"That Lucky Old Sun (Just Rolls Around Heaven All Day)" is a 1949 popular song with music by

Beasley Smith John Beasley Smith (September 27, 1901 – May 14, 1968) was an American composer and big band musician. " That Lucky Old Sun" (1949) one of his better known works, was covered by many well-known artists. He often worked with Haven Gillespie and t ...

and words by

Haven Gillespie James Lamont Gillespie (February 6, 1888 – March 14, 1975), known under the pen name Haven Gillespie, was an American Tin Pan Alley composer and lyricist. He was the writer of " You Go to My Head", "Honey", "By the Sycamore Tree", " That Luc ...

Background

Like "

Ol' Man River "Ol' Man River" is a show tune from the 1927 musical '' Show Boat'' with music by Jerome Kern and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, who wrote the song in 1925. The song contrasts the struggles and hardships of African Americans with the endless, ...

", its lyrics contrast the toil and intense hardship of the singer's life with the obliviousness of the natural world.

1949 recordings

*The biggest hit version of the song was by

Frankie Laine Frankie Laine (born Francesco Paolo LoVecchio; March 30, 1913 – February 6, 2007) was an American singer and songwriter whose career spanned nearly 75 years, from his first concerts in 1930 with a marathon dance company to his final performa ...

. This recording was released by

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. Mercury Records released ...

as catalog number 5316. It first reached the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' Best Seller chart on August 19, 1949, and lasted 22 weeks on the chart, peaking at No. 1. *The recording by

Vaughn Monroe Vaughn Wilton Monroe (October 7, 1911 – May 21, 1973) was an American baritone singer, trumpeter and big band leader who was most popular in the 1940s and 1950s. He has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, one for recording and another f ...

& His Orchestra was released by RCA Victor Records as catalog number 20-3531 (78 rpm) and 47-3018 (45 rpm) (in USA) and by EMI on the

His Master's Voice His Master's Voice is an entertainment trademark featuring a dog named Nipper, curiously peering into the horn of a wind-up gramophone. Painted by Francis Barraud in 1898, the image has since become a global symbol used across consumer elect ...

label as catalog number B 9836. It first reached the ''Billboard'' Best Seller chart on September 16, 1949, and lasted 14 weeks on the chart, peaking at No. 9. *The recording by

Louis Armstrong Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and several era ...

was released by

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis after his acquisition of a gramophone manufacturer, The Decca Gramophone Company. It set up an American subsidiary under the Decca name, which bec ...

as catalog number 24752. It first reached the ''Billboard'' Best Seller chart on October 14, 1949, and lasted three weeks on the chart, peaking at No. 24. *

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Honorific nicknames in popular music, Nicknamed the "Chairman of the Board" and "Ol' Blue Eyes", he is regarded as one of the Time 100: The Most I ...

released his competing version of the song on the Columbia label catalog number 38608. It reached the best sellers chart on October 29, 1949 and peaked at No. 16. Included on his ''The Best of The Columbia Years 1943–1952'' album. *A recording by Herb Lance peaked at No. 6 on the Most-Played Juke Box Rhythm & Blues Records chart.

Other covers

* Bob and Alf Pearson in 1949 *

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 ...

on the album '' ''Howdy!'''' 1957 * The

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

, a

barbershop quartet A barbershop quartet is a group of four singers who sing music in the barbershop style, characterized by four-part harmony without instrumental accompaniment (a cappella). The four voices are: the lead, the vocal part which typically carries t ...

, recorded it as a solo for their tenor, Vern Reed. * The rhythm and blues singer

LaVern Baker Delores LaVern Baker (born Delores Evans; November 11, 1929 – March 10, 1997) was an American rhythm and blues singer who had several hit records on the pop charts in the 1950s and early 1960s. Her most successful records were " Tweedle Dee" ...

released a version of the song in 1955 as the "A" side of a release on Atlantic Records. *

Jerry Lee Lewis Jerry Lee Lewis (September 29, 1935October 28, 2022) was an American pianist, singer, and songwriter. Nicknamed "The Killer", he was described as "rock 'n' roll's first great wild man". A pioneer of rock and roll and rockabilly music, Lewis m ...

recorded an unreleased solo version at Sun Studios in 1956 or 1957 and again in 1989 on the Great Balls of Fire soundtrack album. *A version by

Sam Cooke Samuel Cooke (; January 22, 1931 – December 11, 1964) was an American singer and songwriter. Considered one of the most influential soul music, soul artists of all time, Cooke is commonly referred to as the "King of Soul" for his distin ...

appeared on his debut LP ''

'' (1958) *

Bobby Darin Bobby Darin (born Walden Robert Cassotto; May 14, 1936 – December 20, 1973) was an American singer, songwriter, and actor who performed Pop music, pop, Swing music, swing, Folk music, folk, rock and roll, and country music. Darin started ...

on the album ''For Teenagers Only'' (1960) * The Velvets released their doo wop version on Monument records around 1960/61. * A version by

Ray Charles Ray Charles Robinson (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential musicians in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Gen ...

appeared on his 1963 album ''

Ingredients in a Recipe for Soul ''Ingredients in a Recipe for Soul'' is a 1963 album by Ray Charles. It was arranged by Benny Carter, Sid Feller, Marty Paich, and Johnny Parker, with the Paich tracks also featuring accompaniment by the Jack Halloran Singers. In 1990, the al ...

