A Perfect Day (song)
Encyclopedia
"A Perfect Day" is a parlor song written by Carrie Jacobs-Bond
(1862–1946) in 1909 at the Mission Inn
, Riverside, California
. Jacobs-Bond wrote the lyrics after watching the sun set over Mount Rubidoux from her 4th-floor room. She came up with the tune three months later while touring the Mojave Desert
. For many years the Mission Inn played "A Perfect Day" on its carillon
at the end of each day.
" and "I Love You Truly
"—both published in 1901 as part of the collection Seven Songs as Unpretentious as the Wild Rose—"A Perfect Day" augmented Jacobs-Bond's career as the first woman who made a living from composing.
.
instrumental rendition linked in this article, "A Perfect Day" has been recorded by numerous artists from various backgrounds, including David Bispham
, Evan Williams
, Clara Butt
, Nelson Eddy
, Jeanette MacDonald
, Italian-American Rosa Ponselle
, Blue Mountains Trio, Virgil Fox (organ only), Peggy Balensuela (singer) and William Hughes (piano), African American Paul Robeson
, Swedish American Alan Lindquest, Englishman John McHugh
, Austria's Richard Tauber
, Australia's Judith Durham
, The Fureys
(Ireland), Germany
's Annah Graefe, Scotland's Moira Anderson
and English baritone Sir Thomas Allen accompanied by Scottish Malcolm Martineau
as well as Scotsman Sydney MacEwan
. On the screen accompanied by Barbara Stanwyck
at the piano, Sterling Holloway
sang "A Perfect Day" in the 1940 feature film Remember the Night
. In 1962 Norma Zimmer
sang "A Perfect Day" in response to thousands of requests on the Lawrence Welk Show
.
.
but has risen above such a sequestered view by nuances of studied reflection which, combined with the chord progressions of Jacobs-Bond's tune, have borne its appeal across time and cultural boundaries. "A Perfect Day" persists as an elegy
using the analogy of the end of day as the end of life.
In 1929, at Lake Arrowhead, California
, with "A Perfect Day" playing on a phonograph
, Jacobs-Bond's only child, Frederick Jacobs Smith, committed suicide.
Carrie Jacobs-Bond
Carrie Minetta Jacobs-Bond was an American singer, pianist, and songwriter who composed some 175 pieces of popular sheet music from the 1890s through the early 1940s....
(1862–1946) in 1909 at the Mission Inn
Mission Inn
The Mission Inn, now known as The Mission Inn Hotel & Spa, is a historic landmark hotel in downtown Riverside, California. Although a composite of many architectural styles, it is generally considered the largest Mission Revival Style building in the United States.-History:The property began as a...
, Riverside, California
Riverside, California
Riverside is a city in Riverside County, California, United States, and the county seat of the eponymous county. Named for its location beside the Santa Ana River, it is the largest city in the Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario metropolitan area of Southern California, 4th largest inland California...
. Jacobs-Bond wrote the lyrics after watching the sun set over Mount Rubidoux from her 4th-floor room. She came up with the tune three months later while touring the Mojave Desert
Mojave Desert
The Mojave Desert occupies a significant portion of southeastern California and smaller parts of central California, southern Nevada, southwestern Utah and northwestern Arizona, in the United States...
. For many years the Mission Inn played "A Perfect Day" on its carillon
Carillon
A carillon is a musical instrument that is typically housed in a free-standing bell tower, or the belfry of a church or other municipal building. The instrument consists of at least 23 cast bronze, cup-shaped bells, which are played serially to play a melody, or sounded together to play a chord...
at the end of each day.
Popularity
"A Perfect Day" was phenomenally successful when first published in 1910. Eight million copies of the sheet music and five million recordings sold within a year; 25 million copies of the sheet music sold during Jacobs-Bond's lifetime, and many millions of recordings circulated as various artists performed the song on the fast-growing means of audio duplication. It was her most-requested number when Jacobs-Bond entertained the soldiers at U.S. Army camps in Europe during World War I. The popularity of "A Perfect Day" became so rampant that even Jacobs-Bond indicated in her autobiography that she had "tired" of hearing it. Along with "Just Awearyin' for YouJust Awearyin' for You
"Just Awearyin' for You" is a parlor song, one of that genre's all-time hits.The lyrics were written by Frank Lebby Stanton and published in his Songs of the Soil . The tune was composed by Carrie Jacobs-Bond and published as part of Seven Songs as Unpretentious as the Wild Rose in 1901. Harry T...
