Showing posts with label You're a Grand Old Flag. Show all posts
Showing posts with label You're a Grand Old Flag. Show all posts

Wednesday, December 17, 2025

Theodore Raph The American Song Treasury

Theodore Raph:

The American Song Treasury

First published in 1964, this book collects lyrics and offers commentary for 100 American favorites from 1620 to 1958. The book presents the songs in chronological order but I have re-ordered the songs based on how many total lists these songs appear on in the Dave’s Music Database of standards. Publication years for songs are indicated, but no specific artist is attached to each song.

Click here to see other lists from critics and individuals and here to see other lists from publications and/or organizations.

1. “When the Saints Go Marching In” (1880)
2. “You’re a Grand Old Flag (aka “The Grand Old Rag”)” (1906)
3. “Bill Bailey, Won’t You Please Come Home?” (1902)
4. “Home on the Range” (1873)
5. “America the Beautiful” (1895)
6. “Give My Regards to Broadway” (1904)
7. “Yankee Doodle Boy” (1905)
8. “Yankee Doodle (aka ‘Yankee Doodle Went to Town’)” (1754)
9. “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” (1806)
10. “Oh! Susanna” (1846)

11. “Hello Ma Baby” (1899)
12. “After the Ball” (1892)
13. “When Johnny Comes Marching Home” (1863)
14. “I’ve Been Working on the Railroad” (1894)
15. “Meet Me in St. Louis, Louis” (1904)
16. “Camptown Races (Gwine to Run All Night)” (1850)
17. “In the Good Old Summertime” (1902)
18. “The Yellow Rose of Texas” (1853)
19. “Auld Lang Syne” (1799)
20. “Daisy Bell (A Bicycle Built for Two)” (1892)

21. “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” (1873)
22. “On Top of Old Smoky” (1841)
23. “She’ll Be Coming ‘Round the Mountain” (1870)
24. “Clementine” (1884)
25. “My Old Kentucky Home” (1853)
26. “Jimmy Crack Corn (The Blue Tail Fly)” (1846)
27. “The Sidewalks of New York” (1894)
28. “My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean” (1881)
29. “He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands” (1927)
30. “In My Merry Oldsmobile” (1905)

31. “Wait Till the Sun Shines, Nellie” (1905)
32. “Skip to My Lou” (1832)
33. “My Gal Sal” (1905)
34. “Pop Goes the Weasel” (1853)
35. “The Marines’ Hymn” (1919)
36. “Carry Me Back to Old Virginny” (1893)
37. “Polly Wolly Doodle (All the Day)” (1843)
38. “The Man on the Flying Trapeze” (1867)
39. “Beautiful Dreamer” (1864)
40. “The Band Played On” (1895)

41. “Red River Valley” (1896)
42. “Shenandoah” (1837)
43. “On the Banks of the Wabash” (1897)
44. “Hail Columbia (The President’s March)” (1789)
45. “Listen to the Mocking Bird (aka “The Mocking Bird”)” (1855)
46. “My Wild Irish Rose” (1899)
47. “Buffalo Gals (Will You Come Out Tonight)” (1844)
48. “Mighty Like a Rose (aka ‘Mighty Lak a Rose’)” (1901)
49. “I’ll Take You Home Again, Kathleen” (1875)
50. “Froggie Went A-Courtin’” (1549)

51. “I Love You Truly” (1906)
52. “Greensleeves” (1580)
53. “Because” (1902)
54. “The Little Brown Jug” (1869)
55. “Dem Golden Slippers” (1879)
56. “Mary's a Grand Old Name” (1906)
57. “Go Down Moses (Let My People Go)” (1861)
58. “What Shall We Do with a Drunken Sailor?” (1740)
59. “Sweet Betsy from Pike” (1851)
60. “When You and I Were Young, Maggie” (1866)

61. “Oh Dear, What Can the Matter Be?” (1792)
62. “Billy Boy” (1800)
63. “Vive la Compagnie (Vive l’Amour)” (1818)
64. “Oh Promise Me” (1889)
65. “Tom Dooley” (1929)
66. “Long, Long Ago” (1843)
67. “The Rosary” (1898)
68. “The Girl I Left Behind” (1650)
69. “Blow the Man Down” (1849)
70. “Drink to Me Only with Thine Eyes” (1616)

71. “Love’s Old Sweet Song” (1887)
72. “Wait for the Wagon” (1851)
73. “The Wayfaring Stranger” (1807)
74. “The Foggy, Foggy Dew” (1804)
75. “I Gave My Love a Cherry” (1785)
76. “Hinky Dinky Parlay Voo (Mademoiselle from Armentieres)” (1918)
77. “There’s a Tavern in the Town” (1883)
78. “Wabash Cannonball” (1882)
79. “We Gather Together (Thanksgiving Song)” (1630)
80. “Barbara Allen” (1622)

81. “She Wore a Yellow Ribbon” (1949)
82. “While Strolling Through the Park One Day (The Fountain in the Park)” (1884)
83. “Believe Me if All Those Endearing Young Charms” (1808)
84. “The Wearing of the Green” (1797)
85. “Bell Bottom Trousers” (1945)
86. “Flow Gently Sweet Afton” (1838)
87. “The Blue Bells of Scotland” (1800)
88. “The Campbells Are Coming” (1847)
89. “Dear Old Girl” (1903)
90. “Where Did You Get That Hat?” (1888)

91. “Down in the Valley (Birmingham Jail)” (1835)
92. “Careless Love Blues” (1925)
93. “Aura Lee” (1861)
94. “Annie Laurie” (1838)
95. “St. Patrick’s Day” (1865)
96. “All Through the Night” (1825)
97. “John Peel” (1820)
98. “Charlie Is My Darling” (1830)
99. “Cindy” (1857)
100. “Ida” (1903)

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First posted 12/17/2025.

