Bobby Troup was born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. He graduated from The Hill School, a preparatory school in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, in 1937. He went on to graduate Phi Beta Kappa from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in economics. He was a member of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon (ΣΑΕ) fraternity and the Mask and Wig Club.
His earliest musical success came with the song "Daddy" which was a regional hit in 1941. Sammy Kaye and His Orchestra recorded "Daddy", which was number one for 8 weeks on the Billboard Best Seller chart and the number five record of 1941. Glenn Miller and His Orchestra performed "Daddy" on their radio broadcasts, and The Andrews Sisters also recorded the song. In the same year, Troup's song "Snootie Little Cutie" was recorded by Frank Sinatra and Connie Haines with the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra and the Pied Pipers.
Upon graduating from college in 1941 he enlisted in the US Marines, but did not receive orders until January 1942. After completing officer training, he was assigned as one of two dozen white officers to direct recruit training at Montford Point, recruit depot for the first African-American Marines. By spring of 1943 he became recreation officer, in which capacity he was able to spearhead improvements to the facilities at Montford, including building a recreation hall, basketball court, and outdoor boxing ring. He was even able to get a friend to install a miniature golf course. During this time he composed the song "Take Me Away From Jacksonville" which was to become an anthem of sorts for the Marines at Montford Point, even extending to other areas of Camp Lejeune. By numerous accounts Troup was the most popular officer among the Montford recruits. In October 1944 he was promoted to Captain, given command of a depot company, and eventually deployed to Saipan where he served to the end of the war.
Bobby Troup's first marriage was to Cynthia Hare. They were married in May 1942 and had two daughters, Cynnie Troup (b. 1943) and Ronne Troup (b. 1945), both of whom had careers in the entertainment industry.
In 1946, Nat King Cole had a hit with Troup's best known song "(Get Your Kicks On) Route 66". It became a popular standard recorded by many artists, including Chuck Berry (1961) and The Rolling Stones (1964). In 1987, Depeche Mode combined the tune with their own composition, "Behind the Wheel", released it as the B-side of "Behind the Wheel" and it became a radio hit on KROQ 106.7 FM in Los Angeles. In 2006, "Route 66" was featured in the animated movie Cars, and the movie RV with Robin Williams.
Troup met his second wife, torch singer Julie London, at the Celebrity Room, where he was singing. It was Troup who encouraged London to pursue her singing career, and in 1955 he produced her million selling hit record "Cry Me a River". London, previously married to actor Jack Webb (1947 to 1953), married Troup in 1959. They remained married until Troup's death in 1999.
Troup's own recordings in the 1950s and 1960s were not commercially successful. He made recordings for Liberty Records and Capitol Records, many with musicians from the West Coast jazz scene.
Troup also wrote the title song (sung by Little Richard) in the classic 1950s rock and roll movie The Girl Can't Help It. An instrumental rendition of his song "The Meaning of the Blues" appeared on the landmark Miles Davis album, Miles Ahead. Troup's hipster interpretation of the fairy tale "The Three Bears" is often erroneously credited to "anonymous" and re-titled "Three Bears Rap", "Three Bears with a Beat", etc. This song was first recorded by the Page Cavanaugh Trio and later by Western Swing bandleader Leon McAuliffe.
Circa 1969 Troup collaborated with entertainer Tommy Leonetti, penning the lyrics for Leonetti's song "My City of Sydney". Leonetti's original recording was used for many years in the close-down sequence for TV station ATN-7 in Sydney, and was also covered by Sydney punk band XL Capris.
In February 1999, Troup died at UCLA Medical Center of a massive heart attack; he was buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in the Hollywood Hills. His wife, Julie London died the following year, and her cremated remains were placed in the columbarium (Columbarium of Providence) niche, next to his.
In the mid-1950s, Troup was one of three regular panelists (along with Mel Blanc and Johnny Mercer) in the game show Musical Chairs, a Bill Leyden-hosted quiz program that aired locally on Los Angeles television for two years before NBC broadcast it in the summer of 1955. On the program, the viewing audience was encouraged to submit questions about music in an effort to stump the panel. The Troup Group provided much of the music in the game show. He also served as host of the ABC show Stars of Jazz featuring various jazz luminaries, particularly those working in Hollywood.
While he relied on songwriting royalties, Troup also worked as an actor, playing musician Tommy Dorsey in the film The Gene Krupa Story (1959). He played himself in the short-lived NBC television series Acapulco. Troup made three guest appearances on Perry Mason, and on two appearances, "The Case of the Jaded Joker" in 1959 and "The Case of the Missing Melody" in 1961, he showed his musical talents. In 1969 and 1970, he appeared as "Bobby" in two episodes of Mannix, where he was a lounge piano player who helped Mannix unravel cases. He again appeared as a piano player in a cameo on The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries in 1978.
