As recorded by the Glenn Miller Orchestra on
June 13th 1940 with Marion Hutton.
Words by Tot Seymour, music by Mabel Wayne.
It all began in a cabana in Havana
Where I enjoyed a month’s vacation by the sea
And ´neath the tropic sun
I found the one and only one for me
I learned to love in a cabana in Havana
He even taught me how to rhumba on the sand
And how he’d look at me
And softly say, „Si, Si“ to all I planned
Ya-ya, ya-ya, he would serenade on his guitar,
Too-too, too-too, and romance like only Latins
do
Ay-ay, ay-ay, I remember when we kissed goodbye
And I was so contented I finally consented
I’d marry him in July...
And now I sit in a cabana in Long Island
And see a couple honeymooning by the sea
And it’s my Latin love right there in a cabana
next to me
And he doesn’t give a darno for this poor Americano
Next winter you’ll be seeing me tobogganing and
skiing far away
From a cabana in Havana!
As recorded by the Glenn Miller Orchestra on
August 14th 1940 with Ray Eberle.
Written by Jack Lawrence and Ted Shapiro.
I recall the story,
That night of love and glory
A night that left my heart romantic scars
We stood so near to heaven
That I reached clear to heaven
And gathered you a handful of stars
Sweet remembered hour
When love began to flower
With moonlight through the trees like silver
bars
And as the moon grew older
I reached across your shoulder
And gathered you a handful of stars
I placed my fingertips upon your lips
And stars fell in your eyes
Moonglow made a halo of your hair
Suddenly you looked at me and dreams began to
rise
Oh, what things unspoken trembled in the air
Our hearts were madly beating
And then our lips were meeting
And Venus seemed to melt right into Mars
Then while we stood caressing
Blue heaven sent a blessing
A shower of a handful of stars...!
A Little Old Church In England
As recorded by the Glenn Miller Orchestra on
February 19th 1941 with Ray Eberle and the Modernaires.
Written by Irving Berlin.
A little old church in England tumbled down
A little old-fashioned church in London town
A pile of mortar and brick appears
Where it had peacefully stood for years
A little old church is gone beyond repair
But after a while a new church will be there
And we’ll hear nothing but good
Where the little old church in England stood
Where the little old church in England stood...
(repeat once)
As recorded by the Glenn Miller Orchestra on
June 13th 1940 with Ray Eberle.
Written by Lew Quadling, Eddy Howard and Dick
Jurgens.
You told me it was so
A million dreams ago
You held me in your arms
A million dreams ago
So many dreams have flown
So many nights alone
I guess I should have known
It couldn’t be...
I’ll lock my memories here in my heart
And here in my heart they’ll stay
And through the years
They’ll always be part,
A part of that lovely day
Goodbye, good luck, old friend
I’ll smile and just pretend
There was no end
A million dreams ago...
A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square
As recorded by the Glenn Miller Orchestra on
October 11th 1940 with Ray Eberle.
Words by Eric Maschwitz, music by Manning Sherwin.
That certain night, the night we met
There was magic abroad in the air
There were angels dining at the Ritz
And a nightingale sang in Berkeley Square
I maybe right, I maybe wrong
But I’m perfectly willing to swear
That when you turned and smiled at me
A nightingale sang in Berkeley Square
The moon that lingered over London town
Poor puzzled moon, he wore a frown
How could he know we two were so in love
The whole darn world seemed upside down
The streets uptown were paved with stars
It was such a romantic affair
And as we kissed and said goodnight
A nightingale sang in Berkeley Square...!
A Pink Cocktail For A Blue Lady
As recorded by the Glenn Miller Orchestra on
July 16th 1942 with Skip Nelson.
Words by Herb Magidson, music by Ben Oakland.
A pink cocktail for a blue lady
And waiter, don’t tell her it’s from me
For you see that lovely, lonely lady
Whose thoughts seem far away
Was once the toast of Vienna
When Vienna was gay
You see, waiter, once she thrilled millions
How crazy this world turned out to be
A pink cocktail for a blue lady
And fill this empty glass for me...
As recorded by the Glenn Miller Orchestra on
November 22nd 1940 with Ray Eberle.
Written by Bob Ray, Jay Burton and Irving Green.
I find myself a stone’s throw from heaven
All by myself and no sign of heaven
I built my castles, now they‘ve tumbled,
Tumbled right on my heart
Did our love die a stone‘s throw from heaven
Was our goodbye a goodbye to heaven
Was love a bubble that was broken
Like the break in my heart...?
Why can’t this only be a dream,
A movie or a play?
Love would then somehow find a scheme
To make your heart meet mine halfway...
Must I remain a stone‘s throw from heaven,
Never again to ever know heaven?
Still I would wait for you forever
To start all over again...!
As recorded by the Glenn Milller Orchestra
on June 22nd 1939 with Tex Beneke and Marion Hutton.
Words by Bert Kalmar, music by Harry Ruby.
Marion Hutton:
Each night at eight, under her window he’d wait
He would look up and shout:
Tex Beneke:
Ain’t cha comin‘ out, my pretty, pretty Mammo*
Ain’t cha comin‘ out tonight?
MH:
He never played music for his serenade,
He‘d just look up and shout:
TB:
Ain’t cha comin‘ out, my pretty, pretty, pretty
Mammo
Ain’t cha comin‘ out tonight?
MH:
He couldn’t strum a guitar, a banjo or mandolin
He couldn’t sing tra-la-la,
He couldn’t whistle or hum,
He’d just come there and shout:
Ain’t cha comin‘ out?
Ain’t cha comin‘ out?
Ain’t cha comin‘ out?
