| Mack the Knife | |
|---|---|
| by Kurt Weill | |
| Native name | Die Moritat von Mackie Messer |
| Genre | Moritat |
| Text | Bertolt Brecht |
| Language | German |
| Published | 31 August 1928 |
"Mack the Knife" or "The Ballad of Mack the Knife" (German: "Die Moritat von Mackie Messer") is a song composed by Kurt Weill with lyrics by Bertolt Brecht for their 1928 music drama The Threepenny Opera (German: Die Dreigroschenoper). The song tells of a knife-wielding criminal of the London underworld from the musical named Macheath, the "Mack the Knife" of the title.
The song has become a popular standard recorded by many artists after it was recorded by Louis Armstrong in 1955 with translated lyrics by Marc Blitzstein. The most popular version of the song was by Bobby Darin in 1959, whose recording became a number one hit in the US and UK and earned him two Grammys at the 2nd Annual Grammy Awards. Ella Fitzgerald also received a Grammy for her performance of the song in 1961.
The original German lyrics and music of the song entered the public domain in the United States in 2024.[1]