 
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Monday, November 17, 2025

Folk/Traditional: Top 100 Songs

Folk/Traditional:

Top 100 Songs

Originally this was a list of the top top folk and folk rock songs. However, I’ve now split it into two lists – one focused on folk rock and this one on folk and traditional songs. These lists were generated by aggregating multiple lists that focused on folk and folk rock and then reordering the songs based on their overall status in Dave’s Music Database. Songs are listed by songwriters, then title, and then year.

Click here to see other genre-specific song lists.

1. George M. Cohan “You’re a Grand Old Flag” (1906)
2. Katharine Lee Bates (lyrics) and Samuel A. Ward (music) “America the Beautiful” (1910)
3. Irving Berlin “God Bless America” (1918)
4. Ella Fitzgerald, Al Feldman “A-Tisket, A-Tasket” (1938)
5. Francis Scott Key (lyrics) John Stafford Smith (music) “The Star-Spangled Banner” (1814)
6. John Newton “Amazing Grace” (1772)
7. James M. Black, Katharine E. Purvis “When the Saints Go Marching In” (1896)
8. “The Old Folks at Home (Swanee River)” (music & lyrics: Stephen Foster, 1851)
9. Patty S. Hill & Mildred J. Hill “Happy Birthday to You” (1893)
10. Woody Guthrie “This Land Is Your Land” (1940)

11. Julia Ward Howe (lyrics), William Steffe (music) “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” (1862)
12. John Kelly, Don George, traditional “The Yellow Rose of Texas” (1853)
13. Huddie “Leadbelly” Ledbetter “Goodnight Irene” (1933)
14. Stephen Foster “Oh! Susanna” (1847)
15. Daniel E. Kelly (music), Dr. Brewster M. Higley (lyrics) “Home on the Range” (1874)
16. Harry Dacre “Daisy Bell (A Bicycle Built for Two)” (1893)
17. Louis Lambert as Patrick Sarsfield Gilmore (lyrics), unknown (m) “When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again” (1863)
18. Daniel Decatur Emmett “Dixie” (aka “I Wish I Was in Dixie” or “Dixie’s Land”) (1859)
19. traditional, adapted by Fred Weatherly “Danny Boy” (1913)
20. Robert Burns (adapted by) “Auld Lang Syne” (1799)

21. Stephen Foster (music/lyrics) “Camptown Races (Gwine to Run All Night)” (1850)
22. Richard Shuckburgh (lyrics), music: traditional “Yankee Doodle (aka ‘Yankee Doodle Went to Town’)” (1754)
23. James R. Shannon (music/lyrics) “Too-Ra-Loo-Ra-Loo-Ral (That’s an Irish Lullaby)” (1913)
24. Traditional “I’ve Been Working on the Railroad” (1894)
25. Jimmie Davis, Charles Mitchell “You Are My Sunshine” (1940)
26. Hugo Peretti et al “The Lion Sleeps Tonight (Wimoweh)” (1939)
27. Percy Montrose “Clementine” (1863)
28. Frank Kidson (first published by) “Scarborough Fair” (1891)
29. Dave Guard “Tom Dooley” (1958)
30. Thomas D'Urfey (music), Frederick Thomas Nettleingham (lyrics) “Old MacDonald Had a Farm” (1706)

31. J.A. Roff, adapted by A.P. Carter “Wabash Cannonball” (1882)
32. Wallace Willis, arranged by Henry Thacker Burleigh “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” (1872)
33. Traditional “Jimmy Crack Corn” (1848)
34. Jane Taylor (lyrics) “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” (1806)
35. Traditional “She’ll Be Comin’ ‘Round the Mountain” (1899)
36. Cool White “Buffalo Gals (Buffalo Girls Will You Come Out Tonight)” (1844)
37. Carl Sandburg “Skip to My Lou” (1832)
38. Unknown “Greensleeves” (1580)
39. Ada R. Habershon, Charles H. Gabriel, A.P. Carter (adapted by) “Can the Circle Be Unbroken (By and By)” (1935)
40. A.P. Carter “Wildwood Flower” (1928)

41. unknown “Baa Baa Black Sheep” (1744)
42. Daniel Decatur Emmett (music/lyrics) “Old Dan Tucker” (1843)
43. Traditional “On Top of Old Smoky” (1841)
44. Charles E. Pratt “My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean” (1881)
45. Effie I. Canning (music/lyrics) “Rock-a-Bye Baby” (1884)
46. Lowell Mason (music), Sarah Josepha Hale (lyrics) “Mary Had a Little Lamb” (1830)
47. Traditional “Michael Row the Boat Ashore” (1863)
48. Eliphalet Oram Lyte “Row Row Row Your Boat” (1852)
49. Anonymous “Froggie Went A-Courtin’” (1700)
50. Edith Piaf (lyrics), Louiguy (music) “La Vie En Rose” (1950)

