Shine (1910 song)

Shine (originally titled That's Why They Call Me Shine) is a popular song with lyrics by Cecil Mack and Tin Pan Alley songwriter Lew Brown and music by Ford Dabney. It was published in 1910 by Gotham-Attucks and used by Ada Walker in His Honor the Barber, an African-American road show.

It was later recorded by jazz and jazz influenced artists such as Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, Benny Goodman, Harry James, and Frankie Laine, usually without the explanatory introduction. It also featured as one of the songs sung by Sam (Dooley Wilson) and the band at Rick's Cafe in the movie Casablanca. According to Perry Bradford, himself a songster and publisher, the song was written about an actual man named Shine who was with George Walker when they were badly beaten during the New York City race riot of 1900.

Bing Crosby recorded the song with The Mills Brothers in 1932, issued on Brunswick Records 11376=A, a 78 rpm record.

As a member of The Hoboken Four, Frank Sinatra sang this song in 1935 on Major Bowes Amateur Hour.

John William Sublett (aka John W. Bubbles) animates "Shine" brilliantly in a song-and-dance number in the 1943 movie Cabin in the Sky.

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