View source for My Mammy

{{Short description|1918 popular song}}
[[Image:My Mammy.pdf|thumb|250px|{{center|Original Sheet Music for "My Mammy" in Broadway's ''[[Sinbad (1918 musical)|Sinbad]]''}}]]
"'''My Mammy'''" is an American [[popular music|popular song]] with music by [[Walter Donaldson (songwriter)|Walter Donaldson]] and lyrics by [[Joe Young (lyricist)|Joe Young]] and [[Sam M. Lewis]].

Though associated with [[Al Jolson]], who performed the song very successfully, "My Mammy" was performed first in 1918 by [[William Frawley]] (later to become famous on ''[[I Love Lucy]]'') as a [[vaudeville]] act.<ref>White, Mark (1983). ''"You must remember this—": popular songwriters, 1900-1980''.  F. Warne. p. 79</ref> Saul Bornstein, the general manager in early 1921 for Irving Berlin Music Publishing, brought the song to Jolson's attention; Jolson first interpolated the song in January 1921 to the [[Broadway show]] ''[[Sinbad (1918 musical)|Sinbad]]'' which was in the fourth year of its run. Jolson recorded this song twice and performed it in films, including ''[[The Jazz Singer]]'' (1927) and ''[[Rose of Washington Square]]'' (1939).<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUGUUiPSjno&list=PLBohJ-Mq5mXziu3MJZ-E_WDxC7OrBCGvc&index=14 "My Mammy"] sung by Al Jolson (audio only), recorded for ''Rose of Washington Square'' (1939 film) on YouTube</ref> His voice can also be heard (dubbing actor [[Larry Parks]]) singing the song in ''[[The Jolson Story]]'' (1946).<ref>Hebert G. Goldman, Jolson: The Legend Comes to Life (New York: Oxford University Press, 1988), 114-115.</ref>

The group [[The Happenings]] revived the song in 1967 with a recording that reached #13 on the [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]].  Around that same time, Liza Minnelli began to incorporate the song into her nightclub act; she would continue to perform "My Mammy" throughout her long concert career.  During their [[PopMart Tour]] of 1997–98, rock music band [[U2]] would often quote the line "The sun shines east, the sun shines west, I know where the sun shines best" in performances of their song, "Miami". The British rock band [[The Psychedelic Furs]] parodied it in their song "We Love You", singing "I would walk a million smiles for one of your miles". In the Broadway musical ''[[Thoroughly Modern Millie (musical)|Thoroughly Modern Millie]]'', the song is parodied in the song "Muqǐn". It is also parodied in the jukebox musical [[Our House (musical)|Our House]] in the songs "Rise and Fall" and "The Sun and the Rain (Act II)".

==Lyrics and interpretation==
The song is a love song from son to his mother, expressing his regrets and longing for her, and hoping she will recognize him after he has been away for a long time.

However, in certain contexts, it can be considered as a tribute sung by a man who, during his childhood, was nurtured by a [[Mammy archetype in the United States|"mammy]]", a slave used as a surrogate mother who supplanted the role that would have otherwise been provided by his biological mother. In the song, this person, now an adult, is returning to his aging mammy and proclaiming his unconditional love for her, hoping that despite her age she can still recognise him as her "little baby".<ref>{{cite web |title=SongMeanings.com | date=4 August 2017 |url=https://songmeanings.com/songs/view/3530822107858621181/?&specific_com=73016355406 |accessdate=11 February 2020}}</ref>

==Recorded versions==
The song "My Mammy" has been recorded by many artists, including:
{{div col|colwidth=22em}}
*[[Arthur Fields]]
*[[John Arpin]]
*[[William Frawley]]
*Clive Baldwin
*[[Eddie Cantor]]
*[[Cher]]
*[[Cameo (band)|Cameo]]
*[[Brian Conley]]
*[[Dion DiMucci|Dion]]
*[[The Everly Brothers]]
*[[Eddie Fisher (singer)|Eddie Fisher]]
*[[The Happenings]]
*[[Ted Heath (bandleader)|Ted Heath]]
*[[Al Jolson]]
*[[Isham Jones]]
*[[Jerry Lewis]]
*[[Liza Minnelli]]
*Norfolk Jazz & Jubilee Quartets
*[[Tony Pastor]]
*[[Peerless Quartet]]
*[[Kenny Rogers]] (with [[Bobby Doyle (jazz vocalist)|Bobby Doyle]])
*[[Jimmy Roselli]]
*Slappin' Mammys
*[[Aileen Stanley]]
*Pete Wending
*[[Paul Whiteman]] Orchestra
*[[Harry Yerkes]]
*[[Lena Zavaroni]]
{{col div end}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}
{{Al Jolson}}
{{The Jazz Singer}}{{Authority control}}

[[Category:1918 songs]]
[[Category:Songs with music by Walter Donaldson]]
[[Category:Pop standards]]
[[Category:Al Jolson songs]]
[[Category:Songs with lyrics by Joe Young (lyricist)]]
[[Category:Eddie Cantor songs]]
[[Category:Liza Minnelli songs]]
[[Category:Music published by Bourne Co. Music Publishers]]
[[Category:Anti-black racism in the United States]]