51. Septimus Winner (music/lyrics) “O Where, O Where Has My Little Dog Gone” (1864)
52. Unknown “Frère Jacques” (aka “Brother John, Are You Sleeping?”) (1780)
53. Eugene Raymond (adapted by) “Pop Goes the Weasel” (1852)
54. Unknown “Shenandoah” (1837)
55. Daniel Decatur Emmett (music/lyrics) “Polly Wolly Doodle (All the Day)” (1843)
56. John Wesley Work Jr. “Go Tell It on the Mountain” (1865)
57. William Jerome (lyris), Harry Von Tilzer (music) “The Green Grass Grew All Around” (1913)
58. Sabine Baring-Gould (lyrics), Sir Arthur Sullivan (music) “Onward Christian Soldiers” (1871)
59. Bill Monroe “Blue Moon of Kentucky” (1947)
60. William Swords (lyrics), unknown (music) “Bingo (B-I-N-G-O)” (1780)

61. Traditional “Alouette” (1879)
62. Geoff Love (adapted) “He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands” (1927)
63. Traditional “For He’s a Jolly Good Fellow” (1709)
64. Billy Reeves (w), Frank Campbell (m), arranged by Rollin Howard “Shoo Fly Don’t Bother Me” (1869)
65. Traditional “Red River Valley” (1896)
66. William King (publisher) “Old King Cole” (1708)
67. Traditional “This Old Man (Nick Nack Paddiwack)” (1842)
68. Jay Roberts (copyrighted by) “Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho” (1865)
69. Unknown “Three Blind Mice” (1609)
70. translated and arranged by Dr. Theodore Baker “We Gather Together (Thanksgiving Prayer)” (1630)

71. “The Hokey Pokey” (1826)
72. Traditional “The Farmer in the Dell” (1883)
73. Unknown “Blow the Man Down” (1849)
74. Traditional/Alan Price “The House of the Rising Sun” (1933)
75. Traditional; arranged by Harry Belafonte, William Attaway, Lord Burgess “The Banana Boat Song (Day-O)” (1956)
76. Elliott Daniel “Lavender Blue (Dilly Dilly)” (1685)
77. Verna Hills “The Wheels on the Bus” (1939)
78. Traditional “Hickory Dickory Dock” (1744)
79. “The Itsy Bitsy Spider” (1910)
80. Dr. Alfred B. Smith “If You’re Happy and You Know It” (1905)

81. Unknown “The Wayfaring Stranger” (1807)
82. Traditional “Sweet Betsy from Pike” (1851)
83. Lester A. Walton, C. Lucky Roberts “Billy Boy” (1800)
84. Clarence (Tom) Ashley “The Coo Coo Bird” (1929)
85. “Ring Around the Rosie” (1881)
86. Bill Dooley “Frankie and Johnny” (1899)
87. “Rock Island Line” (1937)
88. Traditional “The Midnight Special” (1923)
89. Steve Nelson, Jack Rollins “Peter Cottontail” (1950)
90. H. Wylie “Kumbaya” (1926)

91. Jean-Jacques Rousseau “Go Tell Aunt Rhody” (1752)
92. “John Henry” (1859)
93. Ken Darby (adapted by) “Aura Lea” (1861)
94. Carl Sandburg “Down by the Riverside” (1918)
95. “Do You Know the Muffin Man” (1829)
96. Epe Sargent (lyrics), Henry Russell (music) “Follow the Drinking Gourd” (1860)
97. “Hush Little Baby” (1918)
98. “Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush” (1842)
99. “Over the River and Through the Woods” (1844)
100. “Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child” (1870)

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First posted 4/19/2020; last updated 11/17/2025.

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Thursday, March 26, 2020

Top 100 Songs from 1900-1909

First posted 4/4/2012; last updated 3/26/2020.

Top 100 Songs of the Decade:

1900-1909

These are the top 100 songs from the first ten years of the 20th century according to Dave’s Music Database. Rankings are figured by combining sales figures, chart data, radio airplay, video airplay, streaming figures, awards, and appearances on best-of lists.

1. You’re a Grand Old Flag (aka “The Grand Old Rag”)…Billy Murray (1906)
2. Take Me Out to the Ball Game…Haydn Quartet (1908)
3. Sweet Adeline (You’re the Flower of My Heart)…Haydn Quartet (1904)
4. In the Good Old Summertime…Haydn Quartet (1903)
5. Give My Regards to Broadway…Billy Murray (1905)
6. Meet Me in St. Louis Louis…Billy Murray (1904)
7. Yankee Doodle Boy…Billy Murray (1905)
8. School Days (When We Were a Couple of Kids)…Byron Harlan (1907)
9. Bill Bailey Won’t You Please Come Home…Arthur Collins (1902)
10. Shine on Harvest Moon…Harry MacDonough with Miss Walton (1909)

