It’s a Grand Night For Singing
is the main production number in the film State Fair, which was the only
musical Rodgers and Hammerstein wrote directly for film. It was a remake of the
non-musical film of 1933 of the same name, which was an adaptation of the 1932
novel by Phil Stong. The musical film was remade in 1962 with Pat Boone and Ann-Margret,
and made into a Broadway musical, with additional R & H songs in 1996. The
story concerns a family of four and their adventures over several days at the
Iowa State Fair. (In the 1933 film, the non-musical version which starred Will
Rogers, they offered to slaughter the hog used in the film and offered the meat
to Rogers. But he said he didn’t feel right eating one of his co-stars!)
It Had To Be You
was written in 1924 by Gus Kahn (lyric) and Isham Jones (music). It was used in
the 1936 short film Melody in May, sung by star of stage, screen, and
radio Ruth Etting, and the 1944 feature film Show Business, where it was
sung by Eddie Cantor. It was sung by Betty Hutton in Incendiary Blonde
(1945), and I’ll See You in My Dreams, the 1951 biopic of lyricist Gus
Kahn. Other occurrences were by Dooley Wilson in Casablanca (1942), Diane
Keaton in Annie Hall (1977), and Megan Cavanagh in A League of Their
Own. It also appeared as the “theme” of the film When Harry Met Sally
(1989).
I’ve Got a Crush on You
is a jazz standard by George and Ira Gershwin, written for two Broadway shows: Treasure
Girl (1928) and Strike Up the Band (1930). It was later used in the
pastiche show Nice Work if You Can Get It (2004). It has been recorded by
Frank Sinatra, Sarah Vaughan, and Ella Fitzgerald, among others. For the 1951
film An American in Paris, Gene Kelley recorded it, but it was omitted
from the released print; however, the tune appears as background music.
They Can’t Take That Away From Me
was written by the Gershwins for the 1936 film Shall We Dance,
where it was introduced by Fred Astaire. In the film, he sings it to Ginger
Rogers on the foggy deck of a ferry crossing from New Jersey to Manhattan, where
they play a married couple having difficulties. Unusual for an Astaire-Rogers
film, it is not followed by a dance sequence. The song also references the
Irving Berlin song “The Song Is Ended (but the Melody Lingers On),” although
this part of the lyric is not included in this concert. “They Can’t Take
That Away From Me” was nominated for a 1937 Oscar for best song, but lost to
“Sweet Leilani” by Bing Crosby.
If I Loved You
is a song from the 1945 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Carousel. In the
show, the characters of Billy and Julie sing this song as they hesitantly
declare their love for one another, yet are too shy to express their true
feelings. The song was in turn inspired by lines of dialogue from Ferenc Molnár’s Liliom, the Hungarian play on which Carousel is based.
There were four hit versions of the song in 1945: by Perry Como (#3), Frank
Sinatra (#7), Bing Crosby (#8) and Harry James (#8).
On a different note, we present a song of
Duke Ellington, Hit Me with a Hot Note and Watch Me Bounce! This song was
written in 1945, and was included in Sophisticated Ladies, the 1981
musical revue of songs by or associated with Ellington. That show also included
“Mood Indigo,” “Take the ‘A’ Train,” “I’m Beginning to See the
Light,” “Perdido,” “It Don’t Mean a Thing (If It Ain’t Got That
Swing),” “I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart,” “Old Man Blues,” “In a
Sentimental Mood,” “Sophisticated Lady,” “Don’t Get Around Much
Anymore,” “Satin Doll,” and “I Got It Bad and That Ain’t Good.”
Charles Trenet was one of the best-known
French singers of the 20th century. During World War II, he went to Paris, and
entertained both the French and the German occupiers. Although he was accused of
collaboration, and even though he spoke fluent German, he refused to speak that
language with the occupiers. After the war he came to New York, where he
continued to have great success. He died in 2001, in his home country. We
present the ballad by Trenet Que Reste-t-il de Nos Amours, for which the
English title is I Wish You Love.
In 1954 Johnny Mercer wrote a song titled Something’s
Gotta Give, which was published in 1955 and first heard in the musical film Daddy
Long Legs, about a man in his 50s (Fred Astaire) who falls in love with a
woman in her 20s (Leslie Caron).The song was nominated for an Oscar for Best
Original Song, but lost to “Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing.”
I’ve Grown Accustomed to Her Face
is from the 1956 Lerner and Loewe Broadway show My Fair Lady, which
interestingly, is about an older man falling for a younger woman! It has been
recorded and performed numerous times, including by Johnny Mathis, Dean Martin,
and Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass. The Muppet Kermit, not yet a frog,
performed it several times, lip-syncing to Rosemary Clooney’s recording.
Come Fly with Me
is a popular 1957 song by Sammy Cahn and Jimmy Van Heusen written for Frank
Sinatra. It was the title track for his 1958 album of the same name, and sets
the agenda for the rest of the songs, which describe trips to various romantic
destinations. Sinatra recorded it several times after that, and it became part
of his concert repertoire.
Nothing Can Stop Me Now!
is from the show The Roar of the Greasepaint – the Smell of the Crowd,
a comedy about British social classes. The title of the show is a switch on
“The smell of the greasepaint, the roar of the crowd,” a description of the
life of an actor in theater.
Dream Lover
is a song written and recorded by Bobby Darin in 1959, with Neil Sedaka on
piano. It reached #2 on the U.S. charts, and #1 in the U.K. It has been covered
by such artists as Glen Campbell and Tanya Tucker (1980), Ricky Nelson (1986),
and Dion & the Belmonts.
Here, There and Everywhere
is a song on the Beatles 1966 album Revolver. McCartney said it was one
of his favorite songs. He said it was inspired by the Beach Boys “God Only
Knows” from their album Pet Sounds. And that song was inspired by the
Beatles album Rubber Soul.
In 2003 there opened on Broadway a show
titled Wicked: The Untold Story of the Witches of Oz, with a surtitle:
“So much happened before Dorothy dropped in.” The story is mainly about two
witches in the Land of Oz, Elphaba and Glinda, who are roommates at Shiz
University, despite their initial loathing for each other. Glinda is well-liked
but Elphaba has green skin, and is despised. After a time they become friends.
Glinda decides Elphaba needs a personality make-over and gives her advice to
Elphaba in the song “Popular”. They meet the wizard, and Elphaba learns how to cast
spells. She decides to defy the wizard: Defying Gravity, while Glinda
decides to work with him. Of course Elphaba becomes the Wicked Witch of the
West, and Glinda the Good Witch of the North.
It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me
is a number from 1980 included on Billy Joel’s album Glass Houses. And
So It Goes, which is a soft rock torch song by Billy Joel about his
unsuccessful relationship with model Elle Macpherson.
Na Na Na
is from the group Pentatonix, an a cappella group from San Antonio. Formed in
2011, they have developed quite a following, with 16 million subscribers to
their YouTube channel.