You Are My Sunshine
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"You Are My Sunshine" is a popular song first recorded in 1939. It has been declared one of the state songs of Louisiana as a result of its association with former state governor and country music singer Jimmie Davis. The song is copyright 1940 Peer International Corporation, words and music by Jimmie Davis and Charles Mitchell.[1] According to researchers[who?], the original song was written by Oliver Hood.[2]
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[edit] History
Two versions of "You Are My Sunshine" were recorded and released prior to Jimmie Davis's. The first was recorded for Bluebird Records (RCA-Victor's budget label) on August 22, 1939 by The Pine Ridge Boys (Marvin Taylor and Doug Spivey), who were from Atlanta.[3] The second was recorded for Decca Records on September 13, 1939 by The Rice Brothers Gang.[4] This group was originally from north Georgia, but had relocated to Shreveport, Louisiana, where they were performing on the city's KWKH radio station. The version by Jimmie Davis was recorded for Decca Records on February 5, 1940.[5]
Davis and Charles Mitchell are the credited songwriters of "You Are My Sunshine". Davis bought the song and rights from Paul Rice and put his own name on it, a practice not uncommon in the pre-World War II music business.[2] Some early versions of the song, however, do credit the Rice Brothers. According to some accounts, clarinetist Pud Brown was also involved with the Rice Brothers for the song's origin or first arrangement.
Davis said that for some time he had been enthusiastic about the song and had unsuccessfully tried to convince record companies to record it before finally making his own 1940 record of the song. Davis's version was popular and was followed by numerous other covers, including those of Bing Crosby and Gene Autry, whose versions made the number a big hit.
Davis emphasized his association with the song when running for governor, singing it at all his campaign rallies, while riding on a horse named "Sunshine". His authorized biography, You Are My Sunshine: The Jimmie Davis Story, was published in 1987.
.jpg) The Pine Ridge Boys |
.jpg) Rice Brothers Gang |
.jpg) Jimmie Davis with Charles Mitchell's Orchestra |
[edit] Recordings
"You Are My Sunshine" has been recorded hundreds of times. It is today a widely recognized song and a standard for traditional country music and traditional jazz performers. Early chart versions include: Bing Crosby, Bob Atcher and Bonnie Blue Eyes, Gene Autry, and the Airport Boys. In one or more of these versions, the song was in Billboard's country charts for over one year. Rock and roll performances by the likes of Tony Sheridan and Bill Haley & His Comets also exist. The Haley performance was recorded in 1969 and was sung by the band's bass player, Ray Cawley; it was not released until the early 1990s. Jump, Little Children used to play a song called "Pink Lemonade" which borrowed the chorus and was a success with fans. The song has also been recorded by the likes of Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan, Brian Wilson, Trini Lopez, Ida, Screeching Weasel, Ray Charles and Aretha Franklin, among others. Charles' version was the most popular, commercially, reaching #1 on the soul singles chart, and #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, using a modified melody that little resembled the original. A portion of Gary Cao's song Super Sunshine is based on the tune and lyrics of this song. A soul version was recorded by Dyke & the Blazers during the late 1960s. An example of a modern incarnation of the song is soul singer Steph Jones' version. It fuses the classic melody with current production trends in pop and R&B music. In 2006 Frank Turner recorded a version of the song for his split EP with Jonah Matranga. And during 2008, at the end of the song 'Flowers And Football Tops' on their debut album Glasvegas (album), Glasvegas incorporated a slightly altered version into the song.
[edit] Film and television features
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This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (August 2009) |
It has been featured in numerous films, television shows, television commercials, and radio commercials (most notably in a series of Rinso advertisements in the 1960s). The song was featured in the movie Primary Colors (1996) and the Coen Brothers movie O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000). Winifred Burkle sings lines from You Are My Sunshine in the Angel (TV Series) episode "A Hole in the World", marking a turning point in the season plot. It was also used in the television show Star Trek: Voyager in the episode "Someone to Watch Over Me", in which The Doctor used the song to teach Seven of Nine about music. It was sung in an episode of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. It is frequently sung in the 80s TV show, The A-Team when a distraction is needed to drug B. A. or stall for time. It was also featured in one of the final episodes of the series, Queer as Folk. That same version from Stine J. was also included on the Mr. and Mrs. Smith soundtrack. The artist Brother Love has covered the song for a Saturn commercial. The chorus was also sung by Marge Simpson in The Simpsons episode "The Secret War of Lisa Simpson".
Garrison Keillor sings the song regularly on his radio program A Prairie Home Companion.
Paul McCartney sang the first verse while guest starring on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.
James McAvoy sings this song several times as he attempts to play various musical instruments in the movie Penelope starring Christina Ricci in a scene where her title character attempts to discover the instrument his character Max/Johnny plays.
The song was heard several times in the Miracles episode, You Are My Sunshine.
On The Muppet Show, "You are my sunshine" was part of a scene entitled "Hugga Wugga." Afterwards, Waldorf sang it as well. Statler believed it was directed at him and retorted, "I'm not your son, and my name's not Shine!"
All My Children character Dixie Martin sings the song to her son while an infant. It played lightly at the death of her character, and the song was featured prominently during her return to Pine Valley on All My Children.
[edit] Sporting anthem
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This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (September 2009) |
Many sporting teams, such as English Premier League team Wigan Athletic Football Club in particular whose fans sing it just before the players come on to the pitch at the start of the game, the Portland Timbers, York St John University, Middlesbrough F.C. and Sydney FC, use the song as a crowd anthem, often replacing "Sunshine" with the name of the team.
Also, devotees of the team Preston North End adapted the song in honour of their French defensive maestro Youl Mawene, while fans of Liverpool F.C. and Manchester United made their own versions honouring Spanish midfielder Luis García and Norwegian striker Ole Gunnar Solskjær respectively. In Scotland Glasgow Celtic fans paid tribute to Henrik Larsson by singing their own version. The Swedish team; Västerås SK's supporters also sing this song. Supporters of Dutch club SC Heerenveen also used to have their own version for Afonso Alves, who has since moved to English Club Middlesbrough FC. Northern Ireland fans also have a variation of the song for midfielder Steven Davis. Cardiff City F.C. supporters also sing their own version "You are my Cardiff" which they sing on match days. They began singing the song in the nineties when the club was threatened with closure down by then chairman Rick Wright, the line "So please don't take, my Cardiff away" being the reason why the song was chosen.
| Preceded by "Release Me" by Little Esther Phillips |
Billboard Hot R&B Singles number-one single December 15, 1962: First run, (Ray Charles version) |
Succeeded by "Release Me" by Little Esther Phillips |
| Preceded by "Release Me" by Little Esther Phillips |
Billboard Hot R&B Singles number-one single January 5, 1963 – January 12, 1963: Second run, (Ray Charles version) |
Succeeded by "Two Lovers" by Mary Wells |
[edit] References
- ^ CD liner notes: Disney Children's Favorites 4, 1990 Disney Records
- ^ a b Rosemont Records: The 'Theft' of an American Classic
- ^ Russell, Tony, and Bob Pinson. Country Music Records: A Discography, 1921-1942 (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004), p. 697.
- ^ Russell, Tony, and Bob Pinson. Country Music Records: A Discography, 1921-1942 (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004), p. 746.
- ^ Russell, Tony, and Bob Pinson. Country Music Records: A Discography, 1921-1942 (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004), p. 304.
- "Joel Whitburn's, Presents, Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004", 2004 (Record Research) pg. 113
