Sweet Georgia Brown is a jazz standard written in 1925 by Ben Bernie and Maceo Pinkard with lyrics by Kenneth Casey. The song’s story includes Bernie’s idea for the lyrics after meeting Dr. George Thaddeus Brown, who told him his daughter Georgia Brown inspired the line Georgia claimed her - Georgia named her. It was first recorded on March 19, 1925 by Ben Bernie and His Hotel Roosevelt Orchestra and released as a single in June 1925 on Vocalion, where it spent five weeks at number one. The tune is a lively jazz number that has become a standard and was later adopted as the Harlem Globetrotters’ theme after a 1949 instrumental by Brother Bones and His Shadows. Notable versions include Bing Crosby with Isham Jones (1932) and Roberta Flack’s 1994 recording with new lyrics presenting Georgia Brown as a strong, intelligent woman. The song remains a staple of the jazz repertoire and popular culture.
