Thinking of Kander & Ebb’s songs this morning,
because that is what I do, arise very early in the morning, have coffee &
consider the great songwriting teams, I wanted to dig deep for a Kander &
Ebb song that I held in high regard, but that readers might not know. There are
platinum tunes from even their biggest flops, I can name so many. But, were they ever
involved in any project as stinky as Funny
Lady, the totally unnecessary 1975 film sequel to Funny Girl. This mess is a highly fictionalized account of the
later life & career of comedienne Fanny Brice & her marriage to
songwriter/empresario- Billy Rose. The film does feature a few well staged
musical numbers & a fair share of absurd production numbers, but several top-notch songs. I always have been drawn to this torchy tune. I would like to do it in my act, in a single pool of
light, in a tux with the tie undone:
I loved the man
Truly I did
When he would touch me
I’d act like a love-hungry kid
Isn't this better?
Somebody nice somebody new
Someone who lets me react as I normally do
Isn't this better?
Better
Passion is fine but passion burns fast
Passions design seems never to last
Better a match
Better a blend
Who needs a lover?
I need a friend
Now I am calm save & serene
Heartache & hurt
Are no longer a
part of the scene
Isn't this better
The way it should be?
Better for him
Much better for him
& also much better for me
Kander/Ebb
1975
Barbra Streisand is always better.
ReplyDeleteYou would sing that beautifully SR!
ReplyDeleteIt has always been one I like a lot.
Lovely song. Unusual time signature. I sang it a few times, in clubs in San Francisco back in the eighties. Without changing the pronouns and such, you understand - wasn't I terribly brave? : )
ReplyDeleteHere's what a great song it is: I bought that soundtrack as a little high school gayling when it came out and until this very post right now, never realized that it had been written for the film. I always assumed it was a standard from the Great American Songbook..... and so, it turns out, it is! Thanks Stephen for the enlightenment.
ReplyDelete