You're the Cream in My Coffee

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"You're the Cream in My Coffee"
Song
Published1928
Composer(s) Ray Henderson
Lyricist(s) Buddy G. DeSylva
Lew Brown

"You're the Cream in My Coffee" is a popular song published in 1928. Hit recordings were by Annette Hanshaw, Ben Selvin (vocal by Jack Palmer), Ted Weems (vocal by Parker Gibbs) and Ruth Etting. [1]

The music was written by Ray Henderson, [2] with lyrics by Buddy G. DeSylva and Lew Brown and appears in their Broadway musical Hold Everything! , [3] where it was introduced by Ona Munson and Jack Whiting. It is also featured in the Warner Brothers’ early two-color film version of the musical in 1930, starring Joe E. Brown when it was sung by Georges Carpentier and chorus. [4]

As with most DeSylva, Brown and Henderson hit songs the tune is melodically infectious with unexpected lyric couplets that are still easy to recall. [5] It is also notable for a simple but ingenious bridge (middle eight bars) of continually ascending steps with closely syncopated lyrics. [6]

The song was also recorded by Gay Ellis and Her Novelty Orchestra (aka Annette Hanshaw) in 1928. It was later covered by Les Brown, The King Cole Trio, Chris Connor (with the Jerry Wald Orchestra), the Ray Conniff Singers, and many others. [7]

Marlene Dietrich sang the song in her screen test for The Blue Angel , her breakthrough role. She later recorded the song on her album "Dietrich in Rio" in 1959. [8]

The song provided a backdrop for the 1980 television play Cream in My Coffee by English dramatist Dennis Potter.

This song was used as the theme song for The Mrs Bradley Mysteries in 2000 and it was recorded by BBC Records and sung by Graham Dalby and The Grahamophones in a re-creation of Jack Hylton's 1928 version. [9]

Broadway actress Carol Channing recorded the song for her 1994 album Jazz Baby. The song was also recorded by Seth MacFarlane on his debut album, Music Is Better Than Words .

In addition, it is interpolated with other D-B-H hits in the revised 1993 version of the songwriters’ most popular musical Good News when Coach Bill Johnson awkwardly reveals his romantic interest in a colleague (“I’m not a poet - how well I know it”, 1st line of song's 1993 intro). [10]

The original lyrics and music of the song entered the public domain in the United States in 2024. [11]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1928 in music</span> Overview of the events of 1928 in music

This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1928.

This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1926.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Buddy DeSylva</span> American songwriter, film producer and record executive

George Gard "Buddy" DeSylva was an American songwriter, film producer and record executive. He wrote or co-wrote many popular songs, and along with Johnny Mercer and Glenn Wallichs, he co-founded Capitol Records.

Ray Henderson was an American songwriter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lew Brown</span> Musical artist and Great American Songbook lyricist (1893–1958)

Lew Brown was a lyricist for popular songs in the United States. During World War I and the Roaring Twenties, he wrote lyrics for several of the top Tin Pan Alley composers, especially Albert Von Tilzer. Brown was one third of a successful songwriting and music publishing team with Buddy DeSylva and Ray Henderson from 1925 until 1931. Brown also wrote or co-wrote many Broadway shows and Hollywood films. Among his most-popular songs are "Button Up Your Overcoat", "Don't Sit Under the Apple Tree", "Life Is Just a Bowl of Cherries", "That Old Feeling", and "The Birth of the Blues".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Annette Hanshaw</span> American jazz singer (1901–1985)

Catherine Annette Hanshaw was an American Jazz Age singer. She was one of the most popular radio stars of the late 1920s and early 1930s. Over four million of her records had been sold by 1934.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I Wanna Be Loved by You</span> 1928 song by Helen Kane

"I Wanna Be Loved by You" is a song written by Herbert Stothart and Harry Ruby, with lyrics by Bert Kalmar, for the 1928 musical Good Boy. It was first performed by Helen Kane on September 5, 1928, who was the inspiration behind the cartoon Betty Boop. "I Wanna Be Loved by You" was chosen as one of the Songs of the Century in a survey by the RIAA to which 200 people responded. One of Marilyn Monroe's most famous musical performances is her singing the song in Billy Wilder's classic 1959 farce Some Like It Hot.

"Button Up Your Overcoat" is a popular song. The music was written by Ray Henderson, the lyrics by B.G. DeSylva and Lew Brown. The song was published in 1928, and was first performed later that same year by vocalist Ruth Etting. However, the most famous rendition of this song was recorded early the following year by singer Helen Kane, who was at the peak of her popularity at the time. Kane's childlike voice and Bronx dialect eventually became the inspiration for the voice of cartoon character Betty Boop.

"It All Depends on You" is a 1926 popular song with music by Ray Henderson and lyrics by Buddy G. DeSylva and Lew Brown. The song, written for the musical Big Boy, was published in 1926. It was featured in the hit 1928 Warner Bros. film The Singing Fool, starring Al Jolson, Betty Bronson and Josephine Dunn, and directed by Lloyd Bacon.

