To You Sweetheart, Aloha
Encyclopedia
To You Sweetheart, Aloha is an album
by American pop singer Andy Williams
that was released late in the summer of 1959 by Cadence Records
. This, his fourth LP for the label, has a Hawaiian theme that coincides with the admission of the 50th of the United States
. The album was reissued with the title Hawaiian Wedding Song in 1965 by Columbia Records
and entered the Top LP's
chart in Billboard
magazine's May 22 issue that year and reached number 61 during its 18 weeks there.
One of the songs on this album, "Hawaiian Wedding Song
", was originally recorded and released as a single in 1958 and stayed on the pop chart
for 20 weeks, peaking at number 11. It was included on his last album, Two Time Winners
, as were two other songs from this album, "Blue Hawaii
" and "Sweet Leilani
". Both of those songs, however, were rerecorded for this album while the hit single was not.
The album was released on compact disc for the first time as one of two albums on one CD by Collectables Records
on September 12, 2000, the other album being a 1962 Cadence
compilation entitled Million Seller Songs
. Collectables included this CD in a box set entitled Classic Album Collection, Vol. 1, which contains 17 of his studio albums and three compilations and was released on June 26, 2001. The album was also released on compact disc with four bonus tracks after being digitally remastered by Varèse Sarabande
in 2001. Three of those four ("Blue Hawaii
", "Sweet Leilani
", and "Love Letters in the Sand
") were recorded for the Two Time Winners
album, and the fourth ("House of Bamboo") was the B-side
of "Hawaiian Wedding Song
".
" brought the first of six Grammy
nominations that Williams received over the course of his career, this time in the category for Best Vocal Performance, Male
. The winner was Perry Como
for "Catch a Falling Star
".
(who was credited as Edna Brown) and Elliott Shaw. "Aloha ‘Oe (Farewell to Thee)" charted for one week at number 10 as an instrumental recording by Ferera's
Hawaiian Instrumental Quintet in 1924.
"Song of the Islands" first charted as an instrumental recording by Wayne King
& His Orchestra that peaked at number 12 in 1930, and then as a vocal performance by Bing Crosby
in 1936 that got as high as number 14. Crosby's recording of "The Moon of Manakoora" debuted on the charts in February 1938 and eventually made it to number 10, and a rendition of the song by Ray Noble
& His Orchestra with Tony Martin
on vocal came onto the charts that March and reached number 15.
Dick Todd
entered the charts with "To You Sweetheart, Aloha" in 1940 and got as high as number 10. Crosby's recording of "Beyond the Reef
" reached number 26 on Billboard
magazine's list of the Most Played Juke Box Records
in 1950. And as of the release of To You Sweetheart, Aloha, "A Song of Old Hawaii" had already been recorded by Bing Crosby
, Dorothy Lamour
, and Tony Martin
.
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
by American pop singer Andy Williams
Andy Williams
Howard Andrew "Andy" Williams is an American singer who has recorded 18 Gold- and three Platinum-certified albums. He hosted The Andy Williams Show, a TV variety show, from 1962 to 1971, as well as numerous television specials, and owns his own theater, the Moon River Theatre in Branson, Missouri,...
that was released late in the summer of 1959 by Cadence Records
Cadence Records
Cadence Records was an American record company based in New York City. It was founded by Archie Bleyer, who had been the musical director and orchestra leader for Arthur Godfrey in 1952...
. This, his fourth LP for the label, has a Hawaiian theme that coincides with the admission of the 50th of the United States
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
. The album was reissued with the title Hawaiian Wedding Song in 1965 by Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
and entered the Top LP's
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
chart in Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
magazine's May 22 issue that year and reached number 61 during its 18 weeks there.
One of the songs on this album, "Hawaiian Wedding Song
Hawaiian Wedding Song
"Hawaiian Wedding Song" is a 1926 love song written by Charles King for his operetta, Prince of Hawaii. It was originally entitled "Ke Kali Nei Au" - Hawaiian for "Waiting Here for You"...
", was originally recorded and released as a single in 1958 and stayed on the pop chart
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
for 20 weeks, peaking at number 11. It was included on his last album, Two Time Winners
Two Time Winners
Two Time Winners is an album by American pop singer Andy Williams that was released in the spring of 1959 by Cadence Records. This, his third LP for the label, is composed of songs that had been successful on two previous occasions or in two different ways....
