Rags to Riches (song)

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For the song by Rod Wave, see Rags2Riches (song).
"Rags To Riches"
Single by Tony Bennett
B-side""
ReleasedAugust 3, 1953 (1953-08-03)[1]
RecordedMarch 17, 1953[2]
StudioColumbia 30th Street Studio, New York City
GenrePop
Length2:50
LabelColumbia
Producer(s)Percy Faith
Tony Bennett singles chronology
"Someone Turned The Moon Upside Down"
(1953) 		"Rags To Riches"
(1953) 		"Stranger in Paradise"
(1953)
"Rags to Riches"
Elvis Presley Rags To Riches ps.jpg
Song by Elvis Presley
B-side""
ReleasedFebruary 23, 1971
RecordedSeptember 22, 1970
Songwriter(s)Richard Adler
Elvis Presley singles chronology
"I Really Don't Want to Know" "Rags to Riches" "Life"

"Rags to Riches" is a 1953 popular song by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross.[3]

Background[]

It is based on a famous Russian tune called "Volga Melody" by Yuri Shchetkov sometimes known as "Samara My Lovely Town." The bridge passage or middle 8 was inserted by the composer.

Tony Bennett recording[]

The best-known version of the song, recorded by Tony Bennett with Percy Faith and his orchestra, was number one for eight weeks on the Billboard chart in 1953 and became a gold record.[4]

Other versions[]

In popular culture[]

  • Tony Bennett's version was featured in the opening sequence of the 1990 film Goodfellas.[9]
  • The opening line of the song was sung regularly and exuberantly by the character Carmine Ragusa on the television series Laverne & Shirley,[10] typically when he had good news.
  • The song was also used in an episode of Columbo.[11]
  • Jackie Wilson's version of the song is featured in the 2010 video game Mafia II.[12]

See also[]

  • List of number-one singles of 1953 (U.S.)

References[]

  1. ^ "Rags to Riches". 45worlds.com. Retrieved 15 May 2021.
  2. ^ "Session". Retrieved 15 May 2021.
  3. ^ Suskin, Steven (2010). Show Tunes: The Songs, Shows, and Careers of Broadway's Major Composers (4th ed.). Oxford University Press. p. 243. ISBN 978-0-19-531407-6.
  4. ^ Evanier, David (2011). All the Things You Are: The Life of Tony Bennett. John Wiley & Sons. p. 94. ISBN 978-1-118-03354-8.
  5. ^ Roberts, David (2005). British Hit Singles & Albums. London: Guinness World Records Ltd. p. 546. ISBN 1-904994-00-8.
  6. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 168.
  7. ^ "Hot 100". Billboard: 16. December 21, 1963.
  8. ^ "Hot 100". Billboard: 60. April 10, 1971.
  9. ^ "Goodfellas (1990) : Quotes". IMDb.com. Retrieved 2016-07-23.
  10. ^ Brant, Marley (2006). Happier Days: Paramount Television's Classic Sitcoms, 1974–1984. Billboard Books. p. 74. ISBN 0-8230-8933-9.
  11. ^ "A Bird in the Hand". Columbo. November 22, 1992. Retrieved 2013-09-27.
  12. ^ "Internet Movie Database". imdb.com. Retrieved February 18, 2018.
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