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"Too-Ra-Loo-Ra-Loo-Ral (That's an Irish Lullaby)" is a classic
Irish-American , image = Irish ancestry in the USA 2018; Where Irish eyes are Smiling.png , image_caption = Irish Americans, % of population by state , caption = Notable Irish Americans , population = 36,115,472 (10.9%) alone ...
song that was written in 1913 by composer James Royce Shannon (1881–1946) for the
Tin Pan Alley Tin Pan Alley was a collection of History of music publishing, music publishers and songwriters in New York City that dominated the American popular music, popular music of the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It origin ...
musical '' Shameen Dhu''. The original recording of the song, by
Chauncey Olcott Chauncey Olcott, born John Chancellor Olcott and often spelled Chauncey Alcott, (July 21, 1858 – March 18, 1932) was an American stage actor, songwriter and singer of Irish descent. Biography He was born in Buffalo, New York. His mother, Mar ...
, peaked at #1 on the
music charts A record chart, in the music industry, also called a music chart, is a ranking of recorded music according to certain criteria during a given period. Many different criteria are used in worldwide charts, often in combination. These include re ...
. The song was brought back to prominence by
Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, musician and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. He was a ...
's performance in 1944's '' Going My Way''. Crosby's single sold over a million copies and peaked at #4 on the
Billboard music charts The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the '' ...
.


History

The song's eponymous
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("toora-loora-loo") is attested to at least 1837 in humorist doggerel in ''
The New Monthly Magazine ''The New Monthly Magazine'' was a British monthly magazine published from 1814 to 1884. It was founded by Henry Colburn and published by him through to 1845. History Colburn and Frederic Shoberl established ''The New Monthly Magazine and Univ ...
'' and elsewhere during the 19th century. It likely has roots in the same nonsense word "turelurelu" as that used to indicate the sound of a flute in the French-language Christmas song "
Patapan "Patapan" (or "Pat-a-pan") is a French Christmas carol in Burgundian dialect, later adapted into English. It was written by Bernard de La Monnoye (1641–1728) and first published in ''Noël bourguignons'' in 1720. Its original title is "Guillô, ...
" recorded in 1720. The 1913 song was written by lyricist and actor Shannon for the play ''Shameen Dhu'' ("Black-Haired Jimmy" or "Dark Jimmy").Shannon, Royce.
Too-Ra-Loo-Ra-Loo-Ral (That's an Irish Lullabye)
, 1913. M. Witmark & Sons.
Prior to the play's debut, singer Chauncey Olcott took it into the studio to record it on July 30, 1913. Popular, his single peaked at #1 on the music charts in December 1913. In 1944, Bing Crosby released a version of the song which brought it to public attention again. First performed in the film ''Going My Way'', it was subsequently released as a single that sold over a million copies and peaked at #4 on
Billboard music charts The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the '' ...
. His first recording was made on July 7, 1944 but mechanical difficulties with the matrix led to it being recorded again on July 17, 1945. It is this version which appears on subsequent LPs and CDs. In 1945, the Crosby version of the song was also featured in the film ''
Nob Hill Nob Hill is a neighborhood of San Francisco, California, United States that is known for its numerous luxury hotels and historic mansions. Nob Hill has historically served as a center of San Francisco's upper class. Nob Hill is among the hig ...
''. In 2019 it featured in ''Ray Donovan'', season 7, episode 5; "An Irish Lullaby".