, as were two other songs from this album, "Blue Hawaii
Blue Hawaii (song)
Blue Hawaii is a popular song written by Leo Robin and Ralph Rainger for the 1937 Paramount Pictures film Waikiki Wedding, starring Bing Crosby and Shirley Ross...
" and "Sweet Leilani
Sweet Leilani
"Sweet Leilani" is a song from the 1937 film, Waikiki Wedding. It won the Academy Award for Best Original Song, and was popularized by Bing Crosby who recorded it in 1935....
". Both of those songs, however, were rerecorded for this album while the hit single was not.
The album was released on compact disc for the first time as one of two albums on one CD by Collectables Records
Collectables Records
Collectables is a reissue record label founded in 1980 by Jerry Greene. Greene was previously associated with New York City's Times Square Record Shop, Philadelphia's Record Museum retail chain, and the Lost Nite and Crimson record labels....
on September 12, 2000, the other album being a 1962 Cadence
Cadence Records
Cadence Records was an American record company based in New York City. It was founded by Archie Bleyer, who had been the musical director and orchestra leader for Arthur Godfrey in 1952...
compilation entitled Million Seller Songs
Million Seller Songs
Million Seller Songs is a compilation album by American pop singer Andy Williams that was released in the fall of 1962 by Cadence Records. This third album to compile the singer's material features some of the most successful songs Williams had recorded to date , and the collection made its first...
. Collectables included this CD in a box set entitled Classic Album Collection, Vol. 1, which contains 17 of his studio albums and three compilations and was released on June 26, 2001. The album was also released on compact disc with four bonus tracks after being digitally remastered by Varèse Sarabande
Varèse Sarabande
Varèse Sarabande is an American record label, distributed by Universal Music Group, which specializes in film scores and original cast recordings. It aims to reissue rare or unavailable albums as well as newer releases by artists no longer under a contract...
in 2001. Three of those four ("Blue Hawaii
Blue Hawaii (song)
Blue Hawaii is a popular song written by Leo Robin and Ralph Rainger for the 1937 Paramount Pictures film Waikiki Wedding, starring Bing Crosby and Shirley Ross...
", "Sweet Leilani
Sweet Leilani
"Sweet Leilani" is a song from the 1937 film, Waikiki Wedding. It won the Academy Award for Best Original Song, and was popularized by Bing Crosby who recorded it in 1935....
", and "Love Letters in the Sand
Love Letters in the Sand
"Love Letters in the Sand" is a popular song first published in 1931. The music was written by J. Fred Coots and the lyrics by Nick Kenny and Charles Kenny. The song was "inspired" by an 1881 composition, "The Spanish Cavalier"...
") were recorded for the Two Time Winners
Two Time Winners
Two Time Winners is an album by American pop singer Andy Williams that was released in the spring of 1959 by Cadence Records. This, his third LP for the label, is composed of songs that had been successful on two previous occasions or in two different ways....
album, and the fourth ("House of Bamboo") was the B-side
A-side and B-side
A-side and B-side originally referred to the two sides of gramophone records on which singles were released beginning in the 1950s. The terms have come to refer to the types of song conventionally placed on each side of the record, with the A-side being the featured song , while the B-side, or...
of "Hawaiian Wedding Song
Hawaiian Wedding Song
"Hawaiian Wedding Song" is a 1926 love song written by Charles King for his operetta, Prince of Hawaii. It was originally entitled "Ke Kali Nei Au" - Hawaiian for "Waiting Here for You"...
".
Track listing
- "To You Sweetheart, Aloha" (Harry OwensHarry OwensHarry Owens was an American composer, bandleader and songwriter.-Biography:Harry Robert Owens was born April 18, 1902, in O'Neill, Nebraska. He learned how to play a cornet in a small band on an Indian reservation in Montana.-Early years:He worked the vaudeville circuit by age 14. Owens studied...
) - 2:50 - "Blue HawaiiBlue Hawaii (song)Blue Hawaii is a popular song written by Leo Robin and Ralph Rainger for the 1937 Paramount Pictures film Waikiki Wedding, starring Bing Crosby and Shirley Ross...
