But perhaps its peculiar lyric, which makes it seem (and yet not seem) to have a Christmas-y connotation, may have quashed its potential to become a true classic. It seems like this was staged to be Dinah’s big showcase in the film.”Macauley notes that “Sleigh Ride in July” became a “minor hit” on the pop charts for both Shore and Bing Crosby. I think she does particularly well, and I like how it’s staged, with Dinah getting a boost from Gypsy in the wings before pushes her back out for the encore. “ presented first as a teary confessional and then a rousing ‘get yourself together, girl’ sing-along. She was 28 when she filmed it, which makes her about 90 in ingenue years in ‘40s “Dinah is way too old to be the naïve daughter. “It’s a weird movie,” says Macauley of Belle. Singer Jeff Macauley prepared his own version of it for his 1997 tribute show, MWAH! The Dinah Shore Show (revived in 2016), but the number was eventually cut from the setlist, as was a somewhat better-known Van Heusen / Burke song from Belle: “Like Someone in Love,” which, over the years, has become something of a jazz standard. This is not a song one hears often in cabaret shows. Cabaret Setlist: ' Sleighride In July' Music by James Van Heusen, Lyrics by Johnny Burke
