We begin with Cole Porter's You're the Top! one of the songs in Tin Pan Alley known as "list songs" (songs that make a list). This song's lyric is especially hard to pin down since each singer might sing special lyrics, either written by Porter himself for that singer or made up by the singer. Being a jazz singer, Anita O'Day sings part of the original lyric in the first chorus, then refers to jazz musicians in the second chorus.
Cole Porter was one of the great composers of Tin Pan Alley, a type of show music that was the main source of popular music from the 1920s to the 1960s. As the saying goes, "they don't make 'em like that anymore." These songs have stood the test of time. Just a few weeks ago, Rock singer Rod Stewart released his third album of Tin Pan Alley standards, which peaked at Number 1 on Billboard's pop chart. To his credit, Stewart sings not only the choruses, but the verses of the songs too.
Verses led up to the chorus, which had the main tune that "sold" the record. As radio became more commercial, stations preferred records without the verse because it took up less air time to play! Besides, as Rock 'n' Roll took over, listeners wanted to hear the main tune quickly.
So many pop versions of these great Tin Pan Alley songs don't have the verses that belong with the chorus. (How many people know the verse for White Christmas?) It's a pity, because some witty lyrics are lost, such as in the clever verse for As Time Goes By, almost never sung today (Tony Bennet has a recording with the complete verse). Besides, the best Tin Pan Alley composers could write beautiful music for the verses too, such as Hoagy Carmichael's Stardust, Gershwin's Someone To Watch Over Me, and many of Porter's verses. Rarely, a song lacked a verse, such as Smoke Gets In Your Eyes. Some songs even lacked a bridge (or middle section) for the chorus, such as You're the Top!
Anita O'Day was probably the greatest white jazz vocalist ever, with an amazing ability to reinvent the melody of the song while singing. She also scatted well, as we hear at the end of this recording of You're the Top. (Scat singing is a type of singing using nonsense syllables instead of words.)
Study the starred words in the song and we'll discuss them in class. "Words poetic" is an example of what is called "poetic license." This is the freedom to change word order for the sake of rhyme in poetry, as Edgar Allan Poe does in The Raven: "Once upon a midnight dreary" (instead of "dreary midnight") because he needs to rhyme "dreary" with "weary" in the next line. Another example is the famous Christmas carol, It Came Upon a Midnight Clear where the correct word order should be, "It came upon a clear midnight." This reversal of normal word order, "licensed" (allowed) in poetry or pop songs is called transposition or transposed word order.
The word "pathetic" comes from the word, "pathos," meaning feeling (as in "sympathy" or "empathy"); but here the word is better translated as "bad," but still related to "feeling" (in other words, "so bad, you're to be pitied" or "felt sorry for").
You're the Top
At words poetic*, I'm so pathetic*
That I always have found it best,
Instead of getting them off my chest*
To let them rest unexpressed.
I hate parading my serenading*
As I'll probably miss a bar*,
But if this ditty* is not so pretty,
At least it'll tell you how great you are.
(Chorus 1)
You're the top! You're the colosseum
You're the top! You're the art museum
You're a melody from a symphony by Strauss,
You're a Bendel bonnet, a Shakespeare sonnet*,
You're Mickey Mouse!
You're the NIle*, You're the Tower of Pisa,
You're the smile on the Mona Lisa.
I'm a worthless check, a total wreck, a flop*,
But if, Baby, I'm the bottom,
You're the top!
{Second Chorus}
You're the top,
You're like Sarah* singing *Sarah Vaughan, jazz vocalist
You're the bop* *beat; jazz style
You're like Yardbird* swinging *Charlie Parker, jazz saxophonist
You're the ????
You're the greatest song
That Eckstein* ever sung *Billy Eckstein, jazz vocalist
You're a Moscow view
You're oh so cool*
You're Lester Young* *Jazz saxophonist
You're the high
In a downbeat tally*
You're the guy
Who owns Tin Pan Alley* *28th Street (NYC) where pop songs were "plugged."
You're Tatum's* left hand, Goodman's* swing band
Lena Horne* won't stop
But if baby I'm the bottom you're the top!
*Art Tatum, jazz pianist; Benny Goodman, jazz bandleader; Lena Horne, jazz vocalist.
I Won't Say I Will
Brother Ira was one of the finest American lyricists with many clever rhymes. For example, in Biding My Time he rhymes on a terminal (ending) contraction, which is ungrammatical in English but very funny in a pop song: "I'm biding my time, / 'Cause that's the kind of gal I'm." Besides being funny, it's a great way for ESL students to remember how to say "I'm" (simple: it rhymes with "time"):
You're a very naughty boy
When you ask me for a kiss
I'm dismayed*, a little bit afraid. *puzzled, confused
Now holding hands is quite a joy
For a truly modest Miss* *woman
I should do just as well for you.
I am not refusing you, Dear,
Let me make this perfectly clear:
I won't say I will, but I won't I won't
I don't say I do, but I don't say I don't
{Bridge}
Kissing of any kind never was on my mind
Maybe I can arrange it,
It's my mind and I change it.
I might say I might, but modesty forbids
That's the reason why I don't
So you mustn't be cross* at a little delay *angry
You ought to know Rome wasn't built in in day
I won't I will but I won't say I won't
You'd be taking your kiss if you had any cheek* *boldness
Maybe I'd scream but my voice is so weak
I won't say I will but I won't say I won't.
DON'T
Don't say Don't as "do not," at least not if you plan to be a disc jockey! This final song teaching contractions is an Elvis Presley ballad called Do Not, no! I mean, Don't.
As you can hear, Elvis sings "don't," not "do not." As you can see in this record sleeve photo, Elvis was a natural blonde, although he dyed his hair black for most appearances. I'm not sure about Eminem.
The song reached Number 1 in January, 1958:
Don't, don't, that's what you say
Each time that I hold you this way
When I feel like this and I want to kiss you
Baby, don't say don't (don't, don't)
Don't, don't leave my embrace
For here in my arms is your place
When the night grows cold and I want to hold you
baby, don't say don't (don't, don't)
If you think that this is just a game I'm playing
If you think that I don't mean every word I'm saying
Don't (don't) don't (don't) don't feel that way
I'm your love and yours I will stay
This you can believe, I will never leave you
Heaven knows I won't (don't)
Baby, don't say don't (don't, please, don't)!
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