" (Ralph RaingerRalph RaingerRalph Rainger was an American composer of popular music principally for films.-Biography:Born Ralph Reichenthal in New York City, Rainger embarked on a legal career before escaping to Broadway where he became Clifton Webb's accompanist...
, Leo RobinLeo RobinLeo Robin was an American composer, lyricist and songwriter. He is probably best known for collaborating with Ralph Rainger on the 1938 Oscar-winning song "Thanks for the Memory," sung by Bob Hope in the film The Big Broadcast of 1938.-Biography:Robin was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and...
) - 1:59 - "I'll Weave a Lei of Stars for You" (Leroy Anderson, Harry OwensHarry OwensHarry Owens was an American composer, bandleader and songwriter.-Biography:Harry Robert Owens was born April 18, 1902, in O'Neill, Nebraska. He learned how to play a cornet in a small band on an Indian reservation in Montana.-Early years:He worked the vaudeville circuit by age 14. Owens studied...
) - 2:18 - "Sweet LeilaniSweet Leilani"Sweet Leilani" is a song from the 1937 film, Waikiki Wedding. It won the Academy Award for Best Original Song, and was popularized by Bing Crosby who recorded it in 1935....
" (Harry OwensHarry OwensHarry Owens was an American composer, bandleader and songwriter.-Biography:Harry Robert Owens was born April 18, 1902, in O'Neill, Nebraska. He learned how to play a cornet in a small band on an Indian reservation in Montana.-Early years:He worked the vaudeville circuit by age 14. Owens studied...
) - 2:34 - "The Moon of Manakoora" (Frank LoesserFrank LoesserFrank Henry Loesser was an American songwriter who wrote the lyrics and scores to the Broadway hits Guys and Dolls and How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying, among others. He won separate Tony Awards for the music and lyrics in both shows, as well as sharing the Pulitzer Prize for...
, Alfred NewmanAlfred NewmanAlfred Newman was an American composer, arranger, and conductor of music for films.In a career which spanned over forty years, Newman composed music for over two hundred films. He was one of the most respected film score composers of his time, and is today regarded as one of the greatest...
) - 2:48 - "Hawaiian Wedding SongHawaiian Wedding Song"Hawaiian Wedding Song" is a 1926 love song written by Charles King for his operetta, Prince of Hawaii. It was originally entitled "Ke Kali Nei Au" - Hawaiian for "Waiting Here for You"...
" (Al HoffmanAl HoffmanAl Hoffman , a member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame since 1984, was a hit songwriter active in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s, usually co-writing with others and responsible for number one hits through each decade, many of which are still sung and recorded today...
, Charles E. King, Dick ManningDick ManningDick Manning was a Russian-born American songwriter, best known for his many collaborations with Al Hoffman....
) - 2:29 - "Song of the Islands" (Charles E. King) - 2:21
- "A Song of Old Hawaii" (Gordon BeecherGordon BeecherWilliam Gordon Beecher, Jr. was an American composer, author and vice admiral. Many of his musical arrangements were done in cooperation with Johnny Noble....
, Johnny NobleJohnny Noble-Further reading:...
) - 2:32 - "Love Song of Kalua" (Ken DarbyKen DarbyKenneth Lorin Darby was an American composer, vocal arranger, lyricist, and conductor. His film scores were recognized with three Academy Awards and one Grammy Award.- Personal life :...
) - 2:23 - "Beyond the ReefBeyond the Reef"Beyond The Reef" is a song written by Canadian Jack Pitman in Hawaii in 1948. It was first performed by Hawaiian artist Napua Stevens in 1949. Bing Crosby covered the song a year later in 1950 and Elvis Presley recorded his version of the song on May 27, 1966. The Elvis recording was only released...
" (Jack Pitman) - 3:05 - "Ka-Lu-A" (Anne CaldwellAnne CaldwellAnne Caldwell , also known as Anne Caldwell O'Dea, was a librettist and lyricist. She was born in Boston, Massachusetts. She wrote both pop songs and Broadway shows including working with Jerome Kern.-External links:...
, Jerome KernJerome KernJerome David Kern was an American composer of musical theatre and popular music. One of the most important American theatre composers of the early 20th century, he wrote more than 700 songs, used in over 100 stage works, including such classics as "Ol' Man River", "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man", "A...
