 with the flip side The One Who Gets You 28 Tony Bennett on The Beat of My Heart 1957 Sam Butera 1964 Cab Calloway and his orchestra vocal Calloway amp The Palmer Brothers recorded September 10 1941 released by OKeh Records as catalog number 6422 with the flip side Says Who Says You Says I 19 Eva Cassidy Chicago Night amp Day Big Band 1995 Rosemary Clooney with Percy Faith s orchestra recorded April 1952 released by Columbia Records as catalog number 39813 with the flip side Who Kissed Me Last Night 20 re released as catalog number 40031 with the flip side Tenderly 29 Bing Crosby and John Scott Trotter s Orchestra recorded January 27 1942 released by Decca Records as catalog number 4183A with the flip side Miss You 16 Crosby also recorded the song in 1956 for his album Songs I Wish I Had Sung the First Time Around Doris Day released by Columbia Records as catalog number 41103 with the flip side Teacher s Pet 30 Jula de Palma in her album Jula in jazz 1958 Ella Fitzgerald on Ella Swings Lightly 1958 and Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Harold Arlen Songbook 1961 Judy Garland and the David Rose Orchestra 1941 released by Decca Records as catalog number 4081A with the flip side The End of the Rainbow 16 Benny Goodman and his Sextet vocal Peggy Lee amp Lou McGarity recorded December 24 1941 released by OKeh Records as catalog number 6553 with the flip side Where or When 31 also released by Harmony Records as catalog number Ha1012 with the flip side Bewitched 32 Bob Grant medley recorded July 1 1944 released by Decca Records as catalog number 24311 with the flip side My Devotion medley 33 Buddy Guy has often incorporated parts of the song in his arrangements of classic blues songs including I ve Got A Right To Love My Woman from the 1980 live album The Dollar Done Fell and Cheaper To Keep Her Blues In The Night from the 2005 album Bring Em In Woody Herman and his Orchestra vocal Woody Herman recorded September 10 1941 released by Decca Records as catalog number 4030B with the flip side This Time the Dream s on Me 16 and as catalog number 25194 with the flip side Laughing Boy Blues 34 re recorded May 7 1947 released by Columbia Records as catalog number 37858 with the flip side Blue Prelude 35 Harry James and his orchestra recorded December 30 1941 released by Columbia Records as catalog number 36500 with the flip side All For Love 36 Quincy Jones His version was featured prominently in the Soundtrack of Ocean s Eleven 2001 the George Clooney Brad Pitt remake Ledisi We All Love Ella Celebrating the First Lady of Song 2007 Verve Little Milton We re Gonna Make It 1965 Chess Guy Lombardo s Royal Canadians vocal Kenny Gardner recorded January 27 1942 released by Decca Records as catalog number 4177A with the flip side Frankie and Johnny 16 Julie London on About the Blues 1957 Clyde Lucas and his orchestra vocal Eadie Lang recorded November 1941 released by Elite Records as catalog number 5010B with the flip side I Said No 37 Jimmie Lunceford and his Orchestra vocal Willie Smith 6 recorded December 22 1941 in two parts released by Decca Records as catalog number 4125A amp 4125B 16 also released by Decca Records as catalog number 28441 both sides 38 Nellie Lutcher released by Decca Records as catalog number 29284 with the flip side Breezin Along with the Breeze 39 Katie Melua Piece by Piece 2005 Johnny Mercer released by Capitol Records as catalog number 1608 with the flip side Candy 40 Johnny Mercer Jo Stafford and The Pied Pipers recorded 1943 released by Capitol Records as catalog number 10001 with the flip side On the Nodaway Road This is the first of four records in Capitol Records first album Songs by Johnny Mercer 23 Van Morrison with Georgie Fame recorded 1995 on How Long Has This Been Going On Art Pepper with strings on his 1980 album Winter Moon recorded 3 4 September 1980 Betty Reilly released by Capitol Records as catalog number 2888 with the flip side The Peanut Vendor 41 Helen Shapiro Artie Shaw and his Orchestra vocal Hot Lips Page 42 recorded September 2 1941 released by Victor Records as catalog number 27609 with the flip side This Time the Dream s on Me 14 Dinah Shore recorded January 12 1942 released by Bluebird Records as catalog number 11436 with the flip side Sometimes 17 also released by RCA Victor Records as catalog number 20 1543 with the flip side How Come You Do Me Like You Do 43 Kate Smith recorded February 12 1942 released by Columbia Records as catalog number 36534 with the flip side How Do I Know It s Real 36 Jo Stafford 1959 Mel Torme Torme 1958 Verve Alec Templeton piano instrumental recorded February 21 1942 released by Decca Records as catalog number 18271A with the flip side Grieg Concerto in A Minor Op 16 44 Cal Tjader arr Clare Fischer Cal Tjader Plays Harold Arlen recorded June 1960 released February 1962 reissued on CD in 2002 as Cal Tjader Plays Harold Arlen and West Side Story scored for strings harp and a jazz quartet led by vibraphonist Tjader Joe Turner with the Freddie Slack Trio recorded January 28 1942 released by Decca Records as catalog number 8606 with the flip side Cry Baby Blues 45 Joe Turner with Howard Biggs Orchestra recorded January 22 1958 released by Atlantic Records as catalog number 1184 with the flip side We re Gonna Jump for Joy 46 Fred Waring s Singers recorded June 23 1942 released by Decca Records as catalog number 29218 with the flip side That Old Black Magic 47 Ann Hampton Callaway on her album of the same name Blues in the Night Telarc August 2006 Lynda Carter on her 2009 album At Last