Way Down Yonder in New Orleans

"Way Down Yonder in New Orleans" is a popular song with music by John Turner Layton Jr. and lyrics by Henry Creamer. First published in 1922, it was advertised by Creamer and Layton as "A Southern Song, without A Mammy, A Mule, Or A Moon", a dig at some of the Tin Pan Alley clichés of the era.

"Way Down Yonder in New Orleans"
1922 sheet music cover with a photo of singer Blossom Seeley
Song
Published1922
Songwriter(s)Joe Turner Layton, Henry Creamer

It was performed at The Winter Garden Theater in New York in Act 2 of the Broadway musical production Spice of 1922.[1] The original 1922 sheet music featured a drawing of a girl on a spice bottle on the front cover, referring to the musical in which the song eventually made its public debut.[2]

Early successful recordings of the song were by the Peerless Quartet, Blossom Seeley and Paul Whiteman.[3]

The song has been recorded numerous times from the early 1920s into the 21st century. Layton himself recorded the song as part of the duo Layton & Johnstone in 1927. Roger Wolfe Kahn and His Orchestra played the song in their 1932 film short The Yacht Party. Notable uses have included being the theme song for the radio program This Is Jazz in the 1940s.

According to Dick Biondi, Freddy Cannon's 1959 version became the first record in the rock era to have a full brass section. It reached number 3 on the Billboard chart in early 1960. The song was performed by Harry Connick Jr. in a September 2005 NBC Katrina fundraiser, "A Concert For Hurricane Relief", that raised over $50 million.[4]

This song is in the public domain.

Other notable recordings

Film and television appearances

Lyrics

The song tells of New Orleans, the destination which the singer desires. The chorus is:

Way down yonder in New Orleans
In the land of dreamy scenes
There's a garden of Eden
That's what I mean,
Creole babies with flashing eyes
Softly whisper with tender sighs— Stop!
Oh! won't you give your lady fair a little smile, Stop!
You bet your life you'll linger there— a little while
There is heaven right here on earth
With those beautiful queens,
Way down yonder in New Orleans[18]

Second chorus ending:

They've got angels right here on earth
Wearing little blue jeans,
Way down yonder in New Orleans.[18]

References
  1. Internet Broadway Database
  2. The Book of World-famous Music by James J. Fuld
  3. Whitburn, Joel (1986). Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890-1954. Wisconsin, USA: Record Research Inc. p. 604. ISBN 0-89820-083-0.
  4. "Television Appearances by New Orleans Music Artists - September 2005". Satchmo.com. Retrieved 2012-01-08.
  5. Rust, Brian (2001). Jazz Records (PDF). Mainspring Press. p. 610.
  6. Rust, Brian (2001). Jazz Records (PDF). Mainspring Press. p. 1699.
  7. Rust, Brian (2001). Jazz Records (PDF). Mainspring Press. p. 1117.
  8. Rust, Brian (2001). Jazz Records (PDF). Mainspring Press. p. 412.
  9. "45cat.com". 45cat.com. Retrieved May 15, 2017.
  10. "45worlds.com". 45worlds.com. Retrieved May 15, 2017.
  11. "Discogs.com". Discogs.com. Retrieved May 15, 2017.
  12. "Discogs.com". Discogs.com. Retrieved May 15, 2017.
  13. "45cat.com". 45cat.com. Retrieved May 15, 2017.
  14. Whitburn, Joel (1986). Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890-1954. Wisconsin, USA: Record Research Inc. p. 265. ISBN 0-89820-083-0.
  15. "Discogs.com". Discogs.com. Retrieved May 15, 2017.
  16. "Internet Movie Database". imdb.com. Retrieved May 15, 2017.
  17. "Internet Movie Database". imdb.com. Retrieved May 15, 2017.
  18. Layton, "Way Down Yonder In New Orleans".

Bibliography
  • Layton, John Turner; Creamer, Henry. "Way Down Yonder in New Orleans" (sheet music). New York: Shapiro, Bernstein & Co. (1922).
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