Other versions

In 1976,
Richard Manuel Richard George Manuel (April 3, 1943 – March 4, 1986) was a Canadian singer, multi-instrumentalist, and songwriter, best known as a pianist and one of three lead singers in The Band, for which he was posthumously inducted into the Rock and ...
and
Van Morrison Sir George Ivan Morrison (born 31 August 1945), known professionally as Van Morrison, is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose recording career spans seven decades. He has won two Grammy Awards. As a teenager in t ...
sang the song, as "Tura Lura Lural (That's an Irish Lullaby)", during The Band's farewell concert ''
The Last Waltz ''The Last Waltz'' was a concert by the Canadian-American rock group The Band, held on American Thanksgiving Day, November 25, 1976, at Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco. ''The Last Waltz'' was advertised as The Band's "farewell concert a ...
''.'' Come On, Eileen'', a #1 U.K. chart single from the English band
Dexys Midnight Runners Dexys Midnight Runners (currently officially Dexys, their former nickname, styled without an apostrophe) are an English pop rock band from Birmingham, with soul influences, who achieved major commercial success in the early to mid-1980s. They a ...
, includes a chorus with the lines "Too-Ra-Loo-Ra Too-Ra-Loo-Rye, Ay / And you'll hum this tune forever." The song appeared on their 1982 album titled '' Too-Rye-Ay''.
Steve Martin Stephen Glenn Martin (born August 14, 1945) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and musician. He has won five Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and was awarded an Honorary Academy Award in 2013. Additionally, he was nominate ...
performed the song for comic effect in the film ''
Housesitter ''Housesitter'' is a 1992 American romantic comedy film directed by Frank Oz, written by Mark Stein, and starring Steve Martin and Goldie Hawn. The premise involves a woman with con-artist tendencies who worms her way into the life of a rese ...
''. The song also featured memorably in a Season 2, Episode 8 cold open of ''
Cheers ''Cheers'' is an American sitcom television series that ran on NBC from September 30, 1982, to May 20, 1993, with a total of 275 half-hour episodes across 11 seasons. The show was produced by Charles/Burrows/Charles Productions in association w ...
'', as the denizens of the bar sang the lullaby over the telephone to an infant
Tortelli Tortelli is a type of filled pasta traditionally made in the Lombardy, Emilia-Romagna, and Tuscany regions of Italy. It can be found in several shapes, including square (similar to ravioli), semi-circular (similar to agnolini), or twisted in ...
.
Ed Asner Eddie Asner (; November 15, 1929 – August 29, 2021) was an American actor and former president of the Screen Actors Guild. He is best remembered for portraying Lou Grant during the 1970s and early 1980s, on both ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' a ...
's character, Lou Grant, also sang the lullaby to Mary Richards on her couch to help her get to sleep without using a sleeping pill in an episode of the final season of ''
The Mary Tyler Moore Show ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' (also known simply as ''Mary Tyler Moore'') is an American television sitcom created by James L. Brooks and Allan Burns and starring actress Mary Tyler Moore. The show originally aired on CBS from 1970 to 1977. Moo ...
''.
Damian McGinty Damian Joseph McGinty Jr. (born 9 September 1992) is an Irish singer and actor. McGinty has been performing for over a decade, and a member of the group Celtic Thunder for thirteen years starting when he was fourteen. On 21 August 2011, McGinty ...
's character performs the song in the film '' Santa Fake'' to comfort the widow Mrs. Ortega. Others who have recorded the song include
Bobby Darin Bobby Darin (born Walden Robert Cassotto; May 14, 1936 – December 20, 1973) was an American musician and actor. He performed jazz, pop, rock and roll, folk, swing, and country music. He started his career as a songwriter for Connie ...
,
Connie Francis Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero (born December 12, 1937), known professionally as Connie Francis, is an American pop singer, actress, and top-charting female vocalist of the late 1950s and early 1960s. Called the “First Lady of Rock & Roll” ...
,
Perry Como Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como (; May 18, 1912 – May 12, 2001) was an Italian-American singer, actor and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century, he recorded exclusively for RCA Victor for 44 years, after signin ...
,
The Ames Brothers ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...
,
Regis Philbin Regis Francis Xavier Philbin (; August 25, 1931 – July 25, 2020)Archived aGhostarchiveand thWayback Machine was an American television presenter, talk show host, game show host, comedian, actor, and singer. Once called "the hardest working ma ...
,
Jessi Colter Mirriam Johnson (born May 25, 1943), known professionally as Jessi Colter, is an American country singer who is best known for her collaborations with her husband, country musician Waylon Jennings, and for her 1975 country-pop crossover hit "I'm ...
,
Slim Whitman Ottis Dewey Whitman Jr. (January 20, 1923 – June 19, 2013), known as Slim Whitman, was an American country music singer-songwriter and guitarist known for his yodeling abilities and his use of falsetto. He claimed he had sold in excess of ...
,
Jerry Lewis Jerry Lewis (born Joseph Levitch; March 16, 1926 – August 20, 2017) was an American comedian, actor, singer, filmmaker and humanitarian. As his contributions to comedy and charity made him a global figure in popular culture, pop culture ...
and
Dean Martin Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti; June 7, 1917 – December 25, 1995) was an American singer, actor and comedian. One of the most popular and enduring American entertainers of the mid-20th century, Martin was nicknamed "The King of Cool". M ...
,
The Irish Tenors The Irish Tenors are a singing trio from Ireland that was started in 1998 by a group of television producers for a PBS special ''The Irish Tenors''. They have since recorded five PBS specials and eight albums. The group's members are Declan ...
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Rosemary Clooney Rosemary Clooney (May 23, 1928 – June 29, 2002) was an American singer and actress. She came to prominence in the early 1950s with the song " Come On-a My House", which was followed by other pop numbers such as " Botch-a-Me", " Mambo Italiano" ...
,
Kate Smith Kathryn Elizabeth Smith (May 1, 1907 – June 17, 1986) was an American contralto. Referred to as The First Lady of Radio, Smith is well known for her renditions of Irving Berlin's "God Bless America" & "When The Moon Comes Over The Mountain". ...
,
Gene Autry Orvon Grover "Gene" Autry (September 29, 1907 – October 2, 1998), nicknamed the Singing Cowboy, was an American singer, songwriter, actor, musician, rodeo performer, and baseball owner who gained fame largely by singing in a crooning s ...
, Frances Faye, John Gary,
Kenny Loggins Kenneth Clark Loggins (born January 7, 1948) is an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. His early songs were recorded with the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band in 1970, which led to seven albums recorded as Loggins and Messina from 1972 to 1977. His ...
, and
Piccolo Coro Mariele Ventre dell'Antoniano The piccolo ( ; Italian for 'small') is a half-size flute and a member of the woodwind family of musical instruments. Sometimes referred to as a "baby flute" the modern piccolo has similar fingerings as the standard transverse flute, but the sou ...
The Ennis Sisters.


