Unsung lyrics, transcribed by doc

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latest edit: 5 September 2021

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Below is a list of links to pages containing lyrics that I’ve transcribed during the past dozen years (2010-2021), with assistance in couple of cases. The transcription of the 1928 version of “Hello Bluebird” by Blossom Seeley and Benny Fields reveals the intricacies of a unique and extraordinary duet version of the song by this prominent vaudeville team, filmed live for a Vitaphone short. Most of the other transcribed songs are less well-known, “Do You Know Where You’re Going To” being an exception — although the original lyric that I’ve transcribed is certainly not well-known. Each song and lyric in this collection drew and captured my interest for various reasons, eventually compelling me to do my part in not allowing it be forgotten.

In many cases I decided to transcribe the words of a song because I was unable to find the lyric in online searches. In other cases (“Blue Butterfly,” “Love Thy Neighbor,” “You Broke Our Hearts,” “Our Winter Love,” “Everydays,”) I had found at least one or more transcriptions or copies of the lyric online before I took on the task of transcribing, but none with a degree of accuracy that I considered satisfactory.

In each case, at the time that I provided the transcription it became either the only available transcription online that I was aware of, or the most accurate of those that I’ve found online. “Unsung” in the title of this page means uncelebrated, unacclaimed, neglected, forgotten.

1926 — Hello Bluebird (Cliff Friend) — Blossom Seeley and Benny Fields Vitaphone short film version of 1928
1928 — Porgy (m. Jimmy McHugh, w. Dorothy Fields) – 1930 Ethel Waters version
1927 — Hot Feet (Wendell Hall)
1929 — Blue Butterfly (Johnny Tucker, Joe Schuster)
1929 — Does My Baby Love? (m. Milton Ager, w. Jack Yellen)
1930 — I’m in Training for You (m. Abel Baer, w. L. Wolfe Gilbert)
1934 — Love Thy Neighbor (m. Harry Revel, w. Mack Gordon)
1934 — Shoein’ the Mare (m. Harold Arlen, w. Ira Gershwin and E.Y. Harburg)
1936 — Weed Smoker’s Dream (Kansas Joe McCoy)
1941 — Jig in the Jungle (Jungle Jig) — songwriters unknown
1947 — In the Spring of the Year (m. Alec Wilder, w. Lee Kuhn) — written in 1947, according to WilderWorld podcast 129; copyright, 20 April 1949
1957 — So It’s Spring (m. Tommy Wolf, w. Wayne Arnold)
1958 — You Broke Our Hearts (Johnnie Richardson)
c.1958-1961 — Early in the Morning (Quinton Claunch, Charles Feathers)
1959 — Lover’s Prayer (Johnnie Richardson & Barbara English)
1959-60 — Get Well Soon (Arthur Venosa)
1961 — Come Home Soon – adapted by the Intruders from the Elegants’ “Get Well Soon” (Arthur Venosa)
1962 — Our Winter Love (m. Johnny Cowell, w. Bob Tubert)
1962? — Who’s Got the Action (m. Burt Bacharach, w. Bob Hilliard)
1963 — I’d Die (m. Jimmy Beaumont, w. Joe Rock) – post
1965 — The Reason Why (Dale Hawkins, Jerry Strickland, Don Griffin) — recorded by Linda Burns (1965), The Dolls (1966)
1965? — Won’t Someone Please Belong to Me (Bobby Troup) – post
1966 — Everydays (Stephen Stills)
1972-1976 — ZOOM lyrics – includes songs such as “Come On and ZOOM” (Newton Wayland), “Send it to ZOOM” (Newton Wayland), “Fannee Doolee” (Theresa Zamorski, Newton Wayland), and “Always Friends” (Jeri Dreifuss) — See also the post “Send it to ZOOM” and SASE songs, 1972-1976, with lyric transcriptions.
1972 — Fannee Doolee (Theresa Zamorski, Newton Wayland)
1973 — Always Friends (Jeri Dreifuss)
1973 — Do You Know Where You’re Going To (m. Michael Masser, w. Gerry Goffin) — original lyric recorded by Thelma Houston in 1973