Easter Parade (song)

"Easter Parade" is a popular song, written by Irving Berlin and published in 1933.

The song was introduced by Marilyn Miller and Clifton Webb in the Broadway musical revue As Thousands Cheer (1933), in which musical numbers were strung together on the thematic thread of newspaper headlines.[1] Like many of Berlin's songs, it later appeared in films. It was performed by Don Ameche in Alexander's Ragtime Band (1938)[2] which was loosely based on Irving Berlin's life. Bing Crosby sang it in the film Holiday Inn (1942), which featured an Irving Berlin song about each major holiday.[1] In 1948, it was performed by Judy Garland and Fred Astaire in the musical film of the same title, which was constructed around the song. The song was also featured in the Rankin/Bass special The First Easter Rabbit in 1976.

Artists who had a hit record with the song include Crosby, Harry James (1942), Guy Lombardo and His Royal Canadians (1947), and Liberace (1954).[2]

Berlin originally wrote the melody in 1917, under the title "Smile and Show Your Dimple", and resurrected it with modifications and new lyrics for As Thousands Cheer.[3]

The song is often considered to be one of the most popular Easter songs of all time, along with Peter Cottontail.

Notes

  1. 1 2 Bergreen, Laurence (1996). As Thousands Cheer: The Life of Irving Berlin. Da Capo Press. pp. 316–317; 385. ISBN 0-7867-5252-1.
  2. 1 2 Paymer, Marvin E.; Post, Don E. (1999). Sentimental Journey: Intimate Portraits of America's Great Popular Songs, 1920–1945. Noble House. pp. 253–254. ISBN 978-1-881907-09-1.
  3. ↑ Furia, Philip; Lasser, Michael L. (2006). America's Songs: The Stories Behind the Songs of Broadway, Hollywood, and Tin Pan Alley. Taylor & Francis. p. 108. ISBN 978-0-415-97246-8.
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