C. W. Murphy

[3] Another song, "Little Yellow-bird" (1903) (aka "Goodbye, Little Yellow Bird") written with lyricist William Hargreave, was first performed by Ellaline Terriss.

[3] It can be seen performed by Scottish comedian Charlie Naughton in the 1938 film Alf's Button Afloat and by Angela Lansbury in the 1945 film The Picture of Dorian Gray and again by Lansbury in the 1985 episode "Sing a Song of Murder" from her TV series Murder, She Wrote.

In discussing the song, Murphy said: "To find a refrain which will go with a swing is the secret of success in popular song-writing for the general public...

"[4] The song reached the United States, where the lyrics were partly rewritten by William McKenna to set it in New York; it became a hit for Nora Bayes.

[4] Murphy also wrote several songs for Billy Williams, including "Put Me Amongst the Girls" (with Dan Lipton, 1908), as well as continuing to write for Florrie Forde songs including "Hold Your Hand Out, Naughty Boy" (with Worton David, 1913).