Louise (Maurice Chevalier song)

"Louise"
Single by Maurice Chevalier
B-side	"On Top of the World, Alone"[1]
Released	1929
Label	His Master's Voice[1]
Songwriter(s)	Leo Robin, Richard A. Whiting

"Louise" is a song written by Leo Robin and Richard A. Whiting for the 1929 film Innocents of Paris, where it was performed by Maurice Chevalier.^[2][3] The song was Chevalier's first hit in the United States, and was among the best selling records for 10 weeks in the summer of 1929.^[4] Chevalier recorded the song again in 1946 with Henri René's Orchestra for RCA Victor.^[5]

Other recordings

1944 "Louise" Famous Music Corp. Sheet Music

• The same year of Chevalier's recording, Bing Crosby also recorded the song.^[4] Crosby's version was recorded on March 15, 1929 with Paul Whiteman and his orchestra^[6] and was a hit in that summer.^[4] Crosby also recorded a comedy version with The Rhythm Boys on April 10, 1929.
• Ben Pollack & His Central Park Orchestra, vocal Charles Roberts, (recorded March 1, 1929 for Victor Records – catalog No. 21941A).^[7]
• Frankie Trumbauer (recorded April 17, 1929 for Okeh Records, catalog No. 41231).^[8]
• Benny Goodman (recorded December 12, 1938 for Victor Records, catalog No. 26125).^[9]
• Dean Martin recorded the song and his version was included in his 1953 album Dean Martin Sings.
• Pierre Lalonde's cover of "Louise" hit No. 1 on the Québec charts in 1964.

Film and television appearances

• 1929 Innocents of Paris – sung by Maurice Chevalier
• 1944 You Can't Ration Love – sung by Betty Rhodes and Johnnie Johnston
• 1945 The Lost Weekend – played on piano and sung by Harry Barris at Harry and Joe's.^[10]
• 1951 The Stooge
• 1953 Desi Arnaz, Lucille Ball, William Frawley, and Vivian Vance each sang a portion of the song, in a manner imitating Chevalier, on the I Love Lucy episode, "The French Revue".^[11]
• 1954 The Country Girl
• 1963 A New Kind of Love
• 1973 Robert Reed sang a portion of the song on an episode of The Brady Bunch, "A Room at the Top".^[12]
• 1974 Harry and Tonto – sung by Art Carney.
• 1975 Demond Wilson and Whitman Mayo sang a portion of the song on an episode of Sanford and Son, "The Older Woman"."^[13]
• 1988 'Allo 'Allo!- sung by Arthur Bostrom.
• 1990 The Simpsons - a portion sung by Bart Simpson in The Crepes of Wrath.

References

1. "Maurice Chevalier – Louise / On Top Of The World, Alone", Discogs. Accessed August 16, 2015
2. Don Tyler, "Hit Songs, 1900–1955: American Popular Music of the Pre-Rock Era", McFarland & Company, (2007) p. 163
3. David A. Jasen, "Tin Pan Alley: An Encyclopedia of the Golden Age of American Song", Routledge, (2004)
4. Jean Pierre Lion, "Bix: The Definitive Biography of a Jazz Legend : Leon "Bix" Beiderbecke (1903–1931)", A&C Black, (2005) pp. 212–213
5. "Maurice Chevalier With Henri René And His Orchestra – Louise / Just A Bum (Ma Pomme)". Discogs. Archived from the original on Aug 30, 2017. Retrieved August 29, 2017.
6. "A Bing Crosby Discography - part 1a". BING magazine. International Club Crosby. Retrieved April 29, 2017.
7. Abrams, Steve; Settlemier, Tyrone (July 9, 2017). "Victor 78rpm numerical listing discography: 21500 - 22000". The Online Discographical Project. Retrieved August 29, 2017.
8. Abrams, Steve; Settlemier, Tyrone (April 3, 2016). "Okeh 78rpm numerical listing discography: 41000 - 41499". The Online Discographical Project. Retrieved August 29, 2017.
9. Abrams, Steve; Settlemier, Tyrone (June 15, 2014). "Victor 78rpm numerical listing discography: 26000 - 26500". The Online Discographical Project. Retrieved August 29, 2017.
10. "The Lost Weekend (1945) - Soundtracks". IMDb. Archived from the original on Aug 1, 2022. Retrieved August 29, 2017.
11. "The French Revue", Season 3, Episode 7, I Love Lucy, (1953)
12. "A Room at the Top", Season 4, Episode 23, The Brady Bunch, (1973)
13. "The Older Woman", Season 4, Episode 22, Sanford and Son, (1975)

External links

• Fan Page: "Louise through ages" & forum