Today’s song of the day is “Swinging On A Star” by Bing Crosby. In 8 bars and 12 verses, Crosby croons a lofty ballad about setting your sights on the sky.

• Bing Crosby, whose real name was Harry Lillis Crosby, Jr., was born in 1903 in Tacoma, Washington.
• The fourth of seven children, Crosby started singing in his early 20s after seeing top performers at his job at Spokane’s Auditorium.
• “Swinging On A Star” was recorded and released in 1944 by Crosby. Music and lyrics were composed by Jimmy Van Heusen and Johnny Burke, respectively.
• The song was created for the film Going My Way, which starred Crosby.
• “Swinging On A Star” won the Academy Award for Best Original Song at the 1994 Oscars.
• Andy Williams, another famous singer, supplied background vocals for the song when it was recorded by Crosby and John Scott Trotter and His Orchestra.
• The song has been covered by many other artists over the years, including Big Dee Irwin and Dave Van Ronk. Richard Anthony recorded a French version in 1964.
• In 2004, The American Film Institute ranked “Swinging On A Star” number 34 on its list of the 100 best cinema songs.
• Bing Crosby’s other top tracks include “White Christmas” and “Count Your Blessings.”

Lyrics:

(LyricFind)

Would you like to swing on a star

Carry moonbeams home in a jar

And be better off than you are

Or would you rather be a mule

A mule is an animal with long funny ears

Kicks up at anything he hears

His back is brawny but his brain is weak

He’s just plain stupid with a stubborn streak

And by the way, if you hate to go to school

You may grow up to be a mule

Or would you like to swing on a star

Carry moonbeams home in a jar

And be better off than you are

Or would you rather be a pig

A pig is an animal with dirt on his face

His shoes are a terrible disgrace

He has no manners when he eats his food

He’s fat and lazy and extremely rude

But if you don’t care a feather or a fig

You may grow up to be a pig

Or would you like to swing on a star

Carry moonbeams home in a jar

And be better off than you are

Or would you rather be a fish

A fish won’t do anything, but swim in a brook

He can’t write his name or read a book

To fool the people is his only thought

And though he’s slippery, he still gets caught

But then if that sort of life is what you wish

You may grow up to be a fish

A new kind of jumped up slippery fish

And all the monkeys aren’t in the zoo

Every day you meet quite a few

So you see it’s all up to you

You can be better than you are

You could be swinging’ on a star