''. It was also released as a single, reaching No. 20 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in January 1964. (This recording is also included as a bonus track on post-1988 CD reissues of Charles' landmark 1962 album '' Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music''.) *

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Honored as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Soul", she was twice named by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine as the Roll ...

recorded the song for her album '' The Electrifying Aretha Franklin'' (1962). *

Grant Green Grant Green (June 6, 1935 – January 31, 1979) was an American jazz guitarist and composer. Green has been called one of the "most sampled guitarists." Biography Grant Green was born on June 6, 1935, in St. Louis, Missouri, to John and ...

recorded an instrumental version for his album '' His Majesty King Funk'' in 1965. * Benzion Witler recorded a cover of the song that includes the lyrics sung in Yiddish * Tom Jones recorded the song on his album ''Tom Jones Live! At the Talk of the Town'' (1967). *

Bill Medley William Thomas Medley (born September 19, 1940) is an American singer best known as one-half of the Righteous Brothers. He is noted for his bass-baritone voice, exemplified in songs such as "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'". Medley produced a n ...

recorded the song as a single in 1967, which would later be released on

The Righteous Brothers The Righteous Brothers are an American musical duo originally formed by Bill Medley and Bobby Hatfield but now comprising Medley and Bucky Heard. Medley formed the group with Hatfield in 1963. They had first performed together in 1962 in the L ...

album ''Standards'' (1968). *

George Benson George Washington Benson (born March 22, 1943) is an American jazz fusion guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He began his professional career at the age of 19 as a jazz guitarist. A former child prodigy, Benson first came to prominence in the ...

recorded the song for his album '' Goodies'' (1968). *

Big Mama Thornton Willie Mae "Big Mama" Thornton (December 11, 1926 – July 25, 1984), was an American singer and songwriter of blues and R&B. The ''Encyclopedia of Pop, Rock and Soul'' described Thornton by saying: "Her booming voice, sometimes 200-pound fra ...

recorded the song for her album '' Stronger than Dirt'' in 1969. * Paul Williams recorded a version on the 1972 album '' Life Goes On'' * Jerry Reed recorded a country version for his album Lord, Mr. Ford in 1973 *

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, actor and activist. He was one of the main figures of the outlaw country subgenre that developed in the late 1960s as a reaction to the conservative restr ...

recorded a version on the 1976 album ''

The Sound in Your Mind ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

'' which was also released as an extra track on the reissued '' Stardust: 30th Anniversary Legacy Edition''. * The Jerry Garcia Band performed a version on the Jerry Garcia Band live album in 1991. * American R&B and boogie-woogie pianist and singer Little Willie Littlefield recorded a version for his 1994 album '' Yellow Boogie & Blues''. *

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American singer-songwriter. Most of his music contains themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially songs from the later stages of his career. ...

covered it on the album '' American III: Solitary Man'' in 2000. * k.d. lang covered it on the album '' A Wonderful World'' in 2002. *

Brian Wilson Brian Douglas Wilson (June 20, 1942 – June 11, 2025) was an American musician, songwriter, singer and record producer who co-founded the Beach Boys. Often Brian Wilson is a genius, called a genius for his novel approaches to pop compositio ...

premiered a song cycle inspired by the song entitled '' That Lucky Old Sun (A Narrative)'' at the Royal Festival Hall, London, England on September 10, 2007. * A duet with

Kenny Chesney Kenneth Arnold Chesney (born March 26, 1968) is an American country singer. With 30 million albums sold worldwide, he released his debut, '' In My Wildest Dreams'', in 1994, and has since released 19 follow-ups. His albums spawned 27 singles tha ...

and

is included on Chesney's 2008 album '' Lucky Old Sun''. This version reached No. 56 on the

Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data along with digital sales and streaming. ...

chart, based on unsolicited airplay. * In Czech by Hana Hegerova. * Karel Gott in 1964 *

Chris Isaak Christopher Joseph Isaak (born June 26, 1956) is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional actor. Noted for his reverb-laden rockabilly revivalist style and wide vocal range, he is popularly known for his breakthrough hit and sig ...

recorded a cover for his 2011 album '' Beyond the Sun''. *

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan; born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Described as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture over his nearly 70-year ...

recorded a version for his 2015

covers album '' Shadows in the Night''. * Barbershop quartet Crossroads performed Lucky Old Sun en route to the 2009 International Championship. *

Asleep at the Wheel Asleep at the Wheel is an American country music, Western swing music group that was formed in Paw Paw, West Virginia, in 1970, and is based in Austin, Texas. The band has won nine Grammy Awards, released over 20 albums, and has charted more t ...

recorded a cover on their 1988 album Western Standard Time. * Alligatoah, a German rapper recorded a cover on ''Fremde Zungen'' in 2018. * Solomon Burke covered the song on his 1969 album ''Proud Mary''. * Lau recorded a cover and released it on an EP for their album '' The Bell That Never Rang'' in 2015. * Tommy Womack covered the song on his 2021 album "I thought I was Fine". * A Finnish rock band The Boys recorded a cover on their debut album '' Numero 1'' (1965) * Handmade Moments covered the song on their 2019 record "Number Ones". * Being a well-documented song and publicised by English Folk Dance and Song Society, The Broadside Ballads Project, and Mainly Norfolk, the song was recorded by Oli Steadman for inclusion in "365 Days Of Folk".

References

{{Authority control 1949 songs 1949 singles Frank Sinatra songs Frankie Laine songs James Brown songs Louis Armstrong songs Nat Stuckey songs Ray Charles songs Vaughn Monroe songs Songs with lyrics by Haven Gillespie Songs written by Beasley Smith Little Willie Littlefield songs