The Billy Murray Story

The Billy Murray Story

From Blind Skeleton's Three Tune Tuesday by Boneapart and Yulia

May 25, 2026 · 52 min · Episode 115

About this episode

The episode celebrates the life and career of Billy Murray on what would have been his 149th birthday, featuring three significant songs from his career.

Today would have been his 149th birthday, and we are marking the occasion by telling the story of Billy Murray — the Denver Nightingale, the Phonograph King, the Irish-American kid from Colorado who talked his way into a New York recording studio in 1903 and never really left. We open with a song he recorded on his own birthday in 1922, a comic gem that catches him at the height of his powers and right on the edge of the upheaval to come. From there we travel back to one of the defining recordings of the acoustic era — a love song to the automobile that became so embedded in American culture it outlasted practically everything around it. And we close with the song that proved he still had it, a Jazz Age novelty that put him back on the charts at 47, even as the industry was quietly pulling the rug out from under the technique that had made him famous. Three songs, three decades, one remarkable career — happy birthday, Billy. Lyrics I Certainly Must Be in Love Mamey McShane was a dumb, dizzy dame that lived over on Hoist Avenue. She couldn’t be beaten for dancing and eating those two things was all that she knew. She met Jimmy Peter, a nifty cake eater, one night at the gasp at a…

People in this episode

Hosts: Boneapart, Yulia

Topics covered

  • Billy Murray
  • music history
  • acoustic era
  • American culture
  • recording industry
  • birthday tribute

Keywords

  • Billy Murray
  • Denver Nightingale
  • Phonograph King
  • music history
  • acoustic recordings
  • American culture
  • Jazz Age

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Denver Nightingale, Phonograph King

Books & works: I Certainly Must Be in Love, Mamey McShane, Jazz Age novelty

More episodes of Blind Skeleton's Three Tune Tuesday

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Blind Skeleton's Three Tune Tuesday podcast page.