“When My Blue Moon Turns to Gold Again” was co-written by Wiley Walker and Gene Sullivan and first recorded by Walker and Sullivan as a country duo in 1941. The song became one of the more frequently covered country pieces of the 1940s, with Merle Travis, Eddie Arnold, and Elvis Presley all cutting versions before the song crossed cleanly into bluegrass through the mid-century.
The lyric works the central conceit of the “blue moon” turning back to its earlier “gold” state — the narrator’s hard-luck mood being lifted when his sweetheart returns to him. The conceit pairs a quiet astronomical-and-emotional metaphor with the standard country heartbreak-and-reconciliation arc.
A notable recording is Jim and Jesse and the Virginia Boys’ 1963 Capitol reading. Jim McReynolds’s high baritone lead, Jesse’s signature crosspicked mandolin break, and the Virginia Boys’ tight backing turn the song into a brisk bluegrass piece. It works as a moderate-up-tempo vocal feature in G with a clear chorus harmony slot. The song has been a regular call in bluegrass and country sets for decades.
