The song, Somewhere Over The Rainbow, was written in 1939 for the movie, The Wizard of Oz. It was composed by Harold Arlen and written by Yip Harburg.
Sung by Judy Garland in her staring role as Dorothy Gale, this ballad became her signature song and won the Academy Award for Best Original Song.
For 30 years Garland performed this song and continued to sing it as she had in the film.
The 1939 recording of Somewhere Over the Rainbow was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1981.
Israel Kamakawiw, a Hawaiian singer and songwriter, released his rendition of Somewhere Over the Rainbow on his 1990 album titled Ka’Ano’i.
His acoustic version of the song was featured in several films such as 50 First Dates and Meet Joe Black and television shows such as ER and Charmed.
The Library of Congress selected Kamakawiw’s version of Somewhere Over the Rainbow for preservation in the United States National Recording Registry.
In 1997, Kamakawiw died of respiratory failure at the age of 38.
~Plucking Of My Heartstrings~ 
Aw, there’s no way to pick one version over another on this song. 🤗🌷
It is a tough decision. I had lots of people tell me they liked both.
I like the Kamakawiw arrangement, but there’s something so beautiful about Garland’s voice that it makes me cry.
A lot of people have said there is something special about both versions. Garland had a beautiful voice.