"Beyond the Blue Horizon" is a
1930
Events
January
* January 15 – The Moon moves into its nearest point to Earth, called perigee, at the same time as its fullest phase of the Lunar Cycle. This is the closest moon distance at in recent history, and the next one will b ...
song composed by
Leo Robin
Leo Robin (April 6, 1900 – December 29, 1984) was an American composer, lyricist and songwriter. He is probably best known for collaborating with Ralph Rainger on the 1938 Academy Award for Best Original Song, Oscar-winning song "Thanks for t ...
,
Richard A. Whiting, and
W. Franke Harling, and was first performed by
Jeanette MacDonald
Jeanette Anna MacDonald (June 18, 1903 – January 14, 1965) was an American singer and actress best remembered for her musical films of the 1930s with Maurice Chevalier (''The Love Parade'', '' Love Me Tonight'', ''The Merry Widow'' and '' On ...
in the 1930 film
''Monte Carlo''. It was released that November as a single on a 78 rpm disc along with the song "Always, in All Ways" on Victor Records.
Four
takes
A take is a single continuous recorded performance. The term is used in film and music to denote and track the stages of production.
Film
In cinematography, a take refers to each filmed "version" of a particular shot or "setup". Takes of each s ...
were recorded on August 4 at the Hollywood Recording Studio, conducted by
LeRoy Shield, with MacDonald and the vocal group The Rounders;
the second take was chosen for release.
The song reached #9 in the United States and became MacDonald's
signature song
A signature (; from la, signare, "to sign") is a handwritten (and often stylized) depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and intent. The writer of a ...
, selling over 12,000 copies;
it was re-released in 1944.
MacDonald commonly performed it in concerts and on tours would also perform it in the movie ''
Follow the Boys'' in 1944, and frequently performed it on tours. She also re-recorded the song for the albums ''Favorites'' and ''
Favorites in Hi-Fi
''Favorites in Stereo'' is a studio album by Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy. The album was recorded in stereo and released by RCA Records in 1959. For its monaural release the title was changed to ''Favorites in Hi-Fi''. The album peaked ...
'' (1959).
Cover versions
*
George Olsen and His Orchestra released a version in 1930. The song reached #5 in the United States.
*
Phil Spitalny and His Orchestra released a version in 1930. The song reached #18 in the United States.
*
Vincent Lopez released a version in 1932.
*
Artie Shaw and His Symphonic Swing Orchestra recorded an instrumental version on 3 September 1941
*
Clifford Jordan
Clifford Laconia Jordan (September 2, 1931 – March 27, 1993) was an American jazz tenor saxophone player. While in Chicago, he performed with Max Roach, Sonny Stitt, and some rhythm and blues groups. He moved to New York City in 1957, after ...
released a version on his 1957 album ''
Cliff Jordan''.
*
Jack Pleis, His Piano, Chorus and Orchestra released a version in 1957 on his album ''
Strings and Things''.
*
Jane Morgan - from her album ''Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue'' (1958).
*
Frankie Laine
Frankie Laine (born Francesco Paolo LoVecchio; March 30, 1913 – February 6, 2007) was an American singer, songwriter, and actor whose career spanned nearly 75 years, from his first concerts in 1930 with a marathon dance company to his final ...
- included in his album ''Call of the Wild'' (1962).
*
Johnny Mathis
John Royce Mathis (born September 30, 1935) is an American singer of popular music. Starting his career with singles of standard music, he became highly popular as an album artist, with several dozen of his albums achieving gold or platinum s ...
released a version on his 1964 album ''
The Wonderful World of Make Believe''.
*
Michael Nesmith
Robert Michael Nesmith or Mike Nesmith, (December 30, 1942 – December 10, 2021) was an American musician, songwriter, and actor. He was best known as a member of the pop rock band the Monkees and co-star of the TV series ''The Monkees'' (1966â ...
released a version on his 1970 album ''
Magnetic South'' and featured on his 1993 album ''
Complete First National Band Recordings''.
*In
1974
Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; ...
,
Lou Christie released a version. The song reached #80 on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100 and #12 on the
adult contemporary chart
The Adult Contemporary chart is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary radio stations in the United States. The chart is compiled based on airplay data submitted to ''Billboard'' by stat ...
. It also reached #57 in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...
.
*
Miharu Koshi released a version on her
1987 album ''Echo De Miharu''.
In popular culture
*A version of this was the lead-in theme song for the old radio talk show Tex and Jinx (1948-1952).
*The boxing venue
The Blue Horizon was renamed in 1961 after the song by Jimmy Toppi Sr.
*The song featured in ''
The Godfather Part III
''The Godfather Part III'' is a 1990 American crime film produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola from the screenplay co-written with Mario Puzo. The film stars Al Pacino, Diane Keaton, Talia Shire, Andy GarcÃa, Eli Wallach, Joe Mantegn ...
''.
*The song is listed on the
Great American Songbook
The Great American Songbook is the loosely defined canon of significant early-20th-century American jazz standards, popular songs, and show tunes.
Definition
According to the Great American Songbook Foundation: The "Great American Songbook" i ...
as one of the best songs written from the 1920s through the 1950s.
*
Alexander Courage
Alexander Mair Courage Jr. (December 10, 1919May 15, 2008) familiarly known as "Sandy" Courage, was an American orchestrator, arranger, and composer of music, primarily for television and film. He is best known as the composer of the theme musi ...
stated he received inspiration from "Beyond the Blue Horizon" when writing "
Theme from ''Star Trek''".
Alexander Courage on writing the ''Star Trek'' theme song
Retrieved January 3, 2015
*The song is heard in a 1978 TV commercial for the United States Virgin Islands Tourism Bureau.
*The song as recorded by Lou Christie was featured in the 1988 film ''Rain Man
''Rain Man'' is a 1988 American road movie, road Drama (film and television), drama film directed by Barry Levinson and written by Barry Morrow and Ronald Bass. It tells the story of abrasive, selfish young wikt:wheeler-dealer, wheeler-dealer C ...
'', and the 1991 film ''Dutch
Dutch commonly refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands
* Dutch people ()
* Dutch language ()
Dutch may also refer to:
Places
* Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States
* Pennsylvania Dutch Country
People E ...
''.
Book source
*
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Beyond the Blue Horizon (song)
1930 songs
1974 singles
Johnny Mathis songs
Lou Christie songs
Brunswick Records singles
Songs with music by Richard A. Whiting
Songs with music by W. Franke Harling
Songs with lyrics by Leo Robin
Jeanette MacDonald songs