What a Wonderful World

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"What a Wonderful World" is a song by Bob Thiele (using the pseudonym George Douglas) and George David Weiss. It was first recorded by Louis Armstrong and released as a single in early fall 1967, and was inducted in the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999.

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[edit] History

Intended as an antidote for the increasingly racially and politically charged climate in the U.S. (and written specifically for Armstrong, who had broad crossover appeal), the song details the singer's delight in the simple enjoyment of everyday life. The song also has a hopeful, optimistic tone with regard to the future, with reference to babies being born into the world and having much to look forward to. The song was not initially a hit in the United States, where it sold fewer than 1,000 copies, but was a major success in the UK, reaching number one on the UK singles chart. It was also the biggest-selling single of 1968 in the UK. The song made Louis Armstrong the oldest male to top the charts, at sixty-six years and ten months old.

The opening lyrics read:

I see trees of green, red roses too.
I see them bloom, for me and you.
And I think to myself... what a wonderful world.

I see skies of blue, and clouds of white.
The bright blessed day, the dark sacred night
And I think to myself, what a wonderful world...

The song gradually became something of a standard and reached a new level of popularity. In 1988 Louis Armstrong's 1967 recording was featured in the film Good Morning Vietnam and was rereleased as a single. The single charted at number one for the fortnight ending 27 June 1988 on the Australian charts. It is also a jazz standard ranked number 945 at Jazzstandards.com.

[edit] Playings

"What a Wonderful World" was used ironically in 1978 radio broadcast of the last episode of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (first series). The song replaced the usual end credits as the two main characters, stranded on pre-history Earth, lament its destruction witnessed in the first episode. The song was later used for the closing titles of the corresponding television episode, and in the first teaser for the Hitchhiker's film, lasting only one stanza before the Earth explodes.

In 1985 a part of the song was used in The Runner (Davandeh), a famous Iranian movie. It was included in the soundtrack for the film Good Morning, Vietnam in 1987. In the film, the song plays over a montage of bombings and other violence (similar to the use of the song "We'll Meet Again" in the film Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb). This use of the song in an ironic way has since become something of a cliché in film and television.

The song was featured as the theme for the first season of the popular 1990s sitcom Family Matters. It was also used in the film Meet Joe Black, Without a Paddle, Twelve Monkeys, and the show Scrubs, in the episode "My Butterfly". It was sung by Willie Nelson for the 1996 film Michael. A Willie Nelson version also was used for the "Don't Mess With Texas" anti-littering public service announcement campaign.

The Louis Armstrong version was also used during a sequence in Michael Moore's film Bowling for Columbine, where it accompanies scenes of violence in a montage about United States intervention in international affairs, as well as having the Joey Ramone cover playing over the ending credits. In the 2005 film, Madagascar it appears as a background song for a scene where, ironically, various cute animals are eaten by other animals living on the "Wonderful World". On the program Pirate Radio (airing in Nashville, Tennessee, 1999-2001), an acoustic guitar version was used weekly as a music bed. It has also been used ironically as the theme music to the BBC series A Life of Grime, and as the closing theme to one series of Grumpy Old Men, in a version performed by the cast of the programme. The Louis Armstrong version was used also in the 2004 Japanese film Swing Girls during a scene where the main characters are chased by a wild boar. It was also used in the show House, in the episode DNR. It also featured in the sixth episode of the BBC/Kudos 1973-set crime drama, Life on Mars. The Joey Ramone cover was also played over the ending credits of the BBC Radio 4 comedy series Chris Addison's Civilisation and in the commercial for "Ratchet and Clank: Tools of Destruction". The Israel Kamakawiwo'ole medly with Over The Rainbow was featured in the film Finding Forrester.

Clear Channel included "What a Wonderful World" on a list of songs that might be inappropriate for airplay in the period just after the September 11, 2001 attacks.

In recent years, the song has come to be associated with the Christmas season (although it has no holiday or seasonal content in its lyrics). In 2006, XM Satellite Radio added "What a Wonderful World" to its Holiday/Christmas rotation, as did many terrestrial radio stations in the U.S. Numerous recording artists have covered the song for inclusion on their Christmas-themed albums, including Newsong and LeAnn Rimes. Also in 2006, a rock version appeared in the Suzuki New Grand Vitara television commercial performed by David Mills and Ian Wilson.

A version can be found on the dance simulation game Dance Dance Revolution SuperNOVA. This version is by "Beatbox vs DJ Miko".

Terry Fator performed this with his turtle, Winston, partly a Kermit version, partly a Louis Armstrong version, on America's Got Talent. [1]

It was used in a commercial advertising Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction using Joey Ramone's cover.

The orchestrated Louis Armstrong version was used at the happy ending of Madeline (1998 film).

George Huff, Anwar Robinson, & Chris Daughtry each performed the song on American Idol

Nick Lachey's Cincinnati-based team of singers performed a version of the song during the Clash of the Choirs season finale in 2007.

[edit] Selected list of recorded versions

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Preceded by
"Congratulations" by Cliff Richard		 UK number one single
Louis Armstrong version 24 April 1968 for 4 weeks		 Succeeded by
"Young Girl" by Gary Puckett & The Union Gap
Preceded by
"Bleeding Love"
by Leona Lewis		 UK Singles Chart number-one single
Katie Melua and Eva Cassidy version
16 December 2007		 Succeeded by
"When You Believe"
by Leon Jackson

[edit] References

  1. ^ Synthetik FM e=mc²,www.ninthwaverecords.com

[edit] External links