"" is a nostalgic German song, originally as related by a young woman remembering her beloved, once-famous clown father. It was written by Swiss composer Paul Burkhard in 1939 for the musical (The Black Pike), reproduced in 1950 as Das Feuerwerk (The Firework) to a libretto by Erik Charell, Jürg Amstein, and Robert Gilbert. In 1954 that musical was turned into the film Fireworks with Lilli Palmer. The song was recorded in English as "Oh! My Papa" by a number of artists, including Eddie Fisher whose version was a number one hit in the US in 1954. Recordings An instrumental version of "Oh, mein Papa" was released by trumpeter Eddie Calvert in late 1953. It topped the UK Singles Chart in 1954, and was also a Top 10 hit in the United States. Calvert's version was the first UK number one hit recorded at Abbey Road Studios. The song returned to Abbey Road when Brian Fahey conducted an instrumental version in 1960, to be used as a backing track for Connie Francis' English-Yiddish recording for her album Connie Francis Sings Jewish Favorites. Francis overdubbed her vocals in Hollywood. In June 1966, Francis overdubbed the same playback once more, this time with the original German lyrics for her German concept album Melodien, die die Welt erobern. It was adapted into English by John Turner and Geoffrey Parsons under the title "Oh! My Pa-Pa". A recording by Eddie Fisher with Hugo Winterhalter's orchestra and chorus that was made at Webster Hall, New York City, was released backed with "Until You Said Goodbye". It was released by RCA Victor Records as catalog number 20-5552 (in US) and by EMI on the His Master's Voice label as catalog number B 10614. It debuted on the Billboard chart on December 12, 1953, and this recording became a No. 1 hit on the U.S. Billboard chart in 1954. Fisher's version also made the UK Top 10; thus, in the UK, Calvert's version was number one in the UK while Fisher's made the top 10, but missed the top spot, and in the U.S., the opposite occurred. The song has been performed and recorded by numerous artists since its debut, including Lys Assia, Siouxsie and the Banshees (on Join Hands (1979), as "Mother/Oh Mein Papa"), Björk (on Gling-Gló, as "Pabbi minn"), and many others. The opening stanza was momentarily quoted in Frank Zappa's song "Billy the Mountain"