1939Released
3:22

Did You Know?

Interesting facts and trivia about Moonlight Serenade. By Songfacts®.

This dreamy ballad was Glenn Miller's breakout hit, but it was years in the making. Miller wrote the melody in 1935 when he was a trombone player in Ray Noble's band. The lyricist Eddie Heyman added words, and the song was titled "As I Lay Me Down To Weep." It went: Weep for the moon For the moon has no reason to glow now Weep for the rose For the rose has no reason to grow now The rivers won't flow now As I lay me down To weep Miller didn't record or publish the song with these lyrics, but in 1938 used the instrumental as theme music for his radio broadcasts on the NBC network. In 1939 the publisher Robbins Music bought the melody and had Mitchell Parish ("Stardust") write a new set of lyrics for it, which were given the title "Wind In The Trees." By this time, Miller had his own band and was set to record a song called "Sunrise Serenade," written by Frankie Carle. Someone at Robbins suggested that Parish write the lyrics as "Moonlight Serenade" instead, which could be used as the B-side of the single, forming a theme. Parish did just that, but Miller recorded the song as an instrumental. When the single was released, "Sunrise Serenade" charted, but it was soon outdone by "Moonlight Serenade," which rose to #3 and became Miller's signature song.

There were a few performances where Miller used a vocalist on this song, but it wasn't until 1959 when the doo-wop group The Rivieras recorded it that a version with lyrics became popular. Their rendition charted at #47 in the US, but the most popular vocal version was by Frank Sinatra, who recorded it in 1966 on his album Moonlight Sinatra. Bobby Vinton took the song to #97 in 1978, and Tuxedo Junction to #103 that same year.

The lyric is about two lovers spending a romantic night together. It's a very seductive song where the singer serenades his lover in the moonlight on a June evening. Sung by Sinatra, it's very effective.

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Song Analysis

Key, BPM (tempo) and time signature of Moonlight Serenade.
D♯Key
MajorMode
3/4Time Signature
78BPM

Album

The album Moonlight Serenade is released on.

Released By

The record label that has released Moonlight Serenade.
Masterworks Jazz
Originally Recorded 1939, 1940, 1941, 1942 Sony Music Entertainment

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