"Pretty Baby" is a song written by Tony Jackson during the

Ragtime Ragtime, also spelled rag-time or rag time, is a musical style that had its peak from the 1890s to 1910s. Its cardinal trait is its Syncopation, syncopated or "ragged" rhythm. Ragtime was popularized during the early 20th century by composers ...

era. The song was remembered as being prominent in Jackson's repertory before he left

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

in 1912, but was not published until 1916. The background as to how the song came to be published has been confused over the years. However, it appears that composer

Egbert Van Alstyne Egbert Anson Van Alstyne (March 4, 1878 – July 9, 1951) was an American songwriter and pianist. Van Alstyne was the composer of a number of popular and ragtime tunes of the early 20th century. Biography Van Alstyne was born in Marengo, Illi ...

and lyricist

Gus Kahn Gustav Gerson Kahn (November 6, 1886October 8, 1941) was an American lyricist who contributed a number of songs to the Great American Songbook, including " Pretty Baby", " Ain't We Got Fun?", " Carolina in the Morning", " Toot, Toot, Tootsie (G ...

were writing partners. Whilst Van Alstyne was

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

manager of music publishers Jerome H. Remick & Company, they heard Tony Jackson singing the song one evening at a Chicago nightspot. Van Alstyne and Kahn liked the melody, but felt the lyrics were unsuitable for mass consumption. This resulted in Jackson being paid $250 for the rights to the tune, and Kahn re-writing the lyrics, with Van Alstyne adding a verse, which he took from one of his earlier unsuccessful songs. Jackson's name was included on the sheet music. The song was quickly interpolated into the Broadway show ''A World of Pleasure'' (which ran from October 14, 1915 to January 22, 1916), and was then used in the show ''

The Passing Show of 1916 ''The Passing Show of 1916'' is a revue featuring the music of Sigmund Romberg and Otto Motzan, with book and lyrics by Harold Atteridge. It included the first George Gershwin songs introduced in a Broadway show. It opened in the Winter Gar ...

'' (June 22 – October 21, 1916), in which it was sung by Dolly Hackett. In

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, the song was included in the musical ''

Houp La! ''Houp La!'' is an Edwardian musical comedy extravaganza, with music by Nat D. Ayer and Howard Talbot, lyrics by Percy Greenbank and Hugh E. Wright, and a book by Fred Thompson and Hugh E. Wright. The story combines the comic financial troubles ...

'', which opened on November 23, 1916. In this show, it was sung by

Gertie Millar Gertrude Ward, Countess of Dudley ( Millar; 21 February 1879 – 25 April 1952), known as Gertie Millar, was an English actress and singer of the early 20th century, known for her performances in Edwardian musical comedies. Beginning her care ...

. Billy Murray recorded the song on June 22, 1916 for

Victor Records The Victor Talking Machine Company was an American recording company and phonograph manufacturer, incorporated in 1901. Victor was an independent enterprise until 1929 when it was purchased by the Radio Corporation of America (RCA) and became ...

(catalog 18102), and it was a success for him.

Other notable recordings

*1930 - The Louisiana Rhythm Kings recorded the song on January 27, 1930 as part of a series of hot instrumental versions of older songs by this Brunswick studio group, usually with

Red Nichols Ernest Loring "Red" Nichols (May 8, 1905 – June 28, 1965) was an American jazz cornetist, composer, and jazz bandleader. He was one of the most prolific and influential jazz musicians in the late 1920s and early 1930s, appearing on over 4,000 ...

as director. *1947 -

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, comedian, entertainer and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwi ...

recorded it on December 3, 1947 with

John Scott Trotter John Scott Trotter Jr. (June 14, 1908 – October 29, 1975), also known as "Uncle John", was an American arranger, composer and orchestra leader. Trotter was best known for conducting the John Scott Trotter Orchestra which backed singer and ...

and His Orchestra. *1948 -

Doris Day Doris Day (born Doris Mary Kappelhoff; April 3, 1922 – May 13, 2019) was an American actress and singer. She began her career as a big band singer in 1937, achieving commercial success in 1945 with two No. 1 recordings, "Sentimental Journey ...

*1949 -

Al Jolson Al Jolson (born Asa Yoelson, ; May 26, 1886 – October 23, 1950) was a Lithuanian-born American singer, comedian, actor, and vaudevillian. Self-billed as "The World's Greatest Entertainer," Jolson was one of the United States' most famous and ...

recorded it on May 17, 1949 for Decca Records. *1957 -

Dean Martin Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti; June 7, 1917 – December 25, 1995) was an American singer, actor, and comedian. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Cool", he is regarded as one of the most popular entertainers of ...

included the song on his album ''

Pretty Baby Pretty Baby may refer to: * ''Pretty Baby'' (1950 film), a comedy film featuring Dennis Morgan and Betsy Drake * ''Pretty Baby'' (1978 film), a drama film featuring Brooke Shields ** ''Pretty Baby'' (soundtrack), a soundtrack album from the film ...

''. *1960 -

Brenda Lee Brenda Mae Tarpley (born December 11, 1944), known professionally as Brenda Lee, is an American singer. Primarily performing rockabilly, pop, country and Christmas music, she achieved her first ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' hit aged 12 i ...

recorded it for her album ''

Grandma, What Great Songs You Sang! ''Grandma, What Great Songs You Sang!'' is the debut studio album by American singer Brenda Lee. The album was released on August 3, 1959 on Decca Records and was produced by Owen Bradley. The album was Brenda Lee's only studio album released dur ...

''. *1966 -

Eddie Fisher Edwin Jack Fisher (August 10, 1928 – September 22, 2010) was an American singer and actor. He was one of the most popular artists during the 1950s, selling millions of records and hosting his own TV show, '' The Eddie Fisher Show''. Actress E ...

included the song on his album ''I Love You''.

Film appearances

*1929 - '' Is Everybody Happy?'' *1930 - '' Mammy'', sung by

. *1935 - ''

Ruggles of Red Gap ''Ruggles of Red Gap'' is a 1935 American comedy film directed by Leo McCarey and starring: Charles Laughton, Mary Boland, Charlie Ruggles and ZaSu Pitts and featuring Roland Young and Leila Hyams. It was based on the best-selling 1915 nove ...

''. It was sung in a skit by

Leila Hyams Leila Hyams (May 1, 1905 – December 4, 1977) was an American actress who came from a show business family. Her relatively short film career began in 1924 during the era of silent films and ended in 1936 (excepting a 1946 film short appearance) ...

(with

Roland Young Roland Young (11 November 1887 – 5 June 1953) was an English-born actor. He began his acting career on the London stage, but later found success in America and received an Academy Award nomination for his role in the film '' Topper'' (19 ...

on the drums). *1939 - ''

Rose of Washington Square ''Rose of Washington Square'' is a 1939 American musical drama film, featuring the already well-known popular song with the same title. Set in 1920s New York City, the film focuses on singer Rose Sargent and her turbulent relationship with con a ...

'', performed by

Al Jolson
singing "Pretty Baby" from ''Rose of Washington Square'' (1939) on YouTube (audio only) *1943 - ''

Coney Island Coney Island is a neighborhood and entertainment area in the southwestern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bounded by Brighton Beach to its east, Lower New York Bay to the south and west, and Gravesend to ...

'', performed by

Betty Grable Elizabeth Ruth Grable (December 18, 1916 – July 2, 1973) was an American actress, pin-up girl, dancer, model, and singer. Her 42 films during the 1930s and 1940s grossed more than $100 million, and for 10 consecutive years (1942–1951) she p ...

, Harry Masters and male quartet. *1944 - ''

Broadway Rhythm ''Broadway Rhythm'' (1944) is a Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Technicolor musical film, produced by Jack Cummings and directed by Roy Del Ruth. It was originally announced as ''Broadway Melody of 1944'' to follow MGM's ''Broadway Melody'' films of 1929, ...

'', sung by Kenny Bowers,

Gloria DeHaven Gloria Mildred DeHaven (July 23, 1925 – July 30, 2016) was an American actress and singer who was a contract star for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM). Early life DeHaven was born in Los Angeles, California, the daughter of actor-director Carter De ...

, and

Charles Winninger Charles J. Winninger (May 26, 1884 – January 27, 1969) was an American stage and film actor, most often cast in comedies or musicals. Life and career Winninger was born in Athens, Wisconsin, the son of Rosalia (Grassler) and Franz Winninger ...

. *1948 - '' Sitting Pretty'', sung by a chorus during the opening credits and at the end. *1948 - ''The Stork Market'' (

Screen Songs ''Screen Songs'' (formerly known as ''KoKo Song Car-Tunes'') are a series of animated cartoons produced at the Fleischer Studios and distributed by Paramount Pictures between 1929 and 1938. Paramount brought back the sing-along cartoons in 19 ...

), sung by a chorus, musical arrangements by

Winston Sharples Winston Singleton Sharples (March 1, 1909 – April 3, 1978) was an American composer known for his work with animated short subjects, especially those created by the animation department at Paramount Pictures. In his 35-year career, Sharples ...

. *1949 - ''

Jolson Sings Again ''Jolson Sings Again'' is a 1949 American musical biographical film directed by Henry Levin, and the sequel to '' The Jolson Story'' (1946), both of which cover the life of singer Al Jolson. It was the highest-grossing film of 1949 and receiv ...

'', sung by

. *1950 - '' Young Man with a Horn'', played during the scene with the hula dancer. *1951 - '' I'll See You in My Dreams'', sung by

Danny Thomas Amos Muzyad Yaqoob Kairouz, (born January 6, 1912 – February 6, 1991) known professionally as Danny Thomas, was an American comedian, actor, singer, producer, and philanthropist. He created and starred in ''The Danny Thomas Show''. In additio ...

and played often throughout the picture. *1953 - ''

The Eddie Cantor Story ''The Eddie Cantor Story'' is a 1953 American musical drama film directed by Alfred E. Green and starring Keefe Brasselle, Marilyn Erskine and Aline MacMahon. It is a biopic based on the life of Eddie Cantor featuring Brasselle as Cantor. It was ...

'', sung by Eddie in the Midnight Frolics. *1978 - ''

'', performed by

Antonio Fargas Antonio Fargas (born August 14, 1946) is an American actor known for his roles in 1970s blaxploitation and comedy movies, as well as his portrayal as Huggy Bear in the 1970s TV series ''Starsky & Hutch''. Early life Fargas was born in New York C ...

and also played when the kids are in the barn.

In popular culture

In a 2008 episode of the British

soap opera A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term ''soap opera'' originat ...

EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the ...

'', veteran character

Dot Branning Dorothy "Dot" Cotton (also Branning) is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', portrayed by June Brown. In a special episode entitled ''EastEnders: Dot's Story'' (2003) a young Dot was played by Tallulah Pitt-Brown in f ...

had the show's first monologue episode. During the programme, Dot recalls her wartime experiences as a child, in which her beloved uncle would sing to her. She sings "Pretty Baby" into the tape recorder (for her sick husband,

Jim Branning Jim Branning is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by John Bardon, first appearing on 29 April 1996 and became a regular character in 1999. He remained in the series until 2011. Jim was temporarily written out ...

). The episode ends with Al Jolson's recording of the song.

Lyrics

Billy Murray's 1916 recording has lyrics as follows: Verse 1 :You ask me why I'm always teasing you. :You hate to have me call you "Pretty Baby." :I really thought that I was pleasing you, :For you're just a baby to me. :Your cunning little dimples and your baby stare, :Your baby talk and baby walk and curly hair, :Your baby smile :Makes life worthwhile. :You're just as sweet as you can be. Verse 2 :Your mother said you were the cutest kid. :No wonder, Dearie, that I'm wild about you :And all the cunning things you said and did. :Why, I love to fondly recall. :And just like Peter Pan it seems you'll always be :The same sweet cunning little baby dear to me, :And that is why :I'm sure that I :Will always love you best of all. Chorus :Everybody loves a baby that's why I'm in love with you, :Pretty baby, pretty baby, :And I'd like to be your sister, brother, dad and mother too, :Pretty baby, pretty baby. :Won't you come and let me rock you in my cradle of love :And we'll cuddle all the time. :Oh, I want a lovin' baby, and it might as well be you, :Pretty baby of mine, :Pretty baby of mine.

References

External links

An early recording by Billy Murray
* *

References

''Billy Murray Anthology: The Denver Nightingale'', Archeophone Records, 2002 {{Authority control American songs 1916 songs Songs with music by Egbert Van Alstyne Songs with lyrics by Gus Kahn LGBTQ-related songs