Hello ‘Way Up There
Bob Nolan/Lloyd Perryman
Original copyright: Undetermined
Shinin’ out yonder in the Heaven’s blue,
I see a distant star,
Sometimes I wonder if it isn’t you,
Beckoning me from afar.
Hello, Way Up Yonder in the Blue.
“Hello. How is everything with you?”
Are there herds of buffalo like we once had here below,
Up there?
Is Cody and his pals and all the old time gals up there,
Up there?
Hello, Way Up Yonder in the Blue.
Is the Boss just like they say, that his dogies[1] never stray
Nor you?
[1] Dogies are stray or motherless calves
ABOUT THIS SONG
Hello, 'Way Up There" is a lovely little work-for-hire piece Bob and Lloyd Perryman wrote for West of the Santa Fe, a 1938 film starring Charles Starrett. Because songwriting was part of his salary, the song rights belonged to Columbia Pictures. In other words, although they wrote the song, Bob Nolan and Lloyd Perryman were never able to register it for copyright themselves. It is credited to Bob and, verbally by Bob, to Lloyd. The Sons of the Pioneers were fond of this song and included it in their Orthacoustic Symphonies of the Sage collection in 1940. They used it several times in the Teleways Radio Production transcriptions. Always young Lloyd's beautiful tenor carried the song. It was never commercially recorded by the Sons of the Pioneers.
“There’s a song Lloyd Perryman and I wrote a few years back [that] pretty much captures the idea of what goes on in a cowpuncher’s mind when he’s out on the range at night all by himself looking up at the stars….”
(Bob’s introductory comments to the song on the Teleways Transcription No. 69)
We use the title as is given on the sheet music and in the film, but the song is also known as "Hello, Way Up Yonder". Bob alone is credited as the writer on the sheet music but on the lyric sheet he acknowledges Lloyd’s contribution. According to Bob’s statement to Ken Griffis, he refused to put his name to a song unless he had done most of the work.
“Nolan and Spencer wrote few songs together. According to Nolan, they each worked better alone. The only time Nolan assisted Spencer was when Tim would get busy and Nolan would put the finishing touches on one of Spencer’s songs. ‘Unless I did the major portion of the song, such as Blue Prairie,’ Nolan commented, ‘I wouldn’t put my name on it. Over the years I did help Timmy on several tunes.’”
(Hear My Song: The Story of the Celebrated Sons of the Pioneers, p. 32)