11. My Gal Sal…Byron Harlan (1907)
12. I Wonder Who’s Kissing Her Now…Henry Burr (1909)
13. Wait Till the Sun Shines Nellie…Byron Harlan (1906)
14. Put on Your Old Grey Bonnet…Haydn Quartet (1909)
15. In My Merry Oldsmobile…Billy Murray (1905)
16. The Glow-Worm…Victor Orchestra (1908)
17. In the Shade of the Old Apple Tree…Henry Burr (1905)
18. Harrigan…Billy Murray (1907)
19. The Old Folks at Home (Swanee River)…Vess Ossman (1900)
20. The Preacher and the Bear…Arthur Collins (1905)

21. Nobody…Bert Williams (1906)
22. On a Sunday Afternoon…J.W. Myers (1902)
23. Tell Me Pretty Maiden…Harry MacDonough with Grace Spencer (1901)
24. Bedelia…Haydn Quartet (1904)
25. A Bird in a Gilded Cage…Steve Porter (1900)
26. Hello Central Give Me Heaven…Byron Harlan (1901)
27. When You Were Sweet Sixteen…George J. Gaskin (1900)
28. Hiawatha (His Song to Minnehaha)…Harry MacDonough (1903)
29. Listen to the Mocking Bird…Frank Stanley & Corrine Morgan (1904)
30. Pagliacci, Act I: Vesti La Giubba (On with the Play) (LEONCAVALLO)…Enrico Caruso (1907)

31. Toyland…Haydn Quartet with Corrine Morgan (1904)
32. Love Me and the World Is Mine…Henry Burr (1906)
33. Auld Lang Syne…Frank Stanley (1907)
34. Arkansaw Traveler…Len Spencer (1902)
35. Cuddle Up a Little Closer, Lovey Mine…Billy Murray & Ada Jones (1908)
36. Under the Bamboo Tree…Arthur Collins (1902)
37. Down Where the Wurzburger Flows…Arthur Collins & Byron Harlan (1903)
38. Silver Threads Among the Gold…Richard Jose (1904)
39. Sunbonnet Sue…Haydn Quartet (1908)
40. Blue Bell…Byron Harlan with Frank Stanley (1904)

41. Navajo…Billy Murray (1904)
42. Goodbye, Dolly Gray…Big Four Quartet (1901)
43. Ma Blushin’ Rosie…Albert Campbell (1900)
44. I’ve Got Rings on My Fingers…Ada Jones (1909)
45. In the Sweet Bye and Bye…Harry MacDonough with John Bieling (1903)
46. As Long As the World Rolls On…Alan Turner (1908)
47. The Right Church But the Wrong Pew…Arthur Collins with Byron Harlan (1909)
48. Come Down, Ma Evening Star…Mina Hickman (1903)
49. Maple Leaf Rag…U.S. Marine Band (1907)
50. In the Good Old Summertime…J.W. Myers (1902)

51. The Mansion of Aching Hearts…Harry MacDonough (1902)
52. Mighty Like a Rose (aka “Mighty Lak a Rose”)…George Alexander (1903)
53. Good Morning, Carrie…Bert Williams with George Walker (1902)
54. Any Rags?...Arthur Collins (1903)
55. Come Take a Trip in My Air-Ship…Billy Murray (1905)
56. Everybody Works But Father…Billy Murray (1905)
57. Ma Tiger Lily…Arthur Collins (1900)
58. In the Good Old Summertime…John Philip Sousa’s Band with Harry Macdonough & S.H. Dudley (1902)
59. The Yama Yama Man…Ada Jones with the Victor Light Orchestra Co. (1909)
60. Are You Sincere?...Elise Stevenson (1908)

61. The Good Old U.S.A….Byron Harlan (1906)
62. I Love a Lassie (My Scotch Bluebell)…Harry Lauder (1907)
63. Shine on Harvest Moon…Ada Jones & Billy Murray (1909)
64. Any Old Place I Hang My Hat Is “Home Sweet Home”…Will Denny (1901)
65. The Glow-Worm…Lucy Isabelle Marsh (1908)
66. Where the Morning Glories Twine Around the Door…Byron Harlan (1905)
67. Good Evening, Caroline…Frank Stanley with Elise Stevenson (1909)
68. Hurrah for Baffin’s Bay…Arthur Collins & Byron Harlan (1903)
69. Take Me Out to the Ball Game…Edward Meeker (1908)
70. Way Down in Old Indiana…J.W. Myers (1902)

71. Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder…Harry MacDonough (1901)
72. How’d You Like to Spoon with Me?...Corrine Morgan with the Haydn Quartet (1906)
73. Goodbye, Eliza Jane…Arthur Collins (1903)
74. So Long, Mary…Corrine Morgan (1906)
75. The Tale of a Bumble Bee…Harry MacDonough (1901)
76. Under Any Old Flag at All…Billy Murray (1908)
77. The Old Folks at Home (Swanee River)…Louise Homer (1905)
78. The Old Folks at Home (Swanee River)…Haydn Quartet (1904)
79. Take Me Out to the Ball Game…Harvey Hindermeyer (1908)
80. When Chloe Sings a Song…George J. Gaskin (1900)

81. Alexander (Don’t You Love Your Baby No More?)…Billy Murray (1904)
82. Dear Old Girl…J.W. Myers (1903)
83. When We Are M-A-R-R-I-E-D…Ada Jones & Billy Murray (1908)
84. He’s a Cousin of Mine…Bert Williams (1907)
85. Waiting at the Church (My Wife Won’t Let Me)…Ada Jones (1906)
86. I Just Can’t Make My Eyes Behave…Ada Jones (1903)
87. To the End of the World with You…Henry Burr (1909)
88. Sweet Adeline (You’re the Flower of My Heart)…Columbia Male Quartet (1904)
89. Red Wing (An Indian Fable)…Frank Stanley with Henry Burr (1907)
90. Let’s Take an Old-Fashioned Walk…Ada Jones with Billy Murray (1907)

91. Nobody’s Little Girl…Byron Harlan (1907)
92. Dearie…Corrine Morgan with the Haydn Quartet (1905)
93. Always in the Way…Byron Harlan (1903)
94. Camp Meetin’ Time…Arthur Collins & Byron Harlan (1906)
95. Under the Anhauser Bush…Arthur Collins & Byron Harlan (1904)
96. Anchors Aweigh…U.S. Naval Academy Band (1906)
97. Daddy’s Little Girl…Byron Harlan (1906)
98. My Wild Irish Rose…Haydn Quartet with Harry MacDonough (1907)
99. A Coon Band Contest…Vess Ossman (1900)
100. I Can’t Tell You Why I Love You But I Do…Harry MacDonough (1900)

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Saturday, May 25, 2019

Billy Murray: Top 100 Songs

First posted 11/26/2017; updated 5/25/2019.

Tenor singer known as “The Denver Nightingale.” Born William Thomas Murray on 5/25/1877 to Irish immigrants in Philadelphia, PA. His family moved to Denver, Colorado in 1882. Died 8/17/1954. His popularity lasted through the first quarter of the 20th century, a time when, what he called his “hammering” style of shouting into an acoustic recording horn, was the technology prior to the rise of the electric microphone, which ushered in the era of crooners.

He joined a vaudeville troupe in 1893 and performed in minstrel shows early in his career. He started recording regularly in New York in 1903. He became the definitive interpreter of George M. Cohan, recording the hit version of nearly every Cohan song from 1905 on. In addition to his solo recordings, he worked with the Haydn Quartet (1898-1914), Columbia Comedy Trio (1907), with Ada Jones (1907-22), American Quartet (1910-25?) and the Heidelberg Quintet (1911-15).

Murray has eight songs (“You’re a Grand Old Flag,” “Take Me Out to the Ball Game,” “Give My Regards to Broadway,” “By the Light of the Silvery Moon,” Meet Me in St. Louis, Louis,” “Yankee Doodle Boy,” “Casey Jones,” and “In My Merry Oldsmobile”) featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Pre-Rock Era, 1890-1953.

For a complete list of this act’s songs and albums honored by the DMDB, check out the DMDB Music Maker Encyclopedia entry.

Top 100 Songs
Dave’s Music Database lists are determined by song’s appearances on best-of lists as well as chart success, sales, radio airplay, streaming, and awards.

AQ = American Quartet, HQ = Haydn Quartet, AJ = Ada Jones. Songs which hit the top of the U.S. pop charts are noted (#1).

DMDB Top 1%:

1. You’re a Grand Old Flag (aka “The Grand Old Rag”) (1906) #1
2. Take Me Out to the Ball Game (w/ HQ, 1908) #1
3. Give My Regards to Broadway (1905) #1
4. By the Light of the Silvery Moon (w/ HQ, 1910) #1
5. Meet Me in St. Louis, Louis (1904) #1
6. Yankee Doodle Boy (1905) #1
7. Casey Jones (w/ AQ, 1910) #1
8. In My Merry Oldsmobile (1905) #1
9. Harrigan (1907) #1

10. Oh, You Beautiful Doll (w/ AQ, 1911) #1
11. Come Josephine in My Flying Machine (w/ AJ, 1911) #1
12. Pretty Baby (1916) #1
13. Cuddle Up a Little Closer, Lovey Mine (w/ AJ, 1908) #1
14. That Old Gang of Mine (w/ Ed Smalle, 1923) #1
15. Navajo (1904) #1
16. K-K-K-Katy (Stammering Song) (1918)
17. Be My Little Baby Bumble Bee (w/ AJ, 1912) #1

DMDB Top 5%:

18. Everybody Works But Father (1905) #1
19. Come Take a Trip in My Air Ship (1905) #1
20. Let’s Take an Old-Fashioned Walk (w/ AJ, 1907) #1

21. I Love a Piano (1916) #1
22. Alexander’s Ragtime Band (1911)
23. Shine on, Harvest Moon (w/ AJ, 1909) #1
24. Under the Anheuser Busch (1904)
25. Alexander (Don’t You Love Your Baby No More?) (1904) #1
26. Under Any Old Flag at All (1908) #1
27. When We Are M-A-R-R-I-E-D (w/ AJ, 1908) #1
28. Teasing (I Was Only Teasing You) (1904)
29. Waltz Me Around Again, Willie (w/ HQ, 1906)
30. Forty-Five Minutes from Broadway (1906)

31. I’ll See You in C-U-B-A (1920)
32. He’d Have to Get Under, Get Out to Get Under, to Fix Up His Automobile (1914)
33. Play a Simple Melody (w/ Edna Brown, 1916)
34. Bedelia (1904) #1
35. Carrie (Carrie Marry Harry) (1910) #1
36. Make Believe (w/ AJ, 1908)
37. No Wedding Bells for Me (1907)
38. All Alone (w/ AJ, 1911)
39. Down by the O-hi-O (I’ve Got the Sweetest Little O, My! O!) (w/ Billy Jones, 1921)
40. Camptown Races (Gwine to Run All Night) (1911)