Sylvia Brooks on her album Restless 2012 James Anthony Blue Again but That s Life CD 2017 Recorded 2012 and released 2017 Nelson Riddle s arrangement of Arlen Mercer s score from the 1941 movie of the same name Anne Shelton recorded the song in 1942 amp her version was featured in the BBC series The Singing Detective In popular culture EditThe song was frequently quoted by composer Carl Stalling in his musical scores for the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons for Warner Bros studios in the 1940s and 1950s The then recent hit song is sung incessantly by Daffy Duck in the ironically titled 1942 cartoon My Favorite Duck in which Porky Pig is tormented by the duck while on a camping trip Porky s preferred number in that cartoon is On Moonlight Bay At one point Porky unconsciously starts to sing My Mama Done Tol Me then stops looks into the camera with a Harumph and returns to Moonlight Bay Additionally the musical riff my mama done tol me is used to identify a black duck from South Germany in the 1942 Looney Tunes cartoon The Ducktators and the song is featured prominently with revised lyrics in the 1943 Merrie Melody cartoon Fifth Column Mouse as well as in Coal Black and de Sebben Dwarfs In the 1942 cartoon Bugs Bunny Gets the Boid Bugs Bunny half mutters the song changing the lyrics to My mamma done told me a buzzard is two faced The melody is also heard in Porky Pig s Feat Early to Bet The Hypo Chondri Cat and others Eddie Rochester Anderson would occasionally sing the beginning of the song on the Jack Benny radio program In the short lived 1979 sitcom The Last Resort Stephanie Faracy emphatically sang it while kneading bread dough In the Duck Dodgers season 2 episode Talent Show a Go Go the song is sung by the Tyr ahnee the Martian Queen In The Simpsons Season 26 episode The Musk Who Fell to Earth lines from the song are sung by Carl during a flashback montage References Edit Decca 4030 10 in double faced Discography of American Historical Recordings adp library ucsb edu Retrieved 2022 05 18 Library of Congress Copyright Office 1941 Catalog of Copyright Entries 1941 Music New Series Vol 36 Pt 2 Last Half of 1941 United States Copyright Office U S Govt Print Off Decca matrix DLA 2746 Blues in the night Woody Herman Orchestra Discography of American Historical Recordings adp library ucsb edu Retrieved 2022 05 18 a b Bluebird B 11436 10 in double faced Discography of American Historical Recordings adp library ucsb edu Retrieved 2022 05 18 Victor matrix BS 068853 Blues in the night Dinah Shore Discography of American Historical Recordings adp library ucsb edu Retrieved 2022 05 18 a b c d e f g Gardner Edward Foote 2000 Popular Songs of the 20th Century Chart Detail amp Encyclopedia 1900 1949 St Paul Minnesota Paragon House ISBN 1 55778 789 1 a b Gilliland John 1994 Pop Chronicles the 40s The Lively Story of Pop Music in the 40s audiobook ISBN 978 1 55935 147 8 OCLC 31611854 Tape 2 side B a b Lahr John September 19 2005 Come Rain Or Come Shine The Bittersweet Life of Harold Arlen The New Yorker pp 92 93 Biesen Sheri Chinen 2014 Music in the Shadows Noir Musical Films United States Johns Hopkins University Press p 37 via Google Books Awards for Blues in the Night 1941 imdb Retrieved 2007 01 25 Sacket Susan 1995 Hollywood Sings New York Billboard Books pp 42 43 ISBN 9780823076239 Wilder Alec 1972 American Popular Song The Great Innovators 1900 1950 New York Oxford University Press p 272 ISBN 0 19 501445 6 a b Whitburn Joel 1999 Joel Whitburn Presents a Century of Pop Music Menomonee Falls Wisconsin Record Research ISBN 0 89820 135 7 a b Victor Records in the 27500 to 27999 series a b c d It was the 8 Best Selling Record of 1942 Whitburn Joel 1973 Top Pop Records 1940 1955 Record Research a b c d e f g Decca Records in the 4000 to 4461 series a b c Bluebird Records in the 11000 to 11499 series a b c Whitburn Joel 1986 Joel Whitburn s Pop Memories 1890 1954 page 181 Record Research a b OKeh Records in the 6000 to 6499 series a b Columbia Records in the 39500 to 39999 series Jo Stafford Discography Jo Stafford Discography Retrieved June 19 2017 Discogs com Discogs com Retrieved June 19 2017 a b Capitol Records in the 10001 to 10210 series Dick Monda Blues in the Night single release Retrieved February 14 2016 Montoya s Farewell Tour Arrives in Irvine Tonight Los Angeles Times 13 October 1989 Retrieved 7 May 2020 Decca Records in the 23500 to 23999 series RCA Victor Records in the 20 4000 to 20 4499 series RCA Victor Records in the 20 3500 to 20 3999 series Columbia Records in the 40000 to 40499 series Columbia Records in the 41000 to 41500 series OKeh Records in the 6500 to 6747 series Harmony Records in the 1001 to 1087 series Decca Records in the 24000 to 24499 series Decca Records in the 25000 to 25514 series Columbia Records in the 37500 to 37999 series a b Columbia Records in the 36500 to 36999 series Elite Records in the 5000 to 5045 series Decca Records in the 28000 to 28499 series Decca Records in the 29000 to 29499 series Capitol Records in the 1500 to 1999 series Capitol Records in the 2500 to 2999 series Pop Chronicles 1940s Program 5 1972 RCA Victor Records in the 20 1500 to 20 1999 series Decca Records in the 18000 to 18499 series Decca Records in the 8500 to 8999 series Atlantic Records listing Decca Records in the 29009 to 29255 series Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Blues in the Night amp oldid 1133341923, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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