Korney Chukovsky, a writer and immensely popular children's poet, later wrote that the inspiration for the song had been the four lines of the refrain, which were composed in 1928 by the four-year-old boy Kostya Barannikov.
In 1964, the Swedish band, Hootenanny Singers, led by the future ABBA member Björn Ulvaeus recorded and released the song "Gabrielle" based on "May There Always Be Sunshine".
[1] The song was translated into German by Ilse and Hans Naumilkat and Manfred Streubel (as "Immer lebe die Sonne") and was popular among Ernst Thälmann Pioneers.
It was recorded (Hebrew title: אלוהים שמור על אמא) and made popular by his Israeli folk group, The Brothers & the Sisters.
The chorus is sung in English, Russian, French, Spanish, German, and Cantonese with the instrumental accompaniment changing musical styles for each culture.