Welcome to Episode 16 in my 2024 Monday Music Matters “Song-A-Week”series of stories in memory and in honour of my daughter, Kait
Birthdays are indeed fun! And special too. And of course we always traditionally sing the “Happy Birthday Song”. But I was inspired to write this fun little Birthday song of my own which includes a line by my aunt, the late great Angèle Arsenault, who wrote: “And open all those birthday cards that say I love you” which gives it a special touch close to my heart.
The credit for the Birthday Song is a bit controversial – some say 2 sisters, Mildred and Patty Hill, wrote the tune but sang the words “Good Morning to All” back in 1893!
The combination of the words “Happy Birthday” appeared in 1912 but the version we know today was written by Robert Coleman in 1924. Here is a link to the story:
Happy Birthday Song history
While we can never replace “Happy Birthday” – mais non! – I thought that it’s such a short song, why not sing “Birthdays Aren’t They Fun” afterward?
Link to song
You can read the first 15 stories & hear all the songs on my Stories page:
Link to other songs & stories
Enjoy the beautiful artwork created by Jessica Bell and her 2 sons: Aiden, 11 and Isaac, 8 for the song & story.
You can hear more children’s songs on my new YouTube channel:
Children’s Music on YouTube
The first story, “Malaika”, gives you a bit of a background of why I embarked on this 52 week journey.
Here is a link to Kait’s Comfort Kits which were created to bring some comforts of home to long term hospital patients with a focus on cancer patients