This is an old revision of this page, as edited by AnomieBOT(talk | contribs) at 21:16, 27 August 2018(Dating maintenance tags: {{Cn}}). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
Revision as of 21:16, 27 August 2018 by AnomieBOT(talk | contribs)(Dating maintenance tags: {{Cn}})
Songwriter Jimmy Van Heusen was at Crosby’s house one evening for dinner, and to discuss a song for the film project Going My Way. During the meal one of the children began complaining about how he didn’t want to go to school the next day. The singer turned to his son and said to him, "If you don’t go to school, you might grow up to be a mule." Van Heusen thought this clever rebuke would make a good song for the film.[2] He pictured Crosby, who played a priest, talking to a group of children acting much the same way as his own child had acted that night. Van Heusen took the idea to his partner lyricistJohnny Burke, who approved. They wrote the song.[3]
Recordings
The first recording of "Swinging on a Star", with Bing Crosby with John Scott Trotter and His Orchestra, took place in Los Angeles on February 7, 1944, and was released as Decca Records on Disc No. 18597 paired with "Going My Way". The song topped the USA charts in 1944 and Australian charts in 1945. The Williams Brothers Quartet, including a young Andy Williams, sang backup vocals behind Crosby.[3]
1947: The song was featured in the Little Lulu cartoon, Bout with a Trout. The cartoon's voice actors sang the song while Bing Crosby recorded bits of it with Bob Hope and Jerry Colonna.
1987: A new adaptation based particularly on the 1963 Big Dee Irvin & Little Eva version was used as the theme song to the American television series Out of this World. The 1st chorus asks the viewer if "they rather to go to earth," and the verse sings about an "earth creature" and it's lyriced as if the audience were aliens themselves.
1988: A short stop motion puppet animation, of the version by Big Dee Irwin and Little Eva, featuring by Stop Motion Ltd, is broadcast by the BBC.[5]
1991: The song is used as a timing device in the movie Hudson Hawk. The movie incorrectly refers to its length as 5:32 and the verses are sung out of order.[6]
Parodies
The song was parodied in a The Far Side cartoon, which depicted a man-turned-pig saying to his wife, "Hey! So I made the wrong decision! [referring to the part of the song which says "Or would you rather be a pig"]... But you know, I really wasn't sure I wanted to swing on a star, carry moonbeams home in a jar!"
In 1969, Ray Stevens sang "Gitarzan", which featured the wrong notes from "Swinging on a Star": "Carrying Moonbeams Home in a Jar."
A Prairie Home Companion guitarist Pat Donohue wrote "Would You Like to Play Guitar," which wittily advises aspiring musicians against the practical perils of a full-time music career.