"Come On a-My House" was Rosemary Clooney's first big hit, in 1951. It was originally written in 1939 by William Saroyan (the same year he refused a Pulitzer for The Time of Your Life because he didn't want to be a sell-out) and Ross Bagdasarian, who later created Alvin and the Chipmunks. Aspiring to a more high-minded career then novelty numbers in faux Italian accents, Rosemary famously hated the song. Later she warmed up to it--after all, it did launch her career. As I side note, I have to say that of all the people I discuss in my dissertation, Rosemary Clooney is the person I would most like to have been friends with.
Since 1951, the song has been recorded all over the place. Here are some of my favorites; click the link below to see them. I'm sure scholarship was possible before YouTube, but it must have been a whole lot less fun.
Madonna lipsynching the 1961 Della Reese version (from her album Della Della Cha Cha Cha) in the box office flop Swept Away
Some Australian named Kylee Thompson doing a burlesque to a version sung by Julie London.
A young German teenager lip-synching the Della Reese under the name "BarbietheBitch."
Japanese pop singer Ayaka Hirahara in a live version. Stay for the vocal break at the end!
1 year ago
3 comments:
Oh no! All of your youtube links aren't working! Can you find alternative links to repost?
Hmm...they appear to be working for me. Anybody else having trouble? Some internet connections, especially public ones, sometimes block YouTube because of bandwith issues.
It was a bandwidth issue. All is better within the safety of my own home.
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