In the Shade of the Old Apple Tree

In the Shade of the Old Apple Tree est une chanson populaire écrite par Harry Williams et composée par Egbert Van Alstyne (en) en 1905.

En 1905, Ses enregistrements les plus populaires furent ceux de Henry Burr, Albert Campbell, Haydn Quartet et Arthur Pryor 's Band.

Des enregistrements ultérieurs ont été réalisés par Duke Ellington (Brunswick 6646, 1933), Louis Armstrong et The Mills Brothers (Decca 1495, 1937) et Alma Cogan (1962). Bing Crosby a inclus la chanson dans un medley sur son album On the Sentimental Side (1962).

Couverture de la partition de 1905

La mélodie est hautement sentimentale, l'auteur chante un amour perdu :

In the shade of the old apple tree,

Where the love in your eyes I could see,

Where the voice that I heard,

Like the song of a bird,

Seemed to whisper sweet music to me,

I could hear the dull buzz of the bee

In the blossoms as you said to me,

"With a heart that is true,

"I'll be waiting for you,

In the shade of the old apple tree."

Utilisations comme bande son

Dans le film Le Magicien d'Oz, lorsque les pommiers se mettent en colère contre Dorothy, on entend les notes de cette chanson (instrumental) à l'arrière plan.

De même, dans les dessins animés de Warner Bros., la mélodie est parfois utilisée lorsque des arbres apparaissaient à l'écran.

La chanson est présente dans le court métrage de Merrie Melodies The Night Watchman (1938), où un refrain complet de la chanson est interprété par trois rats.

Dans le film Blondie in Society (1941), une scène montre Blondie (Penny Singleton) chantant la chanson à un dogue allemand.

Dans l'adaptation télévisée de Sumo Do, Sumo Don't sur Disney+ (2022), une interprétation de cet air est chantée pendant le générique de fin, et diverses versions instrumentales sont jouées pendant les épisodes.

Parodies

Cette chanson particulièrement sentimentale, même selon les standards du début des années 1900, se prêtait parfaitement aux parodies.

Billy Murray en a enregistré une. Le personnage est décrit passant devant la maison de Maggie Jones, une jeune fille « plus laide que moi », qui lui demande d'aller chercher des pommes en lui promettant de lui donner l'une des tartes qu'elle prévoit de faire cuire. Et la chanson se poursuit ainsi :

So I climbed up the old apple tree,

For a pie was a real thing to me.

She stood down below

With her apron spread "so"

To catch all the apples, you see.

It looked like a picnic for me,

But just then the limb broke; holy gee!

And I broke seven bones

And half-killed Maggie Jones

In the shade of the old apple tree..

Ramblin' Jack Elliott a enregistré une version parodique intitulée "Shade of the Old Apple Tree", dans l'album Jack Elliott de 1964 :

It was only yesterday I thought I'd take a bath in some water

For a bath I hadn't had in goodness knows when

And for that bath I didn't want to pay a quarter

So I run down to the creek and jumped right in.

I hung my clothes upon an apple tree limb

'Twas there I got into an awful fix

When an old maid come down down and set beside them

And there she sat from one o'clock to six.

It was only yesterday I thought I'd take a bath in some water

For a bath I hadn't had in goodness knows when

And for that bath I didn't want to pay a quarter

So I run down to the creek and jumped right in.

I hung my clothes upon an apple tree limb

'Twas there I got into an awful fix

When an old maid come down down and set beside them

And there she sat from one o'clock to six.

(Chorus:) In the shade of the old apple tree

I was in water right up to my knee

I had to lay down while she was around

'Til only my nose you could see

Mosquitoes was biting my nose

And the crawdads was nibbling my toes

I lay there all day 'til she went away

From the shade of the old apple tree.

(Spoken:) Here comes the pitiful part, boys and girls.

It was only yesterday that Jane and I got hitched

You bet your life I was a happy groom

There was only one thing that filled my heart with sadness

Was parts of her were scattered all over the room.

Her glass eye and false teeth was on the mantle

And on the bed she hung her lock of hair

And there was only one thing that filled my heart with sadness

Was she pitched her wooden leg upon the chair

And it was a limb from that old apple tree

(Repeat rest of chorus)

Yes I carved out my name and there it was plain

On her limb from the old apple tree.