"Sleep" is a song written by

Earl Burtnett Earl Burtnett (February 7, 1896 – January 2, 1936) was an American bandleader, songwriter and pianist who was popular in the 1920s and 1930s. Life and career Burtnett was born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. He attended Pennsylvania State Co ...

and Adam Geibel (under the pseudonym Earl Lebieg) in 1923. The song's melody is based on a motif from "Visions of Sleep", a 1903 composition by Geibel. The song was released by Fred Waring's Pennsylvanians in 1923, becoming the band's first hit and their signature theme. The song was also the theme for the television musical variety show '' The Fred Waring Show''. The lyrics for the song were written by Waring's brother, Tom, who sang on the recording as well.

Other charting versions

Les Paul Lester William Polsfuss (June 9, 1915 – August 12, 2009), known as Les Paul, was an American jazz guitarist, jazz, country guitarist, country, and blues guitarist, songwriter, luthier, and inventor. He was one of the pioneers of the solid body ...

released a version of the song as the B-side to his and Mary Ford's 1953 single "

I'm Sitting on Top of the World "I'm Sitting on Top of the World" is a popular song with music written by Ray Henderson and lyrics by Sam M. Lewis and Joe Young. It was published in 1925. This composition is not to be confused with, "Sitting on Top of the World" written by W ...

". It reached #21 on the U.S. pop chart and #31 on Cashbox chart. *

Little Willie John William Edward "Little Willie" John (November 15, 1937 – May 26, 1968) was an American R&B singer who performed in the 1950s and early 1960s. He is best known for his successes on the record charts, with songs such as " All Around the World" ...

released a version of the song as a single in 1960 which reached #10 on the U.S. R&B chart and #13 on the U.S. pop chart.

Other versions

Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra Thomas Francis Dorsey Jr. (November 19, 1905 – November 26, 1956) was an American jazz trombone, trombonist, composer, conductor and bandleader of the big band era. He was known as the "Sentimental Gentleman of Swing" because of his smooth-to ...

released a version of the song as the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...

to their 1937 single "Wake Up and Live". *Alto saxophonist

Earl Bostic Eugene Earl Bostic (April25, 1913October28, 1965) was an American alto saxophonist. Bostic's recording career was diverse, his musical output encompassing jazz, swing music, swing, jump blues and the post-war American rhythm and blues style, whi ...

released a version of the song as a single on King Records (#4444) in 1951. * Urbie Green and His Big Band released a version of the song on their 1955 album '' All About Urbie Green and His Big Band''. * The Chico Hamilton Quintet released a version of the song on their 1956 album ''

Chico Hamilton Quintet in Hi Fi ''Chico Hamilton Quintet in Hi Fi'' is an album by drummer and bandleader Chico Hamilton, released on the Pacific Jazz label.

''. * Billy Vaughn with His Orchestra released a version of the song as the a single in 1956, but it did not chart. *

Buddy Rich Bernard "Buddy" Rich (September 30, 1917 – April 2, 1987) was an American jazz drummer, songwriter, conductor, and bandleader. He is considered one of the most influential drummers of all time. Rich was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, ...

and

Max Roach Maxwell Lemuel Roach (January 10, 1924 – August 16, 2007) was an American jazz drummer and composer. A pioneer of bebop, he worked in many other styles of music, and is generally considered one of the most important drummers in history. He wo ...

released a version of the song on their 1959 album '' Rich Versus Roach''. *

Boots Randolph Homer Louis "Boots" Randolph III (June 3, 1927 – July 3, 2007) was an American musician. His 1963 saxophone hit " Yakety Sax" became the signature tune of ''The Benny Hill Show''. Randolph was a prolific session musician and member of the Nas ...

released a version of the song on his 1960 album ''Boots Randolph's Yakety Sax''. * Lawrence Welk and His Orchestra released a version of the song on their 1960 album ''Last Date''. *

Chet Atkins Chester Burton Atkins (June 20, 1924 – June 30, 2001), also known as "Mister Guitar" and "the Country Gentleman", was an American musician who, along with Owen Bradley and Bob Ferguson (musician), Bob Ferguson, helped create the Nash ...

released a version of the song on his 1961 album '' Chet Atkins' Workshop''. *

Pat Boone Patrick Charles Eugene Boone (born June 1, 1934) is an American singer, songwriter, actor, author, television personality, radio host and philanthropist. He sold nearly 50 million records, had 38 Top 40 hits, and has acted in many films. Boone ...

released a version of the song on his 1961 album ''

Moody River "Moody River" is a song written by and originally performed by country rockabilly singer Chase Webster (real name Gary Daniel Bruce, not to be confused with Gary Bruce, the drummer of The Knack). Pat Boone recorded and released his own version in ...

''. *

Merle Travis Merle Robert Travis (November 29, 1917 – October 20, 1983) was an American country and western singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Born in Rosewood, Kentucky, his songs' lyrics were often about the lives and the economic exploitation of Ameri ...

released a version of the song on his 1981 album '' Travis Pickin'''. *

Benny Goodman Benjamin David Goodman (May 30, 1909 – June 13, 1986) was an American clarinetist and bandleader, known as the "King of Swing". His orchestra did well commercially. From 1936 until the mid-1940s, Goodman led one of the most popular swing bi ...

released a version of the song on his 1992 compilation album ''Florida Sessions''. *

The Glenn Miller Orchestra Glenn Miller and His Orchestra was an American swing dance band that was formed by Glenn Miller in 1938. Arranged around a clarinet and tenor saxophone playing melody, and three other saxophones playing harmony, the band became the most popu ...

released a version of the song on their 1998 compilation album ''The Chesterfield Shows 1940-1941 Yesterthoughts''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sleep (1923 song) 1923 songs 1956 singles 1960 singles Little Willie John songs Tommy Dorsey songs Les Paul songs Chet Atkins songs Pat Boone songs Merle Travis songs Benny Goodman songs Glenn Miller songs Song recordings produced by Chet Atkins Victor Talking Machine Company singles King Records (United States) singles Dot Records singles Songs written by Earl Burtnett