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I Don't Want to Set the World on Fire
"I Don't Want to Set the World on Fire" is a pop song written by Bennie Benjamin, Eddie Durham, Sol Marcus and Eddie Seiler. Originally written in 1938,[1] the song was first recorded three years later by Harlan Leonard and His Rockets.[2] It was covered by several musicians and groups, most successfully by Horace Heidt on Columbia Records, whose version reached number one on the US pop chart; and by The Ink Spots on Decca in 1941,[3][4] whose version reached number four on the same listing. Other early versions included those by Tommy Tucker, Mitchell Ayres, and (in Britain) Vera Lynn. The song, with its open line "I don't want to set the world on fire / I just want to start a flame in your heart..." became especially popular after the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941.[5] The song was later recorded by Betty Carter, Frankie Laine, Brian Hyland, Anthony Newley, Suzy Bogguss and others.[2] In popular cultureIn the 1949 Ealing comedy film Passport to Pimlico, after it is discovered that Pimlico is technically part of the Duchy of Burgundy, a rendition of the song is performed in celebration of the fact that British music licensing laws no longer apply to Pimlico. In the "Treehouse of Horror XVII" episode of The Simpsons, the Ink Spots' rendition of the song is played as a post-apocalyptic scene brought about by alien invasion fades into the end credits.[6] In the first part of the 1971 Doctor Who episode “Terror of the Autons”, the Third Doctor (Jon Pertwee) sings the song whilst in the TARDIS, but is interrupted by the console catching fire. He continues to hum the tune after he exits the TARDIS.[7] SamplesThis song was quietly sampled by thrash metal band Megadeth on their song "Set the World Afire"[8][9] on their 1988 studio album So Far, So Good... So What! The song was also sampled by Joji (musician) in his song "Asian Pizza" on his PG3* album. [10] [11] [12] The Ink Spots cover
The Ink Spots' 1941 version has been featured in numerous media. The cover has been featured prominently in the Fallout series of media. It can be heard in the Bethesda Softworks video games Fallout 3, Fallout 4 and Fallout 76 on the in-game radio.[13] The cover was also used in the trailer and pilot episode of the first season of the 2024 television show Fallout.[14][15] In the 2023 film All of Us Strangers, Adam's father (Jamie Bell) plays a recording of the Ink Spots' version, explaining to his son (Andrew Scott) that "this was your grandad's favourite." References
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