Shelton Brooks and "Some of These Days" was brought to Sophie Tucker's attention in 1910 by her maid, who insisted she meet Brooks and hear the song.[1] Tucker instantly recognized its hit potential, performed and recorded many versions throughout the years, and eventually it became her signature song—including landing movie appearances to perform it.
Tucker first recorded the song along with others on wax cylinder format in 1910–11. In 1926, on 78 RPM record format and backed by Ted Lewis and his band, Tucker recorded her classic, million-selling 1926 version, which stayed in the #1 position on the charts for five weeks beginning November 23, 1926, and re-affirmed her lasting association with the song.[2]
"Some of These Days" made the first of many movie soundtrack appearances in Lights of New York (1928), the first "all talking" motion picture, being one of several songs played by the house band of the nightclub where the film is set. Sophie Tucker herself sang "Some of These Days" in character as a nightclub singer in the 1929 film Honky Tonk with reprise performances (as herself) in Broadway Melody of 1938 and Follow the Boys (1944).
Other films to feature the song include Scarface and Three on a Match (both 1932), both featuring actress Ann Dvorak dancing to the song: in Scarface the song is played in a nightclub by Gus Arnheim's band while in Three on a Match Dvorak dances while actor Harry Seymour plays "Some of These Days" on a piano.
The song is performed in the 1930 Talkartoon cartoon Wise Flies by a villainous spider attempting to seduce a female fly. The spider's vocals are taken directly from a 1929 Eddie Peabody recording.
The 1931 film An American Tragedy features a group of young adults singing the song while lounging in canoes on a lake. The song is performed with only a guitar, while percussions are used by tapping on the canoes and body of the guitar, while the trumpet parts are scatted by some of the crowd.
The song is performed by Slim Thompson in 1939 movie Lying Lips.
Calloway's recording appears on the soundtrack of Forbidden Zone (1980), with Oingo Boingo member Gene Cunningham in the role of Papa Hercules lip synching Calloway's vocals.
The song, or a particular recording of it, is a recurrent theme in Jean-Paul Sartre's 1938 novel Nausea. Sartre imagines some details of the "Negress" who sings it, possibly Ethel Waters. He further imagines that it was composed by a "Jew with black eyebrows" rather than the actual composer, Shelton Brooks.
In the Mama's Family third-season episode “Grandma USA”, Thelma Harper (Vicki Lawrence) sings the song during the talent portion of a beauty contest for grandmothers.
In the White Collar fourth season episode "Empire City", June Ellington (Diahann Carroll) sings the song during the finale.
Early in the novel SexusbyHenry Miller, the song is mentioned as being sung during a dinner celebrating a work bonus of $350.
The song's lyrics are featured in "Batman" vol. 3 Annual 2 (2017) by Tom King.
