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Mr. Sandman

"Mr. Sandman"
Mr Sandman (Chordettes) .jpg
Mr. Sandman record by The Chordettes
Single by The Chordettes
A-side "Mr. Sandman'"
B-side '"I Don't Wanna See You Cryin'"
Released October 1954
Format 7"
Recorded 1954
Genre Barbershop music, Traditional pop
Length 2:22
Label Cadence
Writer(s) Pat Ballard
Producer(s) Archie Bleyer
The Chordettes singles chronology
"Mr. Sandman"
(1954)
"The Wedding"
(1956)
"Mister Sandman"
Mister Sandman Emmylou Harris.jpg
Single by Emmylou Harris
from the album Profile II: The Best of Emmylou Harris
Released 1981
Recorded 1980
Genre Country
Length 2:20
Label Warner Bros.
Producer(s) Brian Ahern
Emmylou Harris singles chronology
"The Boxer"
(1980)
"Mister Sandman"
(1981)
"I Don't Have to Crawl"
(1981)
"Mr. Sandman"
Single by Blind Guardian
from the album The Forgotten Tales
Released February 7, 1996
Recorded Sweet Silence Studios
Genre Power metal
Length 2:12
Label Virgin
Producer(s) Flemming Rasmussen
Blind Guardian singles chronology
"Bright Eyes"
(1995)
"Mr. Sandman"
(1996)
"Mirror Mirror"
(1998)

"Mr. Sandman" (sometimes rendered as "Mister Sandman") is a popular song written by Pat Ballard which was published in 1954 and first recorded in May of that year by Vaughn Monroe & His Orchestra and later that same year by The Chordettes. The song's lyrics convey a request to "Mr. Sandman" to "bring me a dream" – the traditional association with the folkloric figure, the sandman. The pronoun used to refer to the desired dream is often changed depending on the sex of the singer or group performing the song, as the original sheet music publication, which includes male and female versions of the lyrics, intended. Some time later, Ballard also rewrote the lyrics for Christmas use as "Mr. Santa". The chord progression in each chorus follows the circle of fifths for six chords in a row. Singer Dorothy Collins charted with "Mr. Santa" (#51, US trade Music Vendor. 1955). The song was later recorded by Tony Sandler and Ralph Young (1968) and Suzy Bogguss. Emmylou Harris' recording of the song reached the top-ten on the U.S. country singles chart in 1981.

The Chordettes' recording of the song was released on the Cadence Records label, whose founder, Archie Bleyer, is credited on the disc's label as "knees played by" and orchestra conductor. Bleyer's voice is heard in the third verse, when he says the word, "Yes?" The piano is played by Moe Wechsler. Liberace's name is mentioned for his "wavy hair" and Pagliacci, for having a lonely heart (a reference to the opera Pagliacci by Ruggero Leoncavallo).

The single reached #1 on the Billboard United States charts and #11 in the United Kingdom charts in 1954. In November 1954, The Four Aces, backed by the Jack Pleis Orchestra, released a version that charted even higher in the UK, reaching #9 and in the same year, a version by Max Bygraves reached #16 in the UK charts. The most successful recording of the song in the UK was by Dickie Valentine, which peaked at #5. On the Cash Box magazine charts in the US, where all versions were combined, the song also reached #1.


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