<i>Sunny Side Up</i> (1929 film) 1929 film by David Butler

Sunny Side Up is a 1929 American pre-Code Fox Movietone musical film starring Janet Gaynor and Charles Farrell, with original songs, story, and dialogue by B. G. DeSylva, Lew Brown and Ray Henderson. The romantic comedy/musical premiered on October 3, 1929, at the Gaiety Theatre in New York City. The film was directed by David Butler, had (now-lost) Multicolor sequences, and a running time of 121 minutes.

<i>Good News</i> (1947 film) 1947 film by Charles Walters

Good News is a 1947 American Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer musical film based on the 1927 stage production of the same name. It starred June Allyson, Peter Lawford, Mel Tormé, and Joan McCracken. The screenplay by Betty Comden and Adolph Green was directed by Charles Walters in Technicolor.

"Together" is a 1928 popular song with music by Ray Henderson and lyrics by Buddy G. DeSylva and Lew Brown. The most popular 1928 recording of the song, by Paul Whiteman, with Bix Beiderbecke on cornet, was a #1 hit for two weeks.

"Mean to Me" is a popular song with music by Fred E. Ahlert and lyrics by Roy Turk, published in 1929. Hit versions that year were by Ruth Etting and by Helen Morgan. Ben Bernie and the Hotel Roosevelt Orchestra also recorded what might be the first male version in February 1929 with vocals by Scrappy Albert.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alabamy Bound</span> 1925 song

"Alabamy Bound" is a Tin Pan Alley tune written in 1924, with music by Ray Henderson and words by Buddy DeSylva and Bud Green. It was popularized by Al Jolson and included in the musical Kid Boots, where it was sung by Eddie Cantor. Successful recordings of the song were released in 1925 by Paul Whiteman, Isham Jones and Fletcher Henderson (instrumentals), as well as Blossom Seeley, whose vocal version reached number 2 on the charts. The song has sold over a million copies of sheet music and has been included in several films over the years.

<i>Hold Everything!</i>

Hold Everything! is a musical comedy with lyrics by Lew Brown and B. G. de Sylva, music by Ray Henderson, and has an accompanying book by John McGowan and B. G. de Sylva. A musical about professional boxing, the work's central character is welterweight Sonny Jim Brooks. The musical takes place at "Pop" O'Keefe's Training Camp on Long Island; at the Hotel Wood; and at Madison Square Garden, New York.

<i>The Best Things in Life Are Free</i> (film) 1956 film by Michael Curtiz

The Best Things in Life Are Free is a 1956 American musical film directed by Michael Curtiz. The film stars Gordon MacRae, Dan Dailey, and Ernest Borgnine as the real-life songwriting team of Buddy DeSylva, Lew Brown, and Ray Henderson of the late 1920s and early 1930s, and Sheree North as Kitty Kane, a singer.

"The Best Things in Life Are Free" is a popular song written by the songwriting team of Buddy DeSylva and Lew Brown (lyrics) and Ray Henderson (music) for the 1927 musical Good News. It enjoyed a revival during the period from 1947 to 1950, when it was covered by many artists.

"Lucky Day" is a 1926 song by written by Buddy DeSylva, Lew Brown, and Ray Henderson for George White's Scandals of 1926, along with "The Birth of the Blues". The song was first performed in 1926 by Harry Richman and chorus. The song has been covered by many artists. Popular recordings in 1926 were by George Olsen and by The Revelers.

Lillie Delk Christian was an early 20th-century American early-jazz singer and recording star.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2024 in American public domain</span> 2024 additions to the public domain in the US

Under the Copyright Term Extension Act, books published in 1928, films released in 1928, and other works published in 1928, enter the public domain in 2024. Sound recordings that were published in 1923 enter the public domain.

References

  1. Whitburn, Joel (1986). Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890-1954. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 619. ISBN   0-89820-083-0.
  2. "Ray Henderson" "Songwriters Hall of Fame - ASCAP"
  3. Lax, Roger & Smith, Frederick The Great Song Thesaurus Oxford University Press 1989
  4. "Internet Movie Database". imdb.com. Retrieved April 21, 2021.
  5. William Zinsser, Easy to Remember: the great American songwriters and their songs, Jafrey, N.H. 2006, p.55
  6. Ken Bloom, The American Song Book: the singers, the songwriters and their songs, N.Y. Black Dog, 2005; Lew Brown entry, Cafe Songbook.com.
  7. "secondhandsongs.com". secondhandsongs.com. Retrieved April 21, 2021.
  8. "Marlene Dietrich – Dietrich In Rio (Recorded In Rio De Janeiro)". Discogs . Retrieved August 24, 2014.
  9. "Desmond Carrington with The Music Goes Round" "BBC Radio"
  10. Liner notes, Original Music Theatre of Wichita Cast Recording of Good News!, Digital Jay, CDJay 1291, P. 1996.
  11. "Public Domain Day 2024 | Duke University School of Law". web.law.duke.edu.