THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

808-Glenn Miller-Moonlight Serenade.

1939-It couldn’t chart initially, because there was no UK chart until 1952. When it was re-issued in 1954 it peaked at Number 12, and then again, when it was re-issued in 1976, it made Number 13.

Best Bit-At 1.40. You say it best when you say nothing at all.

Glenn Miller was born Alton Glen Miller (see also best songs 321 and 146) on March 1st, 1904, in Clarinda, Iowa, United States. On December 15th, 1944, Miller was due to fly from the town of Bedford, in England, to Paris, France, in order to make arrangements to move his entire band there to entertain the U.S. troops, in the near future. His aircraft disappeared in bad weather over the English Channel, the actual cause of the crash has never been confirmed, but it was probably that the planes carburettor froze in the cold weather. His disappearance was not made public until December 24th, 1944, Miller was 40 years old. In America on the Billboard chart, between 1939-1943, Glenn Miller achieved 69 top 10 hits, which was more than Elvis Presley, with 38, and the Beatles, who had 33.

Glen Miller added the second ‘N’ to Glenn while he was at high school, and like his father, and his two brothers and a sister, he went by his middle name. His name is engraved as ‘Alton G. Miller’ on the ‘Tablets of the Missing,’ at the Cambridge American Cemetery and Memorial, run by the American Battle Monuments Commission, in Cambridge, England. The names of Flight Officer John R. S. Morgan, who piloted the plane, and Lieutenant Colonel Norman Baessell, who was also on board, are also carved there. Many Americans who died in the Second World War in Europe are buried there.

Glenn Miller wrote the melody for ‘Moonlight Serenade’ as far back as 1935, when he was a trombonist player in the Ray Noble (1903-1978) Big Band. The American lyricist Eddie Heyman (1907-1981) added words, and the song was originally titled ‘As I Lay Me Down To Weep.’ Miller never recorded the song with those lyrics, but in 1938, he used the instrumental for his radio broadcasts, on the ‘NBC’ network in America. In 1939, the publisher ‘Robins Music’ bought the melody from Miller, and commissioned Mitchell Parish (1900-1993) to write a new set of lyrics. At the time Miller was recording another song called ‘Sunrise Serenade,’ and it was suggested by someone at ‘Robbins Music’ that Parish write something to compliment that song, as it was due for release as the ‘B’ side, so the title ‘Moonlight Serenade’ was chosen. ‘Moonlight Serenade’ soon became far more popular with the general public. and has gone on to become Glenn Miller’s ‘signature song.’

The lyrics to ‘Moonlight Serenade’ were written by Mitchell Parish, who was born on July 10th, 1900, in Lithuania, which was part of the Russian Empire at that time, he died on March 31st, 1993, at the age of 92. Other notable songs co-written by Parish include ‘Stardust,’ (1927) and ‘Deep Purple, (1938.) Glenn Miller rarely performed ‘Moonlight Serenade’ with a vocalist, but artists who have recorded the song as vocalists include, Frank Sinatra, (1915-1998) who recorded his version for his 1966 Album ‘Moonlight Sinatra.’ In 1959, the American ‘Doo-Wop’ group ‘The Rivieras,’ charted at Number 47 on Billboard with their version, and in 1978, the American singer Booby Vinton, took his rendition to Number 97 also on Billboard. In the UK, in 1939, ‘Moonlight Serenade’ was released as the ‘A’ side of a ’78’ disc, on the ‘His Master’s Voice’ record label, with ‘American Patrol,’ as the ‘B’ side. When re-issued, the recording reached number 12, in March 1954, staying on the chart for one week. In January 1976 a maxi single with ‘Little Brown Jug,’ ‘In the Mood,’ and ‘Moonlight Serenade,’ reached number 13 on the UK chart.

‘Moonlight Serenade’ was recorded on April 4th, 1939, at the RCA’s studios, in New York City, while the Glenn Miller Orchestra were on a seven week live engagement at the ‘Meadowbrook Ballroom,’ in Cedar Grove, New Jersey. The musicians who performed on ‘Moonlight Serenade,’ were Wilbur Schwartz, (1918-1990) who played the clarinet solo. The trumpeters were Clyde Hurley, (1916-1963) Dale McMickle, (1907-1985) Leigh Knowles, (–) and Johnny Best, (1913-2003) with Hal McIntyre (1914-1959) on Alto Sax, and Tex Beneke, (1914-2000) Al Klink, (1915-1991) and Jimmy Abato (1919-2008) on Tenor, and baritone Sax. The guitar was played by Richard Fisher, (–) and the bass by Rowland Bundock, (–) with Maurice Purtill (1916-1994) on drums, and Chummy MacGregor (1903-1973) on the piano.