"The Sidewalks of New York" is a popular song about life in New York City during the 1890s. It was created by lyricist James W. Blake and vaudeville actor and composer Charles B. Lawlor in 1894. The song proved successful afterwards, and was once considered a theme for New York City. Many artists, including Mel Tormé, Duke Ellington, Larry Groce and The Grateful Dead, have performed this song. Governor Al Smith of New York used it as a theme song for his failed presidential campaign in 1928. The song is also known under the title "East Side, West Side" from the first words of the chorus. The song was also recorded, with slightly altered lyrics, by the Kidsongs Kids.
History
The tune, a slow and deliberate waltz, was devised by Lawlor, who had been humming the tune while stopping by the hat store where Blake worked. As the two became increasingly enthusiastic about the song, they agreed to collaborate, with Lawlor putting the tune to sheet music and Blake creating the lyrics. The words of the song tell the story of Blake's childhood, including the friends with whom he played as a child, namely Johnny Casey, Jimmy Crowe, Nellie Shannon (who danced the waltz), and Mamie O'Rourke (who taught Blake how to "trip the light fantastic," an extravagant expression for dancing). The song is sung in nostalgic retrospect, as Blake and his childhood friends went their separate ways, some leading to success while others did not ("some are up in 'G' / others they are on the hog").
Governor Al Smith of New York is credited for the legacy of the song, used as a theme for his 1928 presidential campaign. The urban-centric tune proved symbolic of a campaign that failed to find its footing in America's more rural areas, where Herbert Hoover was more popular.[1]
Max Fleischer and his brother Dave Fleischer made a cartoon with the song in 1925, using the DeForest Phonofilm sound-on-film process.[citation needed] The Fleischers re-released the song on 5 February 1929 with a new soundtrack in the RCA Photophone system.[citation needed] Both cartoons used the "follow the bouncing ball" gimmick.
Though the song achieved cultural success shortly after its release, the two authors earned only $5,000 for their efforts. Lawlor died penniless in 1925, while Blake fell ill and died in 1935, their song reputedly having sold 5,000 copies a year by the time of Blake's passing.[2]
After the deaths of Blake and Lawlor, "Sidewalks of New York" achieved fame as a standard among jazz artists, namely Mel Tormé and Duke Ellington, and recorded by musicians of various backgrounds. The song appeared in a 1954 medley (along with two other 1890s songs, "Daisy Bell" and "The Bowery") in a version by Don Cornell, Alan Dale, and Buddy Greco.
In the 1950s, the tune was used for a commercial jingle advertising the Hot Shoppes restaurants (owned by J. W. Marriott) in the Washington, D.C., area. The words were: "East side, west side, all around the town/Wherever you look for a place to eat, a Hot Shoppes can be found/Take a bus or streetcar, or drive right up to the door/Hot Shoppes food is the kind that always brings you back for more."
Lyrics
While variations exist depending on the artist performing the song, the chorus has been consistent. The original lyrics are as follows.
Down in front of Casey's old brown wooden stoop
On a summer's evening we formed a merry group
Boys and girls together we would sing and waltz
While Tony played the organ on the sidewalks of New York
East Side, West Side, all around the town
The tots sang "ring-around-rosie," "London Bridge is falling down"
Boys and girls together, me and Mamie O'Rourke
Tripped the light fantastic on the sidewalks of New York
That's where Johnny Casey, little Jimmy Crowe
Jakey Krause, the baker, who always had the dough
Pretty Nellie Shannon with a dude as light as cork
She first picked up the waltz step on the sidewalks of New York
Things have changed since those times, some are up in "G"
Others they are wand'rers but they all feel just like me
They'd part with all they've got, could they once more walk
With their best girl and have a twirl on the sidewalks of New York
Sources
- ^ Trip the Light Fantastic on the Sidewalks of New York, events-in-music.com
- ^ TIME Magazine, untitled, June 3, 1935. Retrieved April 5, 2007.
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