41. I’m Afraid to Come Home in the Dark (1908)
42. Cheyenne (Shy Anne) (1906)
43. The Gaby Glide (1912)
44. He’s a Devil in His Own Home Town (1914)
45. College Life (1906)
46. I’ve Taken Quite a Fancy to You (w/ AJ, 1908)
47. He Goes to Church on Sunday (1907)
48. Smarty (w/ AJ, 1908)
49. Over There (1917)
50. Wouldn’t You Like to Have Me for a Sweetheart? (w/ AJ, 1908) #1

51. Up in a Cocoanut Tree (1903)
52. When You’re All Dressed Up and No Place to Go (1914)
53. What Do You Want to Make Those Eyes at Me For? (w/ AJ, 1917)
54. It Looks Like a Big Night Tonight (1908)
55. For Me and My Gal (1917)
56. San Antonio (Cowboy Song) (1907)
57. What’s the Matter with Father? (1910)
58. Won’t You Be My Honey? (w/ AJ, 1907)
59. Bagdad (1913)
60. The Vamp (w/ Joseph C. Smith & Harry MacDonough, 1919)

61. They Were All Out of Step But Jim (1918)
62. I’m Awfully Glad I Met You (w/ AJ, 1909)
63. I Wonder Who’s Kissing Her Now (1910)
64. Tessie (You Are the Only Only) (1903)
65. I Can’t Do the Sum (1904)
66. On San Francisco Bay (1907)
67. Take Me Around Again (1907)
68. Not Because Your Hair Is Curly (1906)

DMDB Top 10%:

69. I Wish I Had a Girl (1909)
70. It Had to Be You (w/ Aileen Stanley, 1924)

71. Yes! We Have No Bananas (w/ Great White Way Orchestra, 1923)
72. Just As We Used To (1919)
73. There’s No Moon Like the Honeymoon (w/ AJ, 1908)
74. Any Place the Old Flag Flies (1912)
75. The Twentieth Century Rag (1914)
76. Alcoholic Blues (1919)
77. Take Me Up with You, Dearie (w/ HQ, 1909)
78. After You’ve Gone (w/ Gladys Rice, 1919)
79. Ain’t It Funny What a Difference a Few Hours Can Make (1904)
80. The Little Ford Rambled Right Along (1915)

81. Keep on Smiling (w/ HQ, 1908)
82. Streets of New York (1907)
83. Dance of the Grizzly Bear (w/ AQ, 1911)
84. Because I’m Married Now (1907)
85. Any Little Girl That’s a Nice Girl Is the Right Little Girl for Me (w/ the AQ, 1910)
86. The Wedding Glide (w/ AJ, 1912)
87. My Sweetie Went Away (w/ Ed Salle, 1923)
88. Bon Bon Buddy (1908)
89. The Game of Peek-a-Boo (I’d Like to See a Little More of You) (1907)
90. It’s Nice to Have a Sweetheart (w/ AJ, 1907)

91. Dixie Land, I Love You (1909)
92. Stumbling (1922)
93. Yankee Doodle Blues (w/ Ed Smalle, 1922)
94. It’s Great to Be a Soldier Man (1907)
95. Hello Hawaii, How Are You? (1916)
96. I Wonder Where My Baby Is Tonight (w/ Henry Burr, 1926)
97. The Hat My Father Wore on St. Patrick’s Day (w/ HQ, 1909)
98. Hinky Dinky Parlay Voo (Mademoiselle from Armentieres) (w/ Ed Smalle, 1924)
99. Keep on the Sunny Side (1906)
100. Are You from Dixie? ‘Cause I’m from Dixie Too (w/ Irving Kaufman, 1916)

Awards:

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Friday, May 12, 2006

100 years ago: Billy Murray hit #1 with “You’re a Grand Old Flag” for the first of 10 weeks

You’re a Grand Old Flag” (aka “Grand Old Rag”)

Billy Murray

Writer(s): George M. Cohan -- (see lyrics here)

First Charted: May 5, 1906

Peak: 110 US, 12 GA, 13 SM, 1 DF (Click for codes to singles charts.)

Sales (in millions): 1.0 (sheet music)

Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 0.67 video, -- streaming

Awards:

Click on award for more details.

About the Song:

“Perhaps no other American popular song composer did more to popularize the patriotic song than George M. Cohan.” PS He claimed to be born on the 4th of July, although he was actually born the day before. As part of a vaudeville family, he toured New England and the Midwest during his boyhood. By 1904, he wrote and starred in his first musical, Little Johnny Jones. Two years later, he wrote George Washington, Jr., another Broadway show he wrote, produced and starred in as the character of George Belgrave. The show featured “Grand Old Flag,” the song which arguably made him a superstar. PS

It isn’t too surprising it became so popular. It was “a patriotic song in a snappy tempo sung by a vigorous and enthusiastic performer to an audience that loves America.” RA The song also drew on other beloved hits such as “Dixie” and “Auld Lang Syne.” SS When performing it during the musical, Cohan marched and down the stage waving an American flag. PS He also performed the song in 1932 in his first talking picture, The Phantom President. TY2

Still, the song wasn’t without controversy. Cohan originally called it “The Grand Old Rag,” inspired by a Civil War veteran who fought at Gettysburg. The man held a carefully folded, but tattered flag and said to Cohan, “She’s a grand old rag.” WK Cohan replicated the scene for the musical, but “despite the song’s clear patriotic message, ‘rag’ was considered by many to be an undignified and inappropriate way to refer to the American flag” NRR so Cohan changed the title to “You’re a Grand Old Flag.”