In Robert Altman's 1970 film M*A*S*H he had a memorable cameo as a disgruntled staff sergeant assigned to driving Hawkeye and Trapper John around in Japan. (His only line of dialogue is a repeated exasperation, "Goddamn army!") In 1972, Jack Webb, who had previously used Troup in a 1967 episode of the television series Dragnet, cast him opposite Julie London in the US TV series Emergency!. Emergency! was created by Webb, who had recently starred in a revival of Dragnet and was producing NBC's popular Adam-12. London and Troup had remained on cordial terms with Webb, who had used Troup (and his daughter Ronne) in episodes of Adam-12 as well as the revived Dragnet. On Emergency! Troup played Dr. Joe Early, one of the two emergency room doctors featured on the series, while London played head nurse Dixie McCall.
Back in Your Own Backyard
Bobby Troup Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Hoping ev'ry cloud will be silver lined.
But we all return as we live wo learn,
That we left our happiness behind.
When they sing you "Look for the Silver Lining,"
It is silver dollars they're looking for.
You will find my friend that the rainbow's end,
The bird with feathers of blue, is waiting for you,
Back in your own back yard,
You'll see your castle in Spain, through your window pane,
Back in your own back yard.
Oh you can go to the East go to the West,
But someday you'll come weary at heart back where you started from,
You'll find your happiness lies, right under your eyes,
Back in your own backyard.
The lyrics of Bobby Troup's song Back in Your Own Backyard talk about how people often leave their homes in search of happiness and a better future. They expect to find a better world with everything they desire, but they end up learning that true happiness is not out there, but rather back in their own backyard. The first two lines of the song tell us how we leave home hoping to see a silver lining in every cloud, but we often forget to take our happiness with us. We learn from our experiences that the things we carry inside ourselves matter more than what we can find outside.
The second stanza refers to the famous song "Look for the Silver Lining," which suggests that if you look for something positive, you'll eventually find it. However, Troup claims that people who are looking for silver dollars will find that seeking wealth only leads to materialistic desires, but true happiness can be found closer to home. The last stanza refers to the blue bird, which symbolizes happiness waiting for us back in our own backyard. It reminds us that it's important to travel and explore, but we'll eventually come back home, where we'll find the things that truly matter.
Overall, the song encourages people to appreciate what they have and find happiness in the simple things in life. It's a reminder that we don't need to look far to find the things we desire, as they may be waiting for us right in our own backyards.
Line by Line Meaning
We leave home expecting to find a blue bird,
We leave our home for a better life, hoping that our life will become easier and happier, but we often find these hopes to be false and misleading.
Hoping ev'ry cloud will be silver lined.
We hope that every day will bring good news or a positive outcome to our problems.
But we all return as we live wo learn,
However, by experiencing new things, we come to understand and appreciate the value of our home and family.
That we left our happiness behind.
We realize that the simplicity and familiarity of our home is what truly makes us happy, and that we took it for granted.
When they sing you "Look for the Silver Lining,"
When people encourage you to find the positive in situations, they are often looking for monetary benefits instead of true joy or life satisfaction.
It is silver dollars they're looking for.
These people are driven by their desire for wealth and financial gain, rather than the importance of finding true happiness and contentment.
You will find my friend that the rainbow's end,
You will eventually realize that the end of the rainbow, or what you thought would bring you happiness, was not what you expected and was not as valuable as you once thought.
Is somewhere around your kitchen door.
True happiness lies within your personal life and your loved ones, and you will find it when you return to your own home.
The bird with feathers of blue, is waiting for you,
The bird with blue feathers represents the idea of finding joy in things you already have in your life, rather than constantly searching for something new and better.
Back in your own back yard,
This phrase emphasizes the importance of returning to one's roots and appreciating the familiar and comfortable aspects of one's life.
You'll see your castle in Spain, through your window pane,
You will come to understand that the dream or fantasy of living a luxurious life in a foreign land will never bring true happiness, and it is best to find contentment in your familiar and comfortable surroundings.
Oh you can go to the East go to the West,
You can search far and wide for something better than what you already have in life.
But someday you'll come weary at heart back where you started from,
However, eventually you will come to the realization that the comforts and familiarity of your home and hometown are what you truly need in life, even if you once thought otherwise.
You'll find your happiness lies, right under your eyes,
You will discover that true happiness and satisfaction in life is all around you and within your grasp, and has always been present in your everyday life.
Back in your own backyard.
The phrase 'back in your own backyard' reemphasizes the idea of returning to one's roots and finding happiness in the familiar, comfortable aspects of one's life.
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind