Harry Warren:
(born Salvatore Antonio Guaragna; December 24, 1893 – September 22, 1981).
American composer and the first major American songwriter to write primarily for film. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song eleven times and won three Oscars for composing “Lullaby of Broadway”, “You’ll Never Know” and “On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe”. He wrote the music for the first blockbuster film musical, 42nd Street, choreographed by Busby Berkeley, with whom he would collaborate on many musical films.
The leaves of brown came tumbling down. Remember, in September, in the rain. The sun went out just like a dying amber.
These lines evoke a ‘nostalgic memory of love during a rainy September’:
“The leaves of brown came tumbling down”:
– describes autumn and suggests change or an ending.
– “The sun went out”:
– creates a feeling of sadness, as though happiness or love has faded.
– “Like a dying ember”:
– compares the fading sunlight—and metaphorically the romance—to the last glow of a dying fire.
– Overall, the imagery conveys ‘melancholy, lost love, and remembrance’.
> The correct word is “ember,” not “amber.”
An ember is a fading piece of burning coal or wood.
🎵 Origin and authors:
The quotation comes from the song “September in the Rain”, published in 1937*.
– Lyrics: Al Dubin
– Music: Harry Warren
– Introduced by:
James Melton in the Warner Bros. film “Melody for Two” (1937)
The standard lyric is:
> “The leaves of brown came tumbling down, remember,
> In September, in the rain.
> The sun went out just like a dying ember,
> That September in the rain.”
The song later became a popular standard and was recorded by many performers, including Dinah Washington, Frank Sinatra, and The Beatles.