) - 2:34 - "Aloha ‘Oe (Farewell to Thee)" (Liliuokalani) - 2:25
CD Bonus Tracks
- "Blue HawaiiBlue Hawaii (song)Blue Hawaii is a popular song written by Leo Robin and Ralph Rainger for the 1937 Paramount Pictures film Waikiki Wedding, starring Bing Crosby and Shirley Ross...
" (Ralph RaingerRalph RaingerRalph Rainger was an American composer of popular music principally for films.-Biography:Born Ralph Reichenthal in New York City, Rainger embarked on a legal career before escaping to Broadway where he became Clifton Webb's accompanist...
, Leo RobinLeo RobinLeo Robin was an American composer, lyricist and songwriter. He is probably best known for collaborating with Ralph Rainger on the 1938 Oscar-winning song "Thanks for the Memory," sung by Bob Hope in the film The Big Broadcast of 1938.-Biography:Robin was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and...
) - 2:03 - "Sweet LeilaniSweet Leilani"Sweet Leilani" is a song from the 1937 film, Waikiki Wedding. It won the Academy Award for Best Original Song, and was popularized by Bing Crosby who recorded it in 1935....
" (Harry OwensHarry OwensHarry Owens was an American composer, bandleader and songwriter.-Biography:Harry Robert Owens was born April 18, 1902, in O'Neill, Nebraska. He learned how to play a cornet in a small band on an Indian reservation in Montana.-Early years:He worked the vaudeville circuit by age 14. Owens studied...
) - 2:22 - "Love Letters in the SandLove Letters in the Sand"Love Letters in the Sand" is a popular song first published in 1931. The music was written by J. Fred Coots and the lyrics by Nick Kenny and Charles Kenny. The song was "inspired" by an 1881 composition, "The Spanish Cavalier"...
" (J. Fred CootsJ. Fred CootsJohn Frederick Coots was an American songwriter. He wrote over 700 songs.He is most famous for the song "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town", a song that became one of the biggest best sellers in American music history....
, Charles KennyCharles KennyCharles Francis Kenny was an American composer, author, and violinist. His hit songs include "There's A Gold Mine In The Sky" and "Love Letters in the Sand", and "Laughing at Life" and "Because It's Your Birthday Today" which he wrote with his brother Nick Kenny. The birthday song was made popular...
, Nick KennyNick Kenny (poet)Nicholas Aloysius Kenny was a syndicated newspaper columnist, a song lyricist and a poet who wrote light verse in the Edgar Guest tradition.-Biography:...
) - 2:32 - "House of Bamboo" (William Crompton, Norman Murrells) - 2:06
Grammy nomination
The single "Hawaiian Wedding SongHawaiian Wedding Song
"Hawaiian Wedding Song" is a 1926 love song written by Charles King for his operetta, Prince of Hawaii. It was originally entitled "Ke Kali Nei Au" - Hawaiian for "Waiting Here for You"...
" brought the first of six Grammy
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
nominations that Williams received over the course of his career, this time in the category for Best Vocal Performance, Male
Grammy Award for Best Vocal Performance, Male
The Grammy Award for Best Vocal Performance, Male was awarded from 1959 to 1968. The award had several minor name changes:*From 1959 to 1960 the award was known as Best Vocal Performance, Male...
. The winner was Perry Como
Perry Como
Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como was an American singer and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century he recorded exclusively for the RCA Victor label after signing with them in 1943. "Mr...
for "Catch a Falling Star
Catch a Falling Star
Catch a Falling Star, written by Paul Vance and Lee Pockriss, is a song made famous by Perry Como's hit version, released in 1957. It was Como's last #1 hit, reaching #1 in the Billboard "Most Played By Jockeys" chart but not in the overall top-100, where it reached #2. It was the first single to...
".
Song information
"Ka-Lu-A" originated in the 1921 musical Good Morning, Dearie and reached number three on the charts the following year as a duet between Elsie BakerElsie Baker
Elsie Baker was an American singer and actress whose career spanned the gamut from vaudeville through silent movies to Victrola to radio to Hollywood and television....
(who was credited as Edna Brown) and Elliott Shaw. "Aloha ‘Oe (Farewell to Thee)" charted for one week at number 10 as an instrumental recording by Ferera's
Frank Ferera
Frank Ferera was a Hawaiian musician who recorded successfully between 1915 and 1930. He was the first star of Hawaiian music and influenced many later artists.-Biography:...
