Where Did You Get That Hat?
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| "Where Did You Get That Hat?" | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Song by Joseph J. Sullivan | |
| Released | 1888 |
| Genre | Comic, vaudeville song |
| Songwriter(s) | Joseph J. Sullivan, James Rolmaz |
"Where Did You Get That Hat?" is a comic song that was composed and first performed by vaudeville artist Joseph J. Sullivan at Miner's Eighth Avenue Theatre in 1888. It was a great success and soon performed by other music hall artists in the 1890s including George Robey and J. C. Heffron.[1]
Sullivan's original song consisted of three verses, each followed by a chorus, and it was soon included in penny broadsides of the period.[2] Then in 1901, James Rolmaz (who had written a sequel in 1891 titled "A New Hat Now")[3] wrote an additional two verses commenting on elections and the Prince of Wales to give the original song a more political twist, which increased its popularity further.[4][2]
It has since been performed by other artists such as Stanley Holloway, Al Simmons and Dave Barnes,[5][6] and Bing Crosby included the song in a medley on his album 101 Gang Songs (1961).
The song is now also a very popular piece performed for musical theatre exams (grades 4 to 8) and music hall concerts.
