At Last

By Mack Gordon & Harry Warren
1941

A standard introduced by the Glenn Miller orchestra in the film Orchestra Wives, and later that same year on record as well, At Last is a gorgeous number that experienced a total rebirth a generation later, when it was literally reinvented by the eminent soul singer Etta James. Aided by a masterful arrangement, Etta's sublime recording is one of the most well-known of all time, and has ensured that this one-of-a-kind composition will never be forgotten.

Lyrics:

At last,
My love has come along,
My lonely days are over,
And life is like a song.

At last,
The skies above are blue,
My heart was wrapped in clover
The night I looked at you.

I found a dream that I could speak to,
A dream that I could call my own.
I found a thrill to rest my cheek to,
A thrill that I have never known.

You smiled,
And then the spell was cast,
And here we are in heaven,
For you are mine at last.

Recorded By:

Glenn Miller
Etta James
Ray Anthony
Chet Baker
Nat King Cole

Did You Ever See a Dream Walking?

By Harry Revel & Mack Gordon
1933

An irresistible charmer written for Bing Crosby, who at the time was the single hugest pop phenomenon to ever hit the nation since the dawn of recorded music. It was so popular that an entire Fleischer Studios Popeye cartoon was themed around it the following year. It was also the closing credits theme for A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 2--a nice touch.

Lyrics:

Something very strange & mystic happened to me.
Something realistic & as weird as can be.
Something that I fear is somehow now endeared to me.
What a funny feeling,odd & yet so true.
Did a thing like this ever happen to you?

Did you ever see a dream walking?
Well, I did.
Did you ever hear a dream talking?
Well, I did.

Did you ever have a dream thrill you
With "Will you be mine?"
Oh, it's so grand,
And it's too, too divine!

Did you ever see a dream dancing?
Well, I did.
Did you a ever see a dream romancing?
Well, I did!

Did you ever see heaven right in your arms,
Saying, "I love you, I do!"
Well, the dream that was walking,
And the dream that was talking,
The heaven in my arms was you.

Recorded By:

Eddy Duchin
Guy Lombardo
Ray Noble
Les Brown
Fats Domino

You'll Never Know

By Harry Warren & Mack Gordon
1943

Earning Warren (pictured) and Gordon the Academy Award, this song debuted in the movie Hello, Frisco, Hello, in which it was sung by Alice Faye. Dick Haymes had a number-one hit with it the same year. The lyrics are based on a poem by Oklahoma war bride Alice Faye. The song is known for being the first recorded by Barbra Streisand, who sang it in 1955 at the tender age of 13.

Lyrics:

Darling, I'm so blue without you.
I think about you the live-long day.
When you ask me if I'm lonely,
Then I only have this to say...

You'll never know just how much I miss you,
You'll never know just how much I care.
And if I tried, I still couldn't hide my love for you.
You ought to know, 'cause haven't I told you so
A million or more times?

You went away and my heart went with you.
I speak your name in my every prayer.
If there is some other way to prove that I love you,
I swear I don't know how.
You'll never know if you don't know now.

Recorded By:

Big Maybelle
Frank Sinatra
Shirley Bassey
Vera Lynn
Rosemary Clooney

Serenade in Blue

By Harry Warren & Mack Gordon
1942

Written for the 20th Century Fox film Orchestra Wives--in which it was introduced by the dubbed voice of Pat Friday via leading lady Lynn Bari--this song nevertheless achieved immortality when it was recorded shortly after by Glenn Miller's orchestra, with Ray Eberle and The Modernaires on vocals. It became one of Miller's signature numbers, second only to his theme song, "Moonlight Serenade".

Lyrics:

When I hear that serenade in blue,
I'm somewhere in another world, alone with you,
Sharing all the joys we used to know,
Many moons ago.

Once again your face comes back to me,
Just like the theme of some forgotten melody
In the album of my memory,
Serenade in blue.

It seems like only yesterday,
The small cafe, a crowded floor,
And as we danced the night away,
I hear you say forevermore.
And then the song became a sigh,
Forever more became goodbye,
But you remained in my heart.

So tell me darling, is there still a spark?
Or only lonely ashes of the flame we knew?
Should I go on whistling in the dark?
Serenade in blue.

Recorded By:

Frank Sinatra
Doris Day
Dick Haymes
Stan Getz
Charles Mingus