Wait 'Till the Sun Shines, Nellie
{{Short description|1905 song by Harry Von Tilzer and Andrew B. Sterling}}
{{About|the pop standard song|the 1952 film|Wait till the Sun Shines, Nellie (film)}}
{{Infobox song
| name = Wait 'Till the Sun Shines, Nellie
| cover = WaitTilTheSunShinesNellieACollinsCover.jpg
| caption = 1905 sheet music cover with insert photos of songwriter Harry Von Tilzer and of singer Geo. R. Brown.
| type = song
| artist =
| album =
| B-side =
| released = {{Start date|1905}}
| recorded =
| studio =
| genre = Pop standard
| length =
| label =
| composer = Harry Von Tilzer
| lyricist = Andrew B. Sterling
| producer =
| misc = {{Audio sample
| type = song
| file = Wait 'Till the Sun Shines, Nellie - Harry Tally.ogg
| description = Sung by Harry Tally in 1905. (Victor 4551)
}}
}}
"Wait 'Till the Sun Shines, Nellie" is a 1905 popular song with music written by Harry Von Tilzer and lyrics by Andrew B. Sterling.{{Cite web|last=Derrick|first=Jayson|date=2016-12-27|title=The 140-Year-Old Holiday Tradition On The NYSE Floor You Probably Don't Know|url=https://www.benzinga.com/media/cnbc/16/12/8840326/the-140-year-old-holiday-tradition-on-the-nyse-floor-you-probably-dont-know|access-date=2020-11-20|website=Benzinga|language=en}}{{Cite web|title=Song: Wait 'Till the Sun Shines, Nellie written by Harry Von Tilzer, Andrew B. Sterling {{!}} SecondHandSongs|url=https://secondhandsongs.com/work/127201/all|access-date=2020-11-20|website=secondhandsongs.com}}{{Cite web|title=150.114 - Wait 'Till the Sun Shines, Nellie. Harry Von Tilzer's Great Novelty Marcy Song. {{!}} Levy Music Collection|url=https://levysheetmusic.mse.jhu.edu/collection/150/114|access-date=2020-11-20|website=levysheetmusic.mse.jhu.edu}}
History
"Wait 'Till the Sun Shines, Nellie" has been recorded many times and is now considered a pop standard. The first recorded versions were by Byron G. Harlan and Harry Tally.{{cite book| last1 = Whitburn| first1 = Joel| title = Pop Memories 1890-1954: The History of American Popular Music| location = Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin| publisher = Record Research, Inc.| year = 1986| pages = [https://archive.org/details/joelwpopmemories00whit/page/602 602]| isbn = 0-89820-083-0| url-access = registration| url = https://archive.org/details/joelwpopmemories00whit/page/602}}
On the August 15, 1929, strip of Thimble Theatre, Castor Oyl sings the song after he loses $10 million.
Bing Crosby and Mary Martin sang it in the 1941 film Birth of the Blues, and also recorded it for Decca Records on March 13, 1942.{{cite web|title=A Bing Crosby Discography|url=http://www.bingmagazine.co.uk/bingmagazine/crosby1bDecca.html|website=A Bing Crosby Discography|access-date=December 20, 2015}} Harry James recorded a version in 1941 on Columbia 36466.
In a long-standing tradition, floor traders at the New York Stock Exchange sing this song on the last trading day of every year and on Christmas Eve.{{cite news |author= |title=Stocks advance in light, Christmas Eve trading |url=https://www.deseretnews.com/article/705272816/Stocks-advance-in-light-Christmas-Eve-trading.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180927053434/https://www.deseretnews.com/article/705272816/Stocks-advance-in-light-Christmas-Eve-trading.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=September 27, 2018 |work=Deseret News |agency=Associated Press |location=New York |date=24 December 2008 |access-date=9 April 2019 }} The song has been the stock exchange anthem at least back as far as 1934.{{cite news |title=Along The Highways of Finance |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1934/06/24/archives/along-the-highways-of-finance.html |work=New York Times |date=June 24, 1934 |access-date=2008-12-25 }}{{cite news |title=State of the Market |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,754407,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101125084810/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,754407,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=November 25, 2010 |work=Time magazine |date=July 20, 1934 |access-date=2008-12-25 }}
It is also a popular song in barbershop music.
It appeared as a country music hit as performed by the Golden Memory Boys in the summer of 1940.
A sample of the song, sung a cappella by Tom Bromley, an elderly First World War veteran, appears on the Roger Waters 1992 album Amused to Death at the end of the track "What God Wants (Part III)". The clip is from BBC television's 1991 Everyman documentary, "A Game of Ghosts".{{Cite episode |title=A Game of Ghosts |series=Everyman |series-link=Everyman (TV series) |network=BBC Television |date=1 July 1991 }}
Film appearances
The song has been featured in many films and found ideal for the purpose of evoking a period flavor.
- 1941 Birth of the Blues
- 1941 The Strawberry Blonde
- 1947 I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now - sung on stage by a quartet{{cite web|title=Internet Movie Database|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0039483/soundtrack?ref_=tt_trv_snd|website=imdb.com|access-date=June 21, 2017}}
- 1949 In the Good Old Summertime - sung by George Boyce, Eddie Jackson, Joe Niemeyer, and Charles Smith{{cite web|title=Internet Movie Database|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0041507/soundtrack?ref_=tt_trv_snd|website=imdb.com|access-date=June 21, 2017}}
- 1950 Father Is a Bachelor{{cite web|title=Internet Movie Database|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0042449/soundtrack?ref_=tt_trv_snd|website=imdb.com|access-date=June 21, 2017}}
- 1952 Wait Till the Sun Shines, Nellie
- 2013 The Pink Marble Egg - sung by Jonathan King
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{National Public Radio|98694325}}
{{Authority control}}
Category:Songs with music by Harry Von Tilzer
Category:Songs with lyrics by Andrew B. Sterling
{{1900s-song-stub}}