" and "I Love You Truly
I Love You Truly
I Love You Truly, written by Carrie Jacobs Bond, is a parlor song. The song has been used at weddings since its release. It was the first song written by a woman to sell one million copies of sheet music...
"—both published in 1901 as part of the collection Seven Songs as Unpretentious as the Wild Rose—"A Perfect Day" augmented Jacobs-Bond's career as the first woman who made a living from composing.
Artists
"A Perfect Day" has been frequently recorded in English. Otto Leisner's Norwegian translation was popularized by Sissel KyrkjebøSissel Kyrkjebø
Sissel Kyrkjebø , also simply known as Sissel, is a Norwegian soprano.Sissel is considered one of the world's top crossover sopranos. Sissel's musical style runs the gamut from pop recordings and folk songs, to classical vocals and operatic arias...
.
In English
Besides the plaintive 1915 McKee TrioMcKee Trio
The McKee Orchestra and Trio was an instrumental recording group in American popular music during the 1910s.For several years the McKee Trio was contracted by the Victor Talking Machine Company ....
instrumental rendition linked in this article, "A Perfect Day" has been recorded by numerous artists from various backgrounds, including David Bispham
David Bispham
David Scull Bispham was the first American–born operatic baritone to win an international reputation.- Early life and family:...
, Evan Williams
Evan Williams (tenor)
Harry Evan Williams was an oratorio tenor with an exceptionally beautiful and tender voice. He recorded almost one hundred 78-RPM records on the Victor Red Seal label in the United States and His Masters Voice in England...
, Clara Butt
Clara Butt
Dame Clara Ellen Butt DBE , sometimes called Clara Butt-Rumford after her marriage, was an English contralto with a remarkably imposing voice and a surprisingly agile singing technique. Her main career was as a recitalist and concert singer.-Early life and career:Clara Butt was born in Southwick,...
, Nelson Eddy
Nelson Eddy
Nelson Ackerman Eddy was an American singer and actor who appeared in 19 musical films during the 1930s and 1940s, as well as in opera and on the concert stage, radio, television, and in nightclubs. A classically trained baritone, he is best remembered for the eight films in which he costarred...
, Jeanette MacDonald
Jeanette MacDonald
Jeanette MacDonald was an American singer and actress best remembered for her musical films of the 1930s with Maurice Chevalier and Nelson Eddy...
, Italian-American Rosa Ponselle
Rosa Ponselle
Rosa Ponselle , was an American operatic soprano with a large, opulent voice. She sang mainly at the New York Metropolitan Opera and is generally considered by music critics to have been one of the greatest sopranos of the past 100 years.-Early life:She was born Rosa Ponzillo on January 22, 1897,...
, Blue Mountains Trio, Virgil Fox (organ only), Peggy Balensuela (singer) and William Hughes (piano), African American Paul Robeson
Paul Robeson
Paul Leroy Robeson was an American concert singer , recording artist, actor, athlete, scholar who was an advocate for the Civil Rights Movement in the first half of the twentieth century...
, Swedish American Alan Lindquest, Englishman John McHugh
John McHugh (tenor)
John McHugh was a British operatic tenor known for his singing of ballads and romantic tunes and lyrics....
, Austria's Richard Tauber
Richard Tauber
Richard Tauber was an Austrian tenor acclaimed as one of the greatest singers of the 20th century. Some critics commented that "his heart felt every word he sang".-Early life:...
, Australia's Judith Durham
Judith Durham
Judith Durham, OAM is an Australian jazz singer and musician who became the lead vocalist for the Australian popular folk music group The Seekers in 1963. She left the group in mid-1968 to pursue her solo career...
, The Fureys
The Fureys
The Fureys are an Irish male folk band of four brothers - Eddie, Finbar, Paul and George, from Ballyfermot, Dublin. They have also been credited as The Fureys and Davey Arthur.The group formed in 1978 and consisted initially of four brothers....
