It Had To Be You (song)

"It Had to Be You" is a popular song written by Isham Jones, with lyrics by Gus Kahn. It was first published in 1924.

Appearance in film
The song was performed by Ruth Etting in the 1936 short film Melody in May, by Priscilla Lane in the 1939 film The Roaring Twenties, and by Danny Thomas in the 1951 film I'll See You in My Dreams (based loosely upon the lives of Gus Kahn and his wife Grace LeBoy Kahn). It was also performed by Dooley Wilson in the 1942 film Casablanca, Betty Hutton in the 1945 film Incendiary Blonde, and by Diane Keaton in the 1977 film Annie Hall. It was also performed in the film A League of Their Own by Megan Cavanagh. Also in the "theme" of When Harry Met Sally.

Notable recordings

 * Sam Lanin and his Orchestra on Okeh 40084, recorded March 20, 1924
 * Ambassadors on Vocalion 14792 (matrix 12951), recorded March 24, 1924
 * Marion Harris on Brunswick 2610 (matrix 12760-62), recorded March 28, 1924
 * Paul Whiteman and his Orchestra on Victor 19339 (matrix 29779), recorded April 8, 1924
 * Cliff Edwards on Pathé Actuelle 032047 (matrix 105278), recorded on April 15, 1924
 * The California Ramblers on Columbia 127-D (matrix 81700-2), recorded on April 18, 1924
 * Isham Jones and his Orchestra on Brunswick 2614, recorded on April 24, 1924
 * Aileen Stanley and Billy Murray with Prince's Orchestra on Victor 19373 (matrix 30247-3), recorded on June 5, 1924
 * Chappie d'Amato with Jack Hylton and his Orchestra on HMV B-1887 (matrix Bb 4978-2), recorded on August 19, 1924
 * Dorothy Lamour with orchestra conducted by Lou Bring on Bluebird B 10758 (matrix 042385-2), recorded on January 19, 1940
 * Betty Hutton with Paul Weston and his Orchestra on Capitol 155, recorded on March 11, 1944
 * Dick Haymes and Helen Forrest with Victor Young and his Orchestra on Decca 23349 (matrix L-3446), recorded on June 28, 1944. This version first reached the Billboard magazine Best Seller chart on September 14, 1944, and lasted 5 weeks on the chart, peaking at number 4. This recording was paired on a single with "Together," a number 3 hit, producing a two-sided hit.
 * Julie Dawn with Carroll Gibbons and the Savoy Hotel Orpheans on English Columbia FB 3060 (matrix CA 19595-1), recorded on October 4, 1944
 * Mildred Bailey, 1944
 * Buddy Clark with Dick Jones and his Orchestra on Columbia 38040 (matrix CO 38382), recorded on November 12, 1947
 * Doris Day with Paul Weston and his Orchestra on Columbia 39625 (matrix RHCO 10029-1A), recorded on November 9, 1951
 * Petula Clark with The Steve Race Quartet featuring Steve Race (piano) and Roy Plummer (guitar) on Polygon P1043 (matrix PL. 42) in 1951
 * Hugo Winterhalter and His Orchestra on RCA Victor 20-3858 (in USA) and on His Master's Voice X 7810
 * Ray Charles recorded it in 1959 for his album The Genius of Ray Charles
 * Barbra Streisand for the album The Third Album (1963) - although it was originally recorded for "The Second Barbra Streisand Album" (1963)
 * Andy Williams released a version of the song on his 1965 album, Andy Williams' Dear Heart.
 * Harry Nilsson on the album A Little Touch of Schmilsson in the Night (RCA Victor), released in 1973
 * John Travolta covered the song on his self titled 1976 album John Travolta
 * Diane Keaton, playing the character Annie Hall in the Oscar-winning Woody Allen film of the same name, released 1977
 * Frank Sinatra with Billy May and his Orchestra on the Reprise album Trilogy (matrix XCA-9297), recorded on July 18, 1979
 * Harry Connick, Jr. on Columbia on the soundtrack for When Harry Met Sally..., recorded on June 6, 12 and 19, 1989
 * Don McLean, on his live album For the Memories Vols I & II, released 1989
 * Kenny G. on the album I'm in the Mood for Love...The Most Romantic Melodies of All Time, in 2006
 * Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong
 * Billie Holiday
 * Elliott Yamin on American Idol season 5
 * Yoyo Mung in The W Files a Hong Kong TV series about Wesley, a private detective and his girlfriend So
 * Liza Minnelli, on her 1996 album Gently
 * Ginger Grant in Gilligan's Island episode "Forward March", to Gilligan
 * Tony Bennett recorded the song on his live album MTV Unplugged in 1994; in 2011 he recorded it again as a duet with country music singer Carrie Underwood for his album, Duets II.