Singin' in the Rain (song)


"Singin' in the Rain" is a song with lyrics by Arthur Freed and music by Nacio Herb Brown, published in 1929. It is unclear exactly when the song was written; it has been claimed that the song was performed as early as 1927.
The song is a centerpiece of the musical film of the same name, Singin' in the Rain, which was "suggested by" the song, according to the film's title credits.
The song is listed as No. 3 on the American Film Institute's 100 Years...100 Songs. performing the song in the 1952 film Singin' in the Rain

Song form

The song has an unusual form: the 32-bar chorus, rather than being preceded by a verse and containing an internal bridge as was becoming standard at the time, opens the song and then is followed by a 24-bar verse that has the feeling of a bridge before the chorus repeats.

Covers

"Singin' in the Rain" was first performed by Doris Eaton Travis in the 1929 revue The Hollywood Music Box Revue. The song became a hit and was recorded by a number of artists, notably Cliff Edwards, who also performed the number with the Brox Sisters in the early MGM musical The Hollywood Revue of 1929. B.A. Rolfe and his Lucky Strike Orchestra recorded the song possibly as early as 1928 but perhaps 1929. The song was recorded by Annette Hanshaw. It is performed on film by a nightclub band as dance music and sung in a Chinese dialect in The Ship from Shanghai, by Jimmy Durante in Speak Easily, by Judy Garland in Little Nellie Kelly, and as background music at the beginning of MGM's The Divorcee starring Norma Shearer.
"Singin' in the Rain" was remixed in 2005 by Mint Royale. It was released as a single in August 2005 after being featured in an advert for the VW Golf GTI, peaking at No. 20 on the UK Singles Chart.
Three years later in 2008, due to the exposure of the song via the performance of then-unknown dancer George Sampson on the reality TV series Britain's Got Talent, the track went to No. 1 on the iTunes Top 100 in the UK in 2008. It re-entered the UK Singles Chart at No. 28 on June 1, 2008 and climbed to No. 1 the next week, selling 45,987 copies, knocking Rihanna's "Take a Bow" down to the Number 2 spot.

Charts

Sheila B. Devotion version

A 1978 disco version of Singin' in the Rain by the French pop singer Sheila B. Devotion made No. 3 in the Eurochart Hot 100 Singles and the Netherlands Top 100, No. 4 on the Nationale Hitparade, No. 11 on the German and UK Singles Chart, No. 2 on the Swedish Singles Chart, No. 3 on the Italian Singles Chart and No. 30 on the Hot Dance Club Songs.

Taco version

In 1982, Dutch pop singer Taco released a version of it as his second single from After Eight, which peaked at No. 49 in Germany, No. 46 in Canada and No. 98 in the UK.

In popular culture