Friday Songbook: On the Sunny Side of the Street

Let's see, what have we covered so far in the songbook series:

Brother, Can you spare a Dime, by Gorney and Harburg (performed by Dr. John)
I Thought about You, by Johnny Mercer (performed by Billie Holiday)
April in Paris, by Duke and Harburg (performed by Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong)
The Very Thought of You, by Ray Noble (performed by Billie Holiday)
It's Only a Paper Moon, by Arlen and Harburg (performed by James Taylor)
A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square, by Sherwin, Strachey and Maschwitz (sung by Mel Torme)

These tunes of "the great American songbook" frequently run through my mind, and almost every day I find myself whistling one old chestnuts or another. The song I've been whistling lately is Sunny Side of the Street. This may just be my favorite popular song ever. It was written in 1930 by Jimmy McHugh and Dorothy Fields, and it really represents the dominant theme of Depression era music. Namely, keep your chin up. This melody manages to be both sprightly and bluesy at the same time in the hands of the great Benny Goodman and Peggy Lee: