"Ramona" | ||||
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Song by Gene Austin | ||||
B-side | "Girl Of My Dreams" | |||
Published | 1928 by Leo Feist, Inc., EMI Feist Catalog Inc. | |||
Released | May 11, 1928 [1] | |||
Recorded | April 2, 1928 | |||
Studio | Victor Studios, Camden, New Jersey [2] | |||
Genre | Jazz, Pop Vocal | |||
Label | Victor 21334 | |||
Composer(s) | Mabel Wayne | |||
Lyricist(s) | L. Wolfe Gilbert | |||
Gene Austin singles chronology | ||||
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"Ramona" is a 1928 song with lyrics by L. Wolfe Gilbert and music by Mabel Wayne. Composed for the 1928 feature film Ramona , it was the first theme song written for the movies. [3]
The original lyrics and music of the song entered the public domain in the United States in 2024. [4]
It was created as the title song for publicity to the 1928 silent adventure film-romance Ramona (based on the 1884 novel Ramona by Helen Hunt Jackson). The song was used again in the 1936 remake of the movie. Ramona was recorded in 1928 by Dolores del Río for the film. Gene Austin's 1928 version charted for 17 weeks, with eight weeks at No. 1, and easily topped a million in sales. [5]
"Mack the Knife" or "The Ballad of Mack the Knife" is a song composed by Kurt Weill with lyrics by Bertolt Brecht for their 1928 music drama The Threepenny Opera. The song tells of a knife-wielding criminal of the London underworld from the musical named Macheath, the "Mack the Knife" of the title.
Lemeul Eugene Lucas, better known by his stage name Gene Austin, was an American singer and songwriter, one of the early "crooners". His recording of "My Blue Heaven" sold over 5 million copies and was for a while the largest selling record of all time. His 1920s compositions "When My Sugar Walks Down the Street" and "The Lonesome Road" became pop and jazz standards.
Louis Wolfe Gilbert was a Russian-born American songwriter of Tin Pan Alley. He is best remembered as the lyricist for "Ramona" (1928), the first movie theme song ever written.
"Istanbul (Not Constantinople)" is a 1953 novelty song, with lyrics by Jimmy Kennedy and music by Nat Simon. It was written on the 500th anniversary of the fall of Constantinople to the Ottomans. The lyrics humorously refer to the official renaming of the city of Constantinople to Istanbul. The song's original release, performed by The Four Lads, was certified as a gold record. Numerous cover versions have been recorded over the years, most famously a 1990 rock version by They Might Be Giants.
"Kentucky Rain" is a 1970 song written by Eddie Rabbitt and Dick Heard and recorded by Elvis Presley. It was recorded at American Sound Studio and features then session pianist Ronnie Milsap. Other musicians on the record include Bobby Wood on piano, Bobby Emmons on organ, Reggie Young on guitar, Tommy Cogbill on bass and Gene Chrisman on drums. The song and session was produced by Felton Jarvis and Chips Moman. It was certified Gold by the RIAA, signifying United States sales of more than a million copies.
"My Blue Heaven" is a popular song written by Walter Donaldson with lyrics by George A. Whiting. The song was used in the Ziegfeld Follies of 1927. It has become part of various fake book collections. Its musical composition entered the public domain on January 1, 2023.
"Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" is a show tune written by American composer Jerome Kern and lyricist Otto Harbach for the 1933 musical Roberta. The song was sung in the Broadway show by Tamara Drasin. Its first recorded performance was by Gertrude Niesen, who recorded the song with orchestral direction from Ray Sinatra, Frank Sinatra's second cousin, on October 13, 1933. Niesen's recording of the song was released by Victor, with the B-side, "Jealousy", featuring Isham Jones and his Orchestra.
"Let It Be Me" is a popular song originally published in French in 1955 as "Je t'appartiens" interpreted by Gilbert Bécaud. It became popular worldwide with an English version by the Everly Brothers and later with the duet by Betty Everett and Jerry Butler.
"It's Been a Long, Long Time" is a big band-era song that was a hit at the end of World War II, with music by Jule Styne and lyrics by Sammy Cahn.
"Love Letters in the Sand" is a popular song first published in 1931. The music was written by J. Fred Coots and the lyrics by Nick Kenny and Charles Kenny. Ted Black and His Orchestra, with vocalist Tom Brown, had the first major hit recording of the song in 1931. Pat Boone had a major hit with the song in 1957.
"You Belong to My Heart" is the name of an English-language version of the Mexican Bolero song "Solamente una vez". This song was composed by Mexican songwriter Agustín Lara and originally performed by singer Ana María González and tenor José Mojica in the 1941 film Melodías de América.
"Wild Night" is a song written by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison and is the opening track on his fifth studio album Tupelo Honey. It was released as a single in 1971 and reached number 28 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. In 2022, the song peaked at #1 on the radio airplay chart in Canada.
"Wonderful One" is a popular song recorded by the Paul Whiteman Orchestra on January 25, 1923 in New York and was released as Victor 19019-B. The record reached no. 3 on the Billboard chart. The song was also recorded as "My Wonderful One".
"Trav'lin' Light" is a 1942 song composed by Trummy Young and Jimmy Mundy with lyrics by Johnny Mercer.
In the Arms of Love is the nineteenth studio album by American pop singer Andy Williams and was released on December 19, 1966, by Columbia Records and was the last of twelve consecutive Williams studio LPs produced by Robert Mersey.
"It's the Dreamer in Me" is a 1938 song composed by Jimmy Dorsey and Jimmy Van Heusen, which was first recorded by Jimmy Dorsey and His Orchestra with Bob Eberly on vocals. Jimmy Dorsey composed the music. The lyrics were written by Jimmy Van Heusen. The song is a jazz and pop standard.
"¡Ay, Jalisco, no te rajes!" or in English Jalisco, don't back down is a Mexican ranchera song composed by Manuel Esperón with lyrics by Ernesto Cortázar Sr. It was written in 1941 and featured in the 1941 Mexican film ¡Ay Jalisco, no te rajes!, after which it became an enormous hit in Mexico. The melody of the song was used for the title song of the Disney film The Three Caballeros. Both songs have been recorded by many artists.
Mabel Wayne was an American musician, composer and screenwriter. She is noted for being one of the first female composers to write successful hit songs. Her music career spanned from the 1920s until her death in 1978. Her songs included "In a Little Spanish Town" (1926), "Ramona" (1928), and "It Happened in Monterey" (1930).
"Jeannine, I Dream of Lilac Time" is a 1928 song composed by Nathaniel Shilkret with lyrics by L. Wolfe Gilbert. It is the theme song of the silent film Lilac Time, starring Gary Cooper and Colleen Moore. The song sold almost two million copies of sheet music and was recorded by over a hundred top artists, including Louis Armstrong, Erroll Garner, Skitch Henderson, Guy Lombardo, The London Philharmonic Orchestra, John McCormack, Mitch Miller, Hugo Montenegro, The Platters, and Lawrence Welk.
L. Wolfe Gilbert, composer of more than 250 songs, including 'Ramona,' the first motion picture theme song, died today of a stroke. He was 83 years old.