(Ireland), Germany
Music of Germany
Forms of German-language music include Neue Deutsche Welle , Krautrock, Hamburger Schule, Volksmusik, Classical, German hip hop, trance, Schlager, Neue Deutsche Härte and diverse varieties of folk music, such as Waltz and Medieval metal....
's Annah Graefe, Scotland's Moira Anderson
Moira Anderson
Moira Anderson, OBE is a Scottish singer.- Life and career :Following an education at Lenzie Academy, Anderson quickly established herself at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in Glasgow before getting her big break in the media after a successful audition at the BBC.She landed her...
and English baritone Sir Thomas Allen accompanied by Scottish Malcolm Martineau
Malcolm Martineau
Malcolm Martineau is a Scottish pianist.- Biography :Born in Edinburgh, and educated at George Watson's College, Malcolm Martineau read Music at St Catharine's College, Cambridge...
as well as Scotsman Sydney MacEwan
Sydney MacEwan
Canon Sydney Alfred MacEwan was a Scottish tenor and singer of traditional Scottish and Irish songs.He was born and brought up in the Springburn area of Glasgow by his mother alone after his father left the family. Sydney was the younger of two brothers. His mother was Irish, from near Portadown,...
. On the screen accompanied by Barbara Stanwyck
Barbara Stanwyck
Barbara Stanwyck was an American actress. She was a film and television star, known during her 60-year career as a consummate and versatile professional with a strong screen presence, and a favorite of directors including Cecil B. DeMille, Fritz Lang and Frank Capra...
at the piano, Sterling Holloway
Sterling Holloway
Sterling Price Holloway, Jr. was an American character actor who appeared in 150 films and television programs. He was also a voice actor for The Walt Disney Company...
sang "A Perfect Day" in the 1940 feature film Remember the Night
Remember the Night
Remember the Night is a 1940 American romantic comedy/drama Christmas film directed by Mitchell Leisen, and starring Barbara Stanwyck and Fred MacMurray...
. In 1962 Norma Zimmer
Norma Zimmer
Norma Zimmer was a vocalist, best remembered for her 22-year tenure as Lawrence Welk's "Champagne Lady" on The Lawrence Welk Show.-Biography:...
sang "A Perfect Day" in response to thousands of requests on the Lawrence Welk Show
The Lawrence Welk Show
The Lawrence Welk Show is an American televised musical variety show hosted by big band leader Lawrence Welk. The series aired locally in Los Angeles for four years , then nationally for another 27 years via the ABC network and first-run syndication .In the years since first-run syndication...
.
In Norwegian ("En deilig dag")
Danish journalist Otto Georg Leisner (1917–2008) translated "A Perfect Day" into Norwegian as "En deilig dag"; this translation has been recorded by, among others, Sissel KyrkjebøSissel Kyrkjebø
Sissel Kyrkjebø , also simply known as Sissel, is a Norwegian soprano.Sissel is considered one of the world's top crossover sopranos. Sissel's musical style runs the gamut from pop recordings and folk songs, to classical vocals and operatic arias...
.
Character
"A Perfect Day" exemplifies the sentimentality popular in the late Victorian and post-Victorian eraVictorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
but has risen above such a sequestered view by nuances of studied reflection which, combined with the chord progressions of Jacobs-Bond's tune, have borne its appeal across time and cultural boundaries. "A Perfect Day" persists as an elegy
Elegy
In literature, an elegy is a mournful, melancholic or plaintive poem, especially a funeral song or a lament for the dead.-History:The Greek term elegeia originally referred to any verse written in elegiac couplets and covering a wide range of subject matter, including epitaphs for tombs...
using the analogy of the end of day as the end of life.
In 1929, at Lake Arrowhead, California
Lake Arrowhead, California
Lake Arrowhead is an unincorporated community and a census-designated place in the San Bernardino Mountains of San Bernardino County, California, within the San Bernardino National Forest, adjacent to Lake Arrowhead Reservoir...
, with "A Perfect Day" playing on a phonograph
Phonograph
The phonograph record player, or gramophone is a device introduced in 1877 that has had continued common use for reproducing sound recordings, although when first developed, the phonograph was used to both record and reproduce sounds...
, Jacobs-Bond's only child, Frederick Jacobs Smith, committed suicide.