A Review of Famous Songs of the Past ‘Fascinating Facts ...

A Review of Famous Songs of the Past

`Fascinating Facts' January 2020

Track 1 Danny Boy Danny Boy is a ballad written by English songwriter Frederic Weatherly and usually set to the Irish tune of the "Londonderry Air". It is most closely associated with Irish communities. Although initially written to a tune other than "Londonderry Air", the words to Danny Boy were penned by Frederic Weatherly in Bath, Somerset in 1910. After his sister-in-law in the United States sent him a copy of "Londonderry Air", in 1913, Weatherly modified the lyrics of "Danny Boy" to fit the rhyme and meter of "Londonderry Air".

Howard Andrew "Andy" Williams (December 3, 1927 ? September 25, 2012) was an American popular music singer. He hosted The Andy Williams Show, a TV variety show, from 1962 to 1971, as well as numerous television specials. Most recently, he performed at his Moon River Theatre in Branson, Missouri, which was named after the Johnny Mercer and Henry Mancini song Moon River, with which he is closely identified. Williams continued to perform live into his 80s. It was this that kept him vital, he said during a 2007 tour of the UK.

Track 2 Bewitched Bothered & Bewildered Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered is a show tune and popular song from the 1940 Rodgers and Hart musical Pal Joey. The song was introduced by Vivienne Segal in the 1940 Broadway production, and also sung by Miss Segal both on the 1950 hit record and in the 1952 Broadway revival.

Rita Hayworth (born Margarita Carmen Cansino; October 17, 1918 ? May 14, 1987) was an American dancer and film actress who achieved fame during the 1940s as one of the era's top stars. Appearing first as Rita Cansino, she agreed to change her name to Rita Hayworth and her natural dark brown hair colour to dark red to attract a greater range of roles. She was adept in ballet, tap, ballroom, and Spanish routines and was a top glamour girl in the 1940s, a pin-up girl for military servicemen and a beauty icon for women. Hayworth married Orson Welles in 1943. None of her colleagues knew about the marriage until she announced it the day before they got married. After their divorce she met Prince Aly Khan. They began a year-long courtship, and they

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were married in, 1949. As Hayworth was already one of the most well-known celebrities in the world, the courtship and the wedding received enormous press coverage around the world. The Prince wanted their daughter raised as a Muslim; Hayworth wanted the child to be a Christian. They divorced in 1953.

Track 3 C'est Si Bon C'est si bon is a popular song, sometimes also referred to by the English translation of the title, "It's So Good". The music was written in 1947 by Henri Betti, the French lyrics by Andr? Hornez, and the English lyrics by Jerry Seelen.

Louis Armstrong (August 4, 1901 ? July 6, 1971), nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, Louisiana. Coming to prominence in the 1920s as a cornet and trumpet player, Armstrong was a big influence in jazz, shifting the focus of the music from collective improvisation to solo performance. With his instantly recognizable deep and distinctive gravelly voice, Armstrong was also an influential singer bending the lyrics and melody of a song for expressive purposes. He was also greatly skilled at scat singing (vocalising using sounds and syllables instead of actual lyrics). Renowned for his charismatic stage presence and voice almost as much as his trumpet-playing, Armstrong's influence extends well beyond jazz music. Armstrong was one of the first truly popular African-American entertainers to "cross over", whose skin-colour was secondary to his music in an America that was severely racially divided. His artistry and personality allowed him socially acceptable access to the upper echelons of American society that were highly restricted for a black man.

Track 4 Do-Re-Mi Do-Re-Mi is a show tune from the 1959 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical The Sound of Music. Within the story, it is used by Maria to teach the notes of the major musical scale to the Von Trapp children who learn to sing for the first time, even though their father disallowed frivolity after their mother's death.

Dame Julie Andrews was born in 1935 and is an English film and stage actress, singer, and author. She is the recipient of many screen and theatre awards. Andrews is a former child actress and singer who made her Broadway debut in a 1954 production of The Boy Friend, and rose to prominence starring in musicals such as My Fair Lady and Camelot. In 1957, she made her television debut with the title role in Cinderella, which was seen by over 100 million viewers. Andrews was in Mary Poppins (1964) and The Sound of Music (1965). From 1964 to 1967, she was the biggest film star in the world. In the 1970s, Andrews' film career slowed down following the commercial disappointments of Star!, Darling Lili, and The Tamarind Seed. Andrews' film career had a major revival in the 2000s with the successes of The Princess

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Diaries, its sequel The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement, the Shrek animated films, and Despicable Me (2010). Her voice, which originally spanned four octaves, was damaged by a throat operation in 1997.

Track 5 Mairi's Wedding Mairi's Wedding is a Scottish folk song originally written in Gaelic by Johnny Bannerman for Mary McNiven. Written using a traditional Scottish tune, it was first played for McNiven in 1935 at the Old Highlanders Institute in Glasgow's Elmbank Street. It is also a Scottish country dance.

Noel McLoughlin, acclaimed recording artist, talented multi instrumentalist, singer and interpreter of songs, ballads and Irish music was born 1955 in Limerick in the Southwest of Ireland. With a career spanning four decades his broad repertoire consists not only of Irish Folk, but also Scottish, English, American Folk and Country Music as well as music from the 30s to the 70s ........and beyond. The magic he creates during his performances and recordings are down to his unique musicianship, skillful guitar playing and expressive and melodic voice.

Track 6 I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now is a popular song. The music was written by Joseph E. Howard and Harold Orlob, the lyrics by Will M. Hough and Frank R. Adams. The song was published in 1909. It was first introduced in the 1909 musical The Prince Of Tonight.

Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como (May 18, 1912 ? May 12, 2001) was an American singer and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century and "Mr. C.", as he was nicknamed, sold millions of records and pioneered a weekly musical variety television show, which proved to be one of the most successful in television history broadcast throughout the world. Also a popular recording artist, Perry Como produced numerous hit records with record sales so high the label literally stopped counting! His combined success on television and popular recordings was not matched by any other artist of the time. Como's appeal spanned generations and he was widely respected for both his professional standards and the conduct in his personal life. One of the many factors in his success was Como's insistence on good taste. Another was his naturalness; the man viewers saw on the screen was the same person who could be encountered behind a supermarket shopping cart, at a bowling alley, or in a kitchen making breakfast.

Track 7 I'm Gonna Sit Right Down I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter is a 1935 popular song. It has been recorded many times, and has become a standard of the Great

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American Songbook. It is one of several songs from the Harlem Renaissance featured in the Broadway musical.

Fats Waller (May 21, 1904 ? December 15, 1943), born Thomas Wright Waller, was a jazz pianist, organist, composer, singer, and comedic entertainer. Waller was one of the most popular performers of his era, finding critical and commercial success in his homeland and in Europe. He was also a prolific songwriter and many songs he wrote or co-wrote are still popular, such as "Honeysuckle Rose", "Ain't Misbehavin'" and "Squeeze Me". He was once `kidnapped' by friends of Al Capone where he was taken at gun point to Al Capone's birthday party where he was the surprise guest. Once he'd realised the gangsters weren't going to kill him he played for 3 days earning thousands of dollars in tips! He enjoyed success touring the United Kingdom and Ireland in the 1930s. He appeared in several feature films and short subject films, most notably Stormy Weather in 1943, which was released July 21, just months before his death.

Track 8 Track 31 We'll Keep a Welcome Mai Jones was a Welsh songwriter, entertainer and radio producer who collaborated with Lyn Joshua and James Harper with the lyrics to create the now Welsh standard `We'll Keep a Welcome'. It had its d?but on 29 February 1940.

Dame Shirley Veronica Bassey, DBE (born 8 January 1937) is a Welsh singer. She was born above a brothel in a docklands slum in Tiger Bay Cardiff. She was of paternal Nigerian and maternal English descent. She found fame in the mid-1950s and has been called "one of the most popular female vocalists in Britain during the last half of the 20th century". In the US, in particular, she is best known for recording the theme songs to the James Bond films Goldfinger (1964), Diamonds Are Forever (1971), and Moonraker (1979)

Track 9 More Than Ever An English song. Its lyrics were written by Mary Bond, and its melody comes from the Italian song "Come prima". It was recorded in the United Kingdom by Malcolm Vaughan with the Michael Sammes Singers and, and spent 14 weeks on the UK chart.

Malcolm Vaughan, born Malcolm James Thomas (22 March 1929 ? 9 February 2010) was a Welsh traditional pop music singer and actor. Known for his distinctive tenor voice, he had a number of chart hits in the United Kingdom during the 1950s. He first appeared as a stage actor in 1944. He also appeared in the first stage production of the popular BBC Children's Hour programme The Adventures of Larry the Lamb. His first hit single was "Ev'ry Day of My Life" in 1955. "Ev'ry Day of My Life" was the first of many hits he achieved throughout the latter half of the 1950s, three other major releases

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being "St. Therese of the Roses" in 1956, 1957's "My Special Angel" and "More Than Ever" ("Come prima") in 1958.

Track 10 My Favourite Things This song was first introduced by Mary Martin and Patricia Neway in the original Broadway production and sung by Julie Andrews in the 1965 film. In the musical, the lyrics to the song are a reference to things Maria loves, such as 'raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens, bright copper kettles and warm woollen mittens'. These are the things she selects to fill her mind with when times are bad. Maria sings it with the children during the thunderstorm scene in her bedroom.

Dame Julie Andrews was born in 1935 and is an English film and stage actress, singer, and author. She is the recipient of many screen and theatre awards. Andrews is a former child actress and singer who made her Broadway debut in a 1954 production of The Boy Friend, and rose to prominence starring in musicals such as My Fair Lady and Camelot. In 1957, she made her television debut with the title role in Cinderella, which was seen by over 100 million viewers. Andrews was in Mary Poppins (1964) and The Sound of Music (1965). From 1964 to 1967, she was the biggest film star in the world, with the additional box office successes of her films The Americanisation of Emily, Hawaii, Torn Curtain, and Thoroughly Modern Millie.

In the 1970s, Andrews' film career slowed down following the commercial disappointments of Star!, Darling Lili, and The Tamarind Seed. Andrews' film career had a major revival in the 2000s with the successes of The Princess Diaries, its sequel The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement, the Shrek animated films, and Despicable Me (2010). Her voice, which originally spanned four octaves, was damaged by a throat operation in 1997. Andrews is also an author of children's books, and in 2008 published an autobiography, Home: A Memoir of My Early Years.

Track 11 People Will Say We're In Love People Will Say We're In Love is a show tune from the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Oklahoma! (1955). It starred Gordon MacRae, Shirley Jones (in her film debut). The other characters think, correctly, that Laurey (Joan Roberts) and Curly (Alfred Drake) are in love. In this song they warn each other not to behave indiscreetly, lest people misinterpret their intentions. Neither wants to admit to the other - or themselves - his or her true feelings.

Gordon MacRae (March 12, 1921 ? January 24, 1986) was an American actor and singer, best known for his appearances in the film versions of two Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals, Oklahoma! (1955) and Carousel (1956) and films with Doris Day like Starlift.

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