Hawaiian Instrumental Quintet in 1924.
"Song of the Islands" first charted as an instrumental recording by Wayne King
Wayne King
Wayne King was an American musician, songwriter, singer and orchestral leader. He was sometimes referred to as "the Waltz King" because much of his most popular music involved waltzes; "The Waltz You Saved For Me" was his standard set closing song in live performance and on numerous radio...
& His Orchestra that peaked at number 12 in 1930, and then as a vocal performance by Bing Crosby
Bing Crosby
Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby was an American singer and actor. Crosby's trademark bass-baritone voice made him one of the best-selling recording artists of the 20th century, with over half a billion records in circulation....
in 1936 that got as high as number 14. Crosby's recording of "The Moon of Manakoora" debuted on the charts in February 1938 and eventually made it to number 10, and a rendition of the song by Ray Noble
Ray Noble
Ray Noble was an English bandleader, composer, arranger and actor. Noble studied music at the Royal Academy of Music and became leader of the HMV Records studio band in 1929. The band, known as the New Mayfair Dance Orchestra, featured members of many of the top hotel orchestras of the day...
& His Orchestra with Tony Martin
Tony Martin (entertainer)
Tony Martin is an American actor and singer.-Career:Tony Martin was born on Christmas Day, 1913 as Alvin Morris in San Francisco, California to Jewish immigrant parents. He received a saxophone as a gift from his grandmother at the age of ten. In his grammar school glee club, he became an...
on vocal came onto the charts that March and reached number 15.
Dick Todd
Dick Todd (singer)
Dick Todd [Dik Tohd] was a Canadian singer, active during the 1930s-1950s. He was nicknamed the Canadian Crosby, and was born in Montreal....
entered the charts with "To You Sweetheart, Aloha" in 1940 and got as high as number 10. Crosby's recording of "Beyond the Reef
Beyond the Reef
"Beyond The Reef" is a song written by Canadian Jack Pitman in Hawaii in 1948. It was first performed by Hawaiian artist Napua Stevens in 1949. Bing Crosby covered the song a year later in 1950 and Elvis Presley recorded his version of the song on May 27, 1966. The Elvis recording was only released...
" reached number 26 on Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
magazine's list of the Most Played Juke Box Records
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
in 1950. And as of the release of To You Sweetheart, Aloha, "A Song of Old Hawaii" had already been recorded by Bing Crosby
Bing Crosby
Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby was an American singer and actor. Crosby's trademark bass-baritone voice made him one of the best-selling recording artists of the 20th century, with over half a billion records in circulation....
, Dorothy Lamour
Dorothy Lamour
Dorothy Lamour was an American film actress. She is best remembered for appearing in the Road to... movies, a series of successful comedies starring Bing Crosby and Bob Hope .-Early life:Lamour was born Mary Leta Dorothy Slaton in New Orleans, Louisiana, the daughter of Carmen Louise Dorothy...
, and Tony Martin
Tony Martin (entertainer)
Tony Martin is an American actor and singer.-Career:Tony Martin was born on Christmas Day, 1913 as Alvin Morris in San Francisco, California to Jewish immigrant parents. He received a saxophone as a gift from his grandmother at the age of ten. In his grammar school glee club, he became an...
.
Original album
- Andy WilliamsAndy WilliamsHoward Andrew "Andy" Williams is an American singer who has recorded 18 Gold- and three Platinum-certified albums. He hosted The Andy Williams Show, a TV variety show, from 1962 to 1971, as well as numerous television specials, and owns his own theater, the Moon River Theatre in Branson, Missouri,...
- vocalist - Archie BleyerArchie BleyerArchie Bleyer was an American song arranger, bandleader, and record company executive.-Early life:He was born in the Corona section of the New York City borough of Queens. He began playing the piano when he was only seven years old...
- orchestra conductor - Carlyle Hall - arranger
Varèse Sarabande reissue
- Cary Mansfield - producer
- Marty Wekser - producer; mastering
- Evren Goknar - mastering
- Joseph Lanza - liner notes
- Bill Pitzonka - art direction & design
- Greg Yantek - additional photo courtesy