Original lyrics

These are the original lyrics of the song as published in 1913 by Shannon through M. Witmark & Sons.
erse 1 Erse or Earse may refer to: *An alternative name for any Goidelic language, especially the Irish language, from ''Erische'' *A 16th–19th-century Scots language name for Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic ( gd, Gàidhlig ), also known as Scot ...
Over in Killarney, many years ago Me Mither sang a song to me in tones so sweet and low, Just a simple little ditty, in her good ould Irish way, And I'd give the world if she could sing That song to me this day. efrainToo-ra-loo-ra-loo-ral, Too-ra-loo-ra-li, Too-ra-loo-ra-loo-ral, Hush, now, don't you cry! Too-ra-loo-ra-loo-ral, Too-ra-loo-ra-li, Too-ra-loo-ra-loo-ral, That's an Irish lullaby.
erse 2 Erse or Earse may refer to: *An alternative name for any Goidelic language, especially the Irish language, from ''Erische'' *A 16th–19th-century Scots language name for Scottish Gaelic * Aue and Erse, tributaries of the Fuhse See also * Erase ( ...
Oft, in dreams I wander To that cot again, I feel her arms a huggin' me As when she held me then. And I hear her voice a hummin' To me as in days of yore, When she used to rock me fast asleep Outside the cabin door. epeat refrain


References

{{Authority control Irish-American culture Irish songs 1914 songs Songs written by James Royce Shannon Songs of the Irish diaspora Lullabies