The Trolley Song Explained

The Trolley Song
Artist:	Judy Garland & Georgie Stoll Orchestra
B-Side:	Boys and Girls Like You
Recorded:	^[1]
Studio:	Decca Studios, Los Angeles, California
Label:	Decca 23361
Lyricist:	Ralph Blane^[2]
Composer:	Hugh Martin

"The Trolley Song" is a song written by Ralph Blane and Hugh Martin and made famous by Judy Garland in the 1944 film Meet Me in St. Louis.^[3]

In a 1989 NPR interview, Blane and Martin reminisced about the song's genesis. They were assigned to write a song for the trolley scene in the film. Their first three efforts were rejected by producer Arthur Freed because, as Blane came to realize, Freed wanted something specifically about a trolley and not just a generic love song for Judy Garland's character in that scene.^[4]

In search of ideas, Blane went to the Beverly Hills Public Library and rummaged through turn-of-the-century newspapers to learn more about trolleys in the time period of the St. Louis World's Fair. He finally found a picture of a double-decker trolley with the caption, "Clang, clang, here comes the trolley."^[4] Blane showed the picture to Martin and told him, "Hugh, look at this. And Hugh said, clang, clang, clang went the trolley, and about - it was very few minutes, he had the whole thing going. In fact, it didn't take long to write that song at all once we got the first line."^[4] Three hours later they played it for Freed who said, "now, that's what I wanted all the time."^[4]

The song as conducted by Georgie Stoll for Meet Me in St. Louis has a complex, evocative arrangement by Conrad Salinger featuring harmonized choruses, wordless vocals, and short highlights or flourishes from a wide range of orchestral instruments.^{[5] [6]} It was recorded on April 21, 1944, at Decca Studios on Melrose Avenue, Los Angeles, California.^[1]

"The Trolley Song" was nominated for Best Original Song at the 1945 Academy Awards but lost to "Swinging on a Star" from Going My Way.^[7] "The Trolley Song" was ranked #26 by the American Film Institute in 2004 on the AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs list.

The song has been used in Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom theme park in Florida as one of the core soundtrack numbers for the dance performances during the Main Street Trolley Show.^[8]

Covers

• Five versions of the song charted in 1944-45. Garland's single and a version by the Vaughn Monroe Orchestra—sung as a duet by Monroe and Marilyn Duke—both peaked at number four, but the biggest hit version was by the Pied Pipers, which hit number two on Billboard magazine's "Best Selling Retail Records" chart the week of December 16, 1944.^[9]
• Instrumental versions of the song were used in the scores of MGM animated shorts, arranged by Scott Bradley, including Swing Shift Cinderella (1945)^[10] and Tom and Jerry cartoons, e.g., Cat Fishin (1947).^{[11] [12]}
• Numerous jazz interpretations have been released, such as the one by the Dave Brubeck Quartet in March 1954. The quartet recorded another version in 1962, featuring Paul Desmond on alto sax, and included it on the Bossa Nova U.S.A. album.^[13] The distinctive structure of "The Trolley Song"—in which the end of the second and third verses introduce a new melodic line and simulate the feeling that the song is taking off like the accelerating motion of a trolley, or like the dizzying sensation of falling in love—lends itself to jazz improvisation.^{[14] [15]}
• In 2021, Randy Rainbow covered the song in a political parody YouTube version called "Clang Clang Clang went Josh Hawley", about Missouri Senator Josh Hawley.^[16]

In popular culture

• In The Simpsons episode "Burns' Heir", Martin Prince sings the song for Mr. Burns, before being punched down by Nelson Muntz.^[17]
• At the end of The Simpsons Halloween episode "Treehouse of Horror X", "The Trolley Song" is sung by Rosie O'Donnell.^[18]

See also

• List of train songs

Notes and References

1. Web site: Decca matrix L 3388. The trolley song-1 / Judy Garland - Discography of American Historical Recordings . 2022-04-23 . adp.library.ucsb.edu.
2. Book: Don Tyler. Hit Songs, 1900-1955: American Popular Music of the Pre-Rock Era. April 2, 2007. McFarland. 978-0-7864-2946-2. 278.
3. Web site: Pop Chronicles 1940s Program #11 All Tracks . John . Gilliland . October 10, 1972 . UNT Digital Library.
4. News: Remembering 'Christmas' Songwriter Hugh Martin . March 15, 2011 . August 24, 2021 . NPR.org . en.
5. Web site: The Music of Meet Me in St. Louis . September 13, 2019 . Judy Garland News and Events.
6. Web site: Meet Me in St. Louis – Roger Edens, Georgie Stoll, Conrad Salinger . Lysy . Craig . July 25, 2022 . Movie Music UK.
7. Web site: The 17th Academy Awards 1945 . August 24, 2021. Oscars.org Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences . en.
8. Web site: Magic Kingdom Trolley Show Music . YouTube.
9. 16 December 1944. [{{Google books |mBoEAAAAMBAJ|page=18|plainurl=yes}} Music Popularity Chart – Week Ending Dec. 14, 1944]. The Billboard. Cincinnati, Ohio . 18. 12 July 2024.
10. Web site: Swing Shift Cinderella (Short 1945) - Soundtracks . IMDb.
11. Web site: Everytime "The Trolley Song" from Meet Me in St. Louis is played in Tom and Jerry . YouTube.
12. Web site: Tom & Jerry - "Cat Fishin'" - 1947 - Classic Cartoon . YouTube.
13. Web site: Trolley Song - Dave Brubeck's Greatest Hits . YouTube.
14. Web site: Judy Garland - The Trolley Song Lyrics | Genius Lyrics . Genius.com.
15. For example, the end of Verse 2: "As he started to go then I started to know how it feels / When the universe reels".
16. Watch Randy Rainbow Channel Judy Garland to Slam Josh Hawley & the GOP. Billboard.
17. Web site: Burns' Heir . Richdale . Jace . The Simpsons Archive . 14 April 1994.
18. Web site: Treehouse of Horror X . Hauge . Ron . Cary . Donick . Long . Tim . The Simpsons Archive . 31 October 1999.