Billy Murray, who has been called “the definitive interpreter of Cohan on record,” SS recorded the song under its original title, despite Cohan’s efforts to pull it. WK The controversy didn’t hurt the song; it became the first from a musical to sell more than a million copies of sheet music. SB Murray made it the biggest hit of 1906 WHC and the biggest-selling record of the first decade for Victor Records. DJ

Resources:

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First posted 5/5/2014; last updated 12/15/2022.

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Tuesday, October 22, 2002

Billy Murray Anthology released

Anthology: The Denver Nightingale

Billy Murray

Released: April 27, 2018

Recorded: 1903-1940

Peak: --

Sales (in millions): --

Genre: traditional pop

Tracks:

Song Title [time] (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts.

  1. The Way to Kiss a Girl [1:58] (1903)
  2. Bedelia [2:13] (1/23/1904, 13 US, 1 GA)
  3. Meet Me in St. Louis, Louis [2:11] (7/23/1904, 19 US, 1 GA)
  4. Alexander (Don’t You Love Your Baby No More?) [2:11] (9/19/1904, 13 US, 4 GA)
  5. Come Take a Trip in My Air-Ship [2:15] (1/4/1905, 14 US, 1 GA)
  6. Yankee Doodle Boy [2:34] (2/25/1905, 18 US, 1 GA)
  7. Under the Anheuser Bush [2:32] (2/20/1904, 2 US, 4 GA)
  8. Give My Regards to Broadway [2:33] (6/17/1905, 15 US, 3 GA)
  9. In My Merry Oldsmobile [2:52] (10/14/1905, 17 US, 2 GA)
  10. Everybody Works But Father [1:49] (12/23/1905, 13 US, 3 GA)
  11. Youre a Grand Old Flag (aka “The Grand Old Rag”) [2:46] (5/5/1906, 110 US, 1 GA)
  12. He Goes to Church on Sunday [2:17] (7/6/1907, 2 US, 6 GA)
  13. Harrigan [2:29] (9/14/1907, 19 US, 1 GA)
  14. Shine on, Harvest Moon (with Ada Jones) [2:07] (5/15/1909, 15 US, 1 GA)
  15. Carrie (Carrie Marry Harry) [3:05] (1/15/1910, 12 US, 4 GA)
  16. By the Light of the Silvery Moon (with the Haydn Quartet) [2:50] (4/9/1910, 19, 1 GA)
  17. Casey Jones (with the American Quartet) [2:46] (6/18/1910, 111 US, 3 GA)
  18. The Cubanola Glide [2:30] (6/4/1910, 6 US, 2 GA)
  19. He’d Hae to Get Under, Get Out, and Get Under to Fix Up His Automobile [3:15] (2/17/1914, 2 US, 1 GA)
  20. He’s a Devil in His Own Home Town [2:50] (7/4/1914, 2 US, 2 GA)
  21. I Love a Piano [2:46] (4/8/1916, 11 US)
  22. Pretty Baby [2:40] (10/7/1916, 11 US, 1 GA)
  23. K-K-K-Katy (Stammering Song) [2:58] (6/1/1918, 3 US, 1 GA)
  24. He Went in Like a Lion and Came Out Like a Lamb [2:56] (6/19/1920, 10 US)
  25. You’ve Got to See Mama Ev’ry Night (with Aileen Stanley) [2:57] (6/30/1923, 11 US)
  26. That Old Gang of Mine (with Ed Smalle) [3:04] (9/23/1923, 16 US, 1 GA)
  27. Charley, My Boy (with the International Novelty Orchestra) [3:11] (1924)
  28. I Faw Down and Go Boom! (with the Midnight Ramblers) [2:55] (1928)
  29. I Wonder What Amos ‘N Andy Will Do Tomorrow Night (with Walter Scanlan) [3:05] (1930)
  30. It’s the Same Old Shillelagh (with Harry’s Tavern Band) [2:08] (1940)

Total Running Time: 78:56

Rating:

4.728 out of 5.00 (average of 10 ratings)

Quotable: Billy Murray “set a standard for natural, conversational singing that informed popular music long after he himself passed from the scene.” – William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide

Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Album:

“Billy Murray may have been the best-selling recording artist of the first quarter of the 20th century, but his name and work had fallen into obscurity before his death in 1954.” AMG “He remained forgotten in the LP era and for the first decades of the CD era. But this disc belatedly brings him into the digital realm, and it does so with spectacular success.” AMG

“Murray’s excellent articulation and comic timing made him a perfect singer for the acoustic era of recording, allowing him to be understood and appreciated despite the technical limitations. He led the way for such successors as Al Jolson and Eddie Cantor, and he set a standard for natural, conversational singing that informed popular music long after he himself passed from the scene. This long-overdue compilation presents the highlights of his extensive catalog; there is plenty more where it came from.” AMG

He was “one of the best interpreters of the music of George M. Cohan—America’s preeminent songwriter.” AZ This includes the songs Yankee Doodle Boy, Give My Regards to Broadway, You’re a Grand Old Flag, and Harrigan.