Ain’t cha comin‘ out?
(*Mummo: „This is a corruption of Mamma the
way the blacks sometimes refer to their mothers or other female sweethearts“
–--Notes by Andy Davison)
As recorded by the Glenn Miller Orchestra on
November 8th 1940 with Ray Eberle.
Words by Al Dubin and Edwina Coolidge, music
by Will Grosz. (Originally from the movie „Santa Fe Trail“)
Angels come to paint the desert nightly
When the moon is beaming brightly
Along the Santa Fe Trail
Stardust scattered all along the highway
On a rainbow-colored skyway
Along the Santa Fe Trail
Beside you
I’m riding every hill and dale
Wide shadows hide you
Just like a pretty purple veil
Thereby hangs a tale
I found you
And the mountains that surround you
Are the wall I built around you
Along the Santa Fe trail...
As recorded by the Glenn Miller Orchestra on
January 8th 1942 with Ray Eberle.
Words by Kim Gannon, music by Ernesto Lecuona.
(From the movie „Always In My Heart“)
You are always in my heart
Even though you’re far away
I can hear the music of
The song of love
I sang with you
You are always in my heart
And when skies above are grey
I remember that you care
And then and there
The sun breaks through
Just before I go to sleep
There’s a rendezvous I keep
And a dream I always meet
Helps me forget we’re far apart
I don’t know exactly when, dear,
But I’m sure we’ll meet again, dear,
And my darling, till we do
You are always in my heart!
As recorded by the Glenn Miller Orchestra on
August 1st 1939 with Ray Eberle.
Words by Al Dubin, music by Ted Fiorito.
I found an angel in a furnished room
A bit of sunshine in the purple gloom
A dusty stairway, a rickety door
But heaven just seems to fit that little two-by-four
The old back alley seven flights below
Seems like a valley where the green trees grow
The ground she walks on is a gutter
That turns to a garden in bloom
Just for an angel in a furnished room!
As recorded by the Glenn Miller Orchestra on
April 4th 1939 with Ray Eberle.
Words by Johnny Mercer, music by Ziggy Elman,
based on an old Hebrew hymn.
We meet and the angels sing
The angels sing the sweetest song I ever heard
You speak and the angels sing
Or am I breathing music into every word?
Suddenly the setting is strange
I can see water and moonlight beaming
Silv‘ry waves that break on an undiscovered shore
Then suddenly I see it all change
Long winter nights with the candles gleaming
Through it all your face that I adore
You smile and the angels sing
And though it‘s just a gentle murmur at the start
We kiss and the angels sing
And leave their music ringing in my heart!
As recorded by the Glenn Miller Orchestra on
June 13th 1940 with Ray Eberle.
Written by George Price, Abner Silver and Benny
Davis.
Angel child, I’m just wild about you
Angel child, say that you love me, too
In your arms forever I’d stay
You drive away shadows of gray
When you smile I’m in heaven it’s true
Cuddle closer, do
Angel child, I’m just putting it mild
When I say that I’m wild about you...!
As recorded by the Glenn Miller Orchestra on
January 5th 1942 with Ray Eberle and the Band.
Written by Irving Berlin.
Angels of Mercy, there’s so much to do
The heavens are gray overhead
Angels of Mercy, they’re calling to you
So march with your crosses of red
March where the darkness shuts out the night*
March where there is no dawn
Angels of Mercy, the world‘s covered with night
But your mercy goes marching on
Angels of Mercy, through darkest night
Your mercy goes marching on...
(*:What is being pointed out here is the contrast
of the normalcy of night vs. the darkness of war. At this point in history
(1942), Hitler had conquered Europe and America was trying to stay neutral,
but were gearing up to fight. --- Notes by Andy Davison)
As recorded by the Glenn Miller Orchestra on
March 31st 1940 with Ray Eberle.
Words by Johnny Burke, music by James V. Monaco.
April played the fiddle and my heart began
to dance
And I was so surprised to find my arms around
romance
April played the fiddle and I memorized the tune
And later on, a dream and I went singing to the
moon
Then May began to gossip and June just winked
her eye
And you should have seen the Know-It-All expression
on July...
April played the fiddle, ah, but here’s the
funny part:
I had to pay the fiddler with my one and only
heart!
As recorded by the Glenn Miller Orchestra on
May 20th 1942 with Ray Eberle.
Words by Mack Gordon, music by Harry Warren.
(From the movie „Orchestra Wives“, featuring the Glenn Miller Orchestra!)
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 can speak to,
A dream that I can call my own
I found a thrill to press my cheek to,
A thrill I’ve never known...
You smiled and then the spell was cast
And here we are in heaven
For you are mine at last...!
At the President’s Birthday Ball
As recorded by the Glenn Miller Orchestra on
January 5th 1942 with Marion Hutton and the Modernaires.
Written by Irving Berlin.
Bands are playing
Let‘s go swaying
At the President’s birthday ball
They’ll be welcoming one and all
Happy birthday,
Best-on-Earth day
To the President FDR*
From Americans near and far...
Look forward to much happier times
Look forward as we join in the grand march, the
March of Dimes**
Check your sorrow till tomorrow
For the heavens will soon be bright
And we‘re gonna have fun tonight
There‘ll be rhythm and mirth
At the president’s birthday ball!
(repeat once)
(*: Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882 – 1945),
32nd US President from 1933 to 1945; his birthday was on January 30th)
(**:The March of Dimes was started by President
Roosevelt. Roosevelt had polio himself and all of the school children
in America were supposed to bring dimes to school all over the country and
the money collected was to be used to find a cure for polio. This was an annual
occurrence. ----Notes by Andy Davison)