Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen, originally Bay Mir Bistu Sheyn, is a Yiddish tune that rose from a 1932 Yiddish musical into a global pop hit. It was composed by Sholom Secunda with lyrics by Jacob Jacobs for the show I Would If I Could, and was first performed as a lovers duet by Aaron Lebedeff and Lucy Levin in Brooklyn. In 1937 English lyrics by Sammy Cahn and Saul Chaplin transformed the song into Bei Mir Bist Du Schon, and The Andrews Sisters recorded the Decca single that November, quickly becoming a worldwide smash. The tune sparked a wave of covers and helped popularize Yiddish swing, crossing into Hollywood films and into languages around the world. The publishing rights were sold for about $30 in 1937, a decision later viewed as a missed fortune when the song became a phenomenon; royalties were later restored in 1961 and even led to a new musical named after the tune. Its history also includes a Nazi Germany ban once its Jewish origins were uncovered, and a Nazi propaganda version of the melody by Charlie and His Orchestra during World War II.