“From rousing anthems to biting wit, Billy had a knack for entertaining as a solo artist and with bands.” AZ That means that in addition to his solo recordings, there are representations here of songs he recorded with the American and Haydn Quartets as well as duo efforts with Ada Jones, Aileen Stanley, Ed Smalle, and Walter Scanlan.

This collection gathers 30 songs from throughout his career, spanning from 1903 to 1940. Given the chart success of so many of these songs, this set is on par with the greatest compilations of all time, such as the Beatles’ One and Elvis Presley’s 30 #1 Hits. Seventeen of these songs reached #1. Another seven were top-ten hits. Six of the songs here are featured in the Dave’s Music Database book The Top 100 Songs of the Pre-Rock Era.

“Murray had so many popular recordings that a single disc could not hope to encompass them, but given the time limitations the producers have done the best possible job.” AMG In addition to some of Murray’s most important recordings, this collection also includes “the rare brown wax cylinder of The Way to Kiss a Girl, from one of Billy’s first recording sessions.” AZ It works its way through his more popular years, and then his “decline in the late 1920s and ‘30s and his attempted comeback in the early ‘40s with It’s the Same Old Shillelagh, performed with Harry’s Tavern Band, “giving a full sense of his recording career.” AMG

Notes: Originally released in 2002, this was remastered in 2018 and a “24-page booklet contains a biographical essay and song notes by Murray biographer Frank Hoffmann and a reminiscence of Murray by a man who knew him, Quentin Riggs.” AZ

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First posted 2/9/2022.

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Monday, July 3, 1978

George M. Cohan born 100 years ago. His Top 30 Songs

George M. Cohan

Top 30 Songs

Songwriter born George Michael Cohan was born 100 years ago today on 7/3/1878 in Providence, RI. Died 11/5/1942. One of America’s most successful songwriters. His songs were often recorded by Billy Murray, one of the most successful singers of the first quartet of the 20th century. Cohan was known for introducing a new style to American musical comedy and wrote, produced, directed, and starred in more than 40 musicals on Broadway. “Over There” and “You’re a Grand Old Flag” are featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Pre-Rock Era, 1890-1953.

For a complete list of this act’s DMDB honors, check out the DMDB Music Maker Encyclopedia entry.

Click here to see other acts’ best-of lists.

Awards:

Top 30 Songs

Dave’s Music Database lists are determined by song’s appearances on best-of lists, appearances on compilations and live albums by the featured act, and songs’ chart success, sales, radio airplay, streaming, and awards. Songs which hit #1 on various charts are noted. (Click for codes to singles charts.)

DMDB Top 1%:

1. Over There (American Quartet, 1917) #1
2. You’re a Grand Old Flag (aka “The Grand Old Rag”) (Billy Murray, 1906) #1
3. Give My Regards to Broadway (Billy Murray, 1905) #1
4. Yankee Doodle Boy (Billy Murray, 1905) #1
5. Harrigan (Billy Murray, 1907) #1

DMDB Top 5%:

6. That Haunting Melody (Al Jolson with Walter B. Rogers’ Orchestra, 1912) #1
7. So Long Mary (Corrinne Morgan, 1906) #1
8. Under Any Old Flag at All (Billy Murray, 1908) #1
9. When We Are M-A-R-R-I-E-D (Ada Jones with Billy Murray, 1908) #1
10. Forty-Five Minutes from Broadway (Billy Murray, 1906)
11. Mary’s a Grand Old Name (1906)

DMDB Top 10%:

12. I Guess I’ll Have to Telegraph My Baby (Arthur Collins, 1899) #1
13. When You Come Back (And You Will Come Back) (John McCormack, 1918)
14. Always Leave Them Laughing (Billy Murray, 1907)
15. San Francisco Sadie (Dan Quinn, 1900)
16. Any Place the Old Flag Flies (Billy Murray, 1912)
17. If I’m Goin’ to Die, I’m Goin’ to Have Some Fun (Arthur Collins, 1907)
18. When a Fellow’s on the Level with a Girl Who’s on the Square (Billy Murray, 1909)
19. I Want You (Henry Burr, 1908)
20. Nellie Kelly, I Love You (American Quartet, 1923)
21. You Remind Me of My Mother (Henry Burr, 1923)

DMDB Top 20%:

22. Popularity (Vess Ossman, 1907)
23. Little Johnny Jones Medley (Vess Ossman, 1905)
24. You Can Have Broadway (Billy Murray, 1907)
25. Sullivan (Billy Murray & Haydn Quartet, 1909)
26. ABC’s of the U.S.A. (Ada Jones & Billy Murray, 1908)
27. American Ragtime (Billy Murray, 1909)

Beyond the DMDB Top 20%:

28. Venus, My Shining Love (1894)
29. The Warmest Baby in the Bunch (1897)
30. If I Were Mister Morgan (1903)

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First posted 12/8/2019; last updated 6/6/2022.
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