Written by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein (1940)
This song, published in 1940, was a rare one that composer Jerome Kern and lyricist Oscar Hammerstein did not write for a particular show or film, but rather it was inspired by wartime nostalgia, with Paris having come under Nazi control in June of that year. Singer Kate Smith negotiated exclusive radio rights for six weeks, and hers was the first version to chart, reaching the top ten. By December 1940, there were six different versions of the song on the charts.
MGM licensed th song for use in the 1941 MGM musical Lady Be Good, where it was sung by Ann Sothern. The song won an Academy Award for Best Song. Rather than being please, Kern was annoyed that the song won when it had not been written for the film. He lobbied the Academy and since then a nominated song must have been specifically written for the movie in question. It appeared again in the 1946 film Till The Clouds Roll By, sung by Dinah Shore. The Four Freshmen recorded it on their 1955 album ‘4 Freshmen and 5 Trombones’.
In my opinion the melody and harmony of the song are fairly uninteresting, and the lyrics were the secret of its success. Hamerstein’s title was evocative enough that it was used for a 1954 film, in which Odette sings the song.