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Baseball Music and Songs at the Library of Congress

Take Me Out To The Ball Game

Albert Von Tilzer, composer. Jack Norworth, lyricist. "Take Me Out to the Ball Game." 1908. Library of Congress Music Division.

General facts about baseball's greatest hit are:

  • According to the book, Baseball's Greatest Hit: The Story of Take Me Out to the Ball Game, the eponymous song is believed to be the third most frequently sung tune in the United States after "Happy Birthday" and "The Star Spangled Banner."
  • Baseball’s sensational song was dedicated to J.A. Sternad, a Chicagoan involved in sports, automobiles, theatrical and vaudeville bookings and a baseball lover.
  • The song was first performed, allegedly, by lyricist Jack Norworth at Brooklyn’s Amphion Theater only days after it was created.
  • According to ASCAP (American Society of Composers and Performers), over 160 arrangements of the song have been made; it has appeared in over 1200 films and TV shows; it is still performed live about 2500 times/year!
  • In 1975, the estate of Jack Norworth left a bequest to ASCAP (American Society of Composers and Performers), that directed all future royalties from the sales and use of the song for the explicit use of funding young composers.
  • After the Von Tilzer/Norworth hit soared to the top of the sales charts where it remained as #1 for seven weeks beginning in late October through Christmas of 1908, an upsurge of new baseball songs appeared on the market. Most were unsuccessful ditties, copycat attempts by songwriters hoping to cash in on the Von Tilzer/Norworth hit which had reportedly sold millions of copies (examples are listed under the tab below, "Copycat Songs").

Chronology of "Take Me Out To The Ball Game" published editions

Music for baseball's greatest hit can be divided into seven categories, with further information provided under the tabs below:

  • Imprints published by York Music in 1908
  • Jack Norwoth's 1927 revised edition
  • The 1936 edition by Vogel Music Co. (not held by the Music Division)
  • Songs composed for the 1947-1949 movie/musical
  • Arrangements published throughout the 20th century
  • Appearances of the song in popular music anthologies
  • Copycat songs

The Music Division holds eight copies of Von Tilzer’s York Music edition of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game," six containing original covers with cameo photographs of various artists and two professional copies (without covers). These examples highlight one of Tin Pan Alley’s most successful marketing strategies that enhanced sheet music sales: featuring a photograph of the song's performer on the cover.

After an audience heard a vaudevillian sing a song at their local theater or nickelodeon, they were more inclined to purchase a copy of the music when it included the singer’s photo. At that time, hit songs were typically promoted by multiple artists and each was guaranteed a cover photo. Currently, thirty different cameo photos have been identified for "Take Me Out to the Ball Game," with three artists (Trixie Friganza, Sam Williams and Henry Fink) receiving two separate poses. A list of these performers is compiled below (bolded names identify copies held in the Music Division).

Sam Williams, Jack Norworth, Nora Bayes, Trixie Friganza, Lulu Beeson, Sadie Jansell, Maude Gray, Henry Fink, Earl Wheeler, Netta Vista, Susie Fisher, Ida Burt Lawrence, Harry Fox, Billy Sousa, Osborn Searle, Arna Deck, Frank Dooley, Jack Kloville, Baby Florence Mascotte, Richards and Grover, Charlie Nevins and Lydia Arnold, Reynolds and Tucker, Meredith Sisters, John Marion and Grace Lillian, Richard Burton, and Marion Wilder.

Examples of the 1908 edition of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" in the Music Division's collections are pictured below with links to fuller bibliographic information in the Library of Congress Online Catalog. Links to additional online content are included when available.

Albert Von Tilzer, composer. Jack Norworth, lyricist. "Take Me Out to the Ball Game." 1927. Library of Congress Music Division.

In 1927, lyricist Jack Norworth revised the song’s lyrics, replacing the name of the leading lady from Katie Casey to Nelly Kelly and presenting a more up-to-date image of the post-suffrage American woman of the late 1920s. Norworth submitted his new edition for copyright, extending the song’s protection (along with his royalties) to 2022. This version was published by Will Von Tilzer's company, the Broadway Music Corporation, which had merged with York Music.

When the time came to renew the original 1908 copyright for "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" (at the time, renewals were mandatory in the 28th year subsequent to the initial registration), Norworth agreed to assign a share of his rights to publisher Jerry Vogel, who actively marketed the song via the Jerry Vogel Music Co. Information about this re-assignment as well as the copyright history for the song appears on the bottom of this edition's first page of music. Surprisingly, the lyrics of the 1936 edition duplicate those printed in Norworth's 1927 edition, and not the original 1908 text.

  • Copyright MCMVIII York Music Co.
  • Copyright Renewed MCMXXXVI by Albert Von Tilzer
  • Copyright Assigned to Broadway Music Corp., 1619 Broadway, New York, NY
  • Copyright Renewed MCMXXXVI by Jack Norworth
  • Copyright Assigned to Jerry Vogel Music Co., Inc, 112 West 44th St., New York, NY

The Music Division does not hold a copy of the 1936 edition in its collections.

Even though the song "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" was showcased in the movie via a brilliant song and dance routine by Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly, no new edition of the song was issued at this time. The Music Division holds five additional songs composed by Roger Edens with lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green that were composed for the movie. These piano-vocal scores were published in New York by Robbins Music Corp. (published); unpublished copies for the show credit Loew’s Incorporated, 1947-1949.

The example displayed here is the song "The Right Girl for Me," featuring cover images of Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly along with Esther Williams wearing heels and shorts, in a batting stance. The remaining published songs use the same cover template and include "O’Brien to Ryan to Goldberg;" "It’s Fate, Baby, It’s Fate;" and "Yes Indeedy and Strictly U.S.A." (music and lyrics both by Edens). Titles for the five unpublished songs originally intended for this show are: "Spring in My Room;" "I’ve Got a Funny Feeling;" "Puttin’ On Airs;" "The Boy in the Celluloid Collar;" and "If It Weren’t for the Irish."

The 1909 song performed by Gene Kelly in the film, "The Hat My Father Wore Upon St. Patrick's Day," with music and lyrics by Jean Schwartz and William Jerome, is housed separately.

Roger Edens, composer; Betty Comden and Adolph Green, lyricists. "The Right Girl For Me" from Take Me Out to the Ball Game. 1947-1949. M1508. Library of Congress Music Division.

The following titles offer a representative sample and link to fuller bibliographic information in the Library of Congress Online Catalog. Links to additional online content are included when available.

The following titles offer a representative sample and link to fuller bibliographic information in the Library of Congress Online Catalog. Links to additional online content are included when available.

A few of the most obvious copycat examples of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" (among many) are listed below.

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