Although technically the lyrics refer to ocean wave motion, what phrase saw one of its earliest uses (both in the title and the lyrics) in a musical context as performed by The Boswell Sisters in the film Transatlantic Merry-Go-Round (1934)? Magazine columnist Maurie Orodenker would later popularize the term in print beginning in 1942. An earlier song by Trixie Smith in 1922 uses a similar, but not exact phrase.