It Might as Well Be Spring

Last updated
"It Might as Well Be Spring"
Song
Published1945 by Williamson Music
Songwriter(s) Oscar Hammerstein II
Composer(s) Richard Rodgers

"It Might as Well Be Spring" is a song from the 1945 film State Fair . [1] which features the only original film score by the songwriting team of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. "It Might as Well Be Spring" won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for that year. [1]

Contents

Composition/ As a showtune

Ben Rimalower on It Might as Well Be Spring
A multitude of changes have been made to the various stage & screen incarnations of State Fair since its debut as an original Hollywood musical in 1945, but one element that won't ever be altered is the inclusion of the first-rate song "It Might As Well Be Spring." A true standard of the Great American Songbook, "It Might As Well be Spring" has been covered by countless singers drawn to its rich music & evocative lyrics, both of which manage to be simultaneously moody & soaring, coolly jazzy & unabashedly emotional. [2]

The song is sung early in the film by Margy the teenage daughter of the State Fair-bound Frake family, who is feeling the symptoms of spring fever. Oscar Hammerstein, the lyricist for the Rodgers & Hammerstein team, mentioned to Richard Rodgers that although state fairs were held in summer or autumn, for Margy – flushed by the stirrings of womanhood – "it might as well be spring". Rodgers immediately advised Hammerstein that the latter had just named the song. [3]

An early version of the composition exists with an alternate melody. Music historian Todd Purdum described the alternate version in 2018:

It is the only Rodgers and Hammerstein song for which a complete alternate melody, different from the final version, is known to exist. Rodgers’ initial take was a legato musical line, but as he pondered Hammerstein's words he thought better of his first idea, and instead substituted a syncopated melody that jumped from interval to interval, as if the notes themselves were puppets on strings." [4]

Rodgers envisioned "It Might as Well Be Spring" as a cheery uptempo number, its being the decision of the musical director of State Fair, Alfred Newman, to present the song as a moody ballad. Rodgers canvassed the film studio to protest Newman's decision, but did ultimately admit it was the right choice.

In the 1945 film Jeanne Crain played Margy Frake, [1] Margy's singing voice being dubbed by Louanne Hogan. In the 1962 remake of State Fair, in which Pamela Tiffin portrayed Margy, Anita Gordon provided the character's singing voice. Andrea McArdle as Margy performed "It Might as Well Be Spring" in the 1996 Broadway production of State Fair . Reviewing State Fair's pre-Broadway engagement at the Golden Gate Theater, Robert Hurwitt of the San Francisco Examiner deemed the "wondrous" song "It Might as Well be Spring" to be "as achingly wistful a romantic reverie as has ever been penned". [5]

Recorded versions

Related Research Articles

"Teach Me Tonight" is a popular song that has become a jazz standard. The music was written by Gene De Paul, the lyrics by Sammy Cahn. The song was published in 1953.

"Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'" is the opening song from the musical Oklahoma!, which premiered on Broadway in 1943. It was written by composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist/librettist Oscar Hammerstein II. The leading male character in Oklahoma!, Curly McLain, sings the song at the beginning of the first scene of the musical. The refrain runs: "Oh, what a beautiful mornin'! / Oh, what a beautiful day! / I've got a beautiful feelin' / Ev'rythin's goin' my way." Curly's "brimming optimism is perfectly captured by Rodgers' ebullient music and Hammerstein's buoyant pastoral lyrics."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Happy Talk (song)</span> 1949 show tune from the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical South Pacific

"Happy Talk" is a show tune from the 1949 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical South Pacific. It is sung by Bloody Mary to the American lieutenant Joe Cable, about having a happy life, after he begins romancing her daughter Liat. Liat performs the song with hand gestures as Mary sings.

"So Far" is a show tune from the 1947 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Allegro when it was introduced by the character "Beulah" played by Gloria Wills.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Nearness of You</span> 1940 single by Glenn Miller

"The Nearness of You" is a popular song written in 1937 by Hoagy Carmichael with lyrics by Ned Washington. Intended for an unproduced Paramount film titled Romance In The Rough, the studio's publishing division Famous Music reregistered and published the song in 1940. It was first recorded by Chick Bullock and his Orchestra on Vocalion. Despite numerous accounts to the contrary, the song was never scheduled for and does not appear in the 1938 Paramount film Romance in the Dark.

