We Three (My Echo, My Shadow and Me)
| "We Three (My Echo, My Shadow and Me)" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Frank Sinatra and the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra | ||||
| B-side | "Tell Me at Midnight" | |||
| Released | 1940 | |||
| Label | RCA Victor | |||
| Songwriters | Nelson Cogane, Sammy Mysels and Dick Robertson | |||
| Frank Sinatra and the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"We Three (My Echo, My Shadow and Me)" is a ballad published in 1939 by Nelson Cogane (né Nelson Cogane Fonarow; 1902–1985), Sammy Mysels and Dick Robertson.[1] It was a hit song in 1940 for both The Ink Spots, recorded in July 1940 and released on Decca in October, (b/w "My Greatest Mistake"),[2] and Frank Sinatra with the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra, recorded on August 29 and issued on RCA Victor, backed with "Tell Me at Midnight".[3] Both versions reached No. 3 in Billboard in December.
The song's lyrics describe a man who walks alone in the moonlight, accompanied only by his echo and his shadow, pining for his love, for whom he will wait until eternity.[4]
Other recordings
- Dolores O'Neill recorded "We Three" with the Bob Chester Orchestra on 14 August 1940 in New York City
- Ella Fitzgerald, who would later record with The Ink Spots, also recorded the song for Decca in 1940; it is included on the 2003 CD compilation Jukebox Ella: The Complete Verve Singles, Vol. 1.
Cover versions
- Brenda Lee recorded "We Three" for her 1960 Decca album This Is...Brenda.
References
- ↑ William H. Young, Nancy K. Young Music of the Great Depression 2005 p.64 "Sinatra/ Dorsey also appeared on the charts at #34 with "We Three (My Echo, My Shadow, and Me)" (words and .."
- ↑ "Discography". Archived from the original on December 2, 2014. Retrieved June 27, 2014.
- ↑ "Tommy Dorsey". Discography of American Historical Recordings.
- ↑ Tyler, Don (2007). Hit Songs, 1900-1955: American Popular Music of the Pre-Rock Era. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. p. 253. ISBN 978-0-7864-2946-2. Retrieved December 5, 2025.