<i>State Fair</i> (musical) Musical

State Fair is a musical with a book by Tom Briggs and Louis Mattioli, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, and music by Richard Rodgers.

"Thou Swell" is a show tune, a popular song and a jazz standard written in 1927.

"I'm in Love with a Wonderful Guy" is a show tune from the 1949 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical South Pacific. It was first introduced by Mary Martin in the original Broadway production and sung by Mitzi Gaynor in the 1958 film adaptation.

"That's For Me" is a popular song, written by Richard Rodgers, with the lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II. The song was published in 1945 and included in the 1945 version of the musical film State Fair.

"The Sweetest Sounds" is a popular song, with words and music written by Richard Rodgers for the 1962 musical No Strings. The song opens and closes the show for characters Barbara Woodruff and David Jordan, performed by Diahann Carroll and Richard Kiley in the original Broadway theatre production and subsequent cast recording.

<i>State Fair</i> (1945 film) 1945 original musical film

State Fair is a 1945 American Technicolor musical film directed by Walter Lang, with original music by Rodgers and Hammerstein. It is a musical adaptation of the 1933 film of the same name starring Janet Gaynor and Will Rogers. The 1933 film is an adaptation of the 1932 novel by Phil Stong. This 1945 musical film stars Jeanne Crain, Dana Andrews, Dick Haymes, Vivian Blaine, Fay Bainter, and Charles Winninger. State Fair was remade in 1962, starring Pat Boone and Ann-Margret.

<i>State Fair</i> (1962 film) 1962 film

State Fair is a 1962 American musical film directed by José Ferrer and starring Pat Boone, Bobby Darin, Ann-Margret, Tom Ewell, Pamela Tiffin and Alice Faye. A remake of the 1933 film State Fair and the 1945 film State Fair, it was considered to be a financially and critically unsuccessful film. Richard Rodgers, whose collaborator Oscar Hammerstein had died in 1960, wrote additional songs, both music and lyrics, for this film adaptation of the 1932 novel by Phil Stong.

"My Favorite Things" is a song from the 1959 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical The Sound of Music.

"'Deed I Do" is a 1926 jazz standard composed by Fred Rose with lyrics by Walter Hirsch. It was introduced by vaudeville performer S. L. Stambaugh and popularized by Ben Bernie's recording. It was recorded by influential clarinetist and bandleader Benny Goodman as his debut recording in December 1926 with Ben Pollack and His Californians. Ruth Etting's rendition of the song became a top ten hit in 1927 as did the version by Johnny Marvin.

"Younger than Springtime" is a show tune from the 1949 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical South Pacific. It has been widely recorded as a jazz standard.

<i>Johnny Mathis</i> (album) 1956 studio album by Johnny Mathis

Johnny Mathis is the first studio album by vocalist Johnny Mathis that was released by Columbia Records in 1956. The subtitle A New Sound in Popular Song can be found on the back cover but not on the front of the album or the disc label; in fact, this Mathis LP has been referred to as "the jazz album".

<i>The Best of John Coltrane</i> 1970 greatest hits album by John Coltrane

The Best of John Coltrane is a 1970 compilation album released by Atlantic Records collecting recordings made by jazz saxophonist John Coltrane. The album was released shortly after his death as a part of the "Atlantic Jazz Anthology"—a series of greatest hits compilations for Atlantic jazz artists—and features performances from his brief period recording for Atlantic with new liner notes by jazz journalist Nat Hentoff.

<i>State Fair</i> (novel) Book by Phil Stong

State Fair is a 1932 novel by Phil Stong about an Iowa farm family's visit to the Iowa State Fair, where the family's two teenage children each fall in love, but ultimately break up with their respective new loves and return to their familiar life back on the farm. Thomas Leslie, the author of Iowa State Fair: Country Comes to Town, wrote that the novel State Fair is "a surprisingly dark coming-of-age story that took as its major plot device the effects of the 'worldly temptations' of the Iowa State Fair on a local farming family", capturing tensions between urban Des Moines and rural Iowa.

<i>Introducing Brad Mehldau</i> 1995 studio album by Brad Mehldau

Introducing Brad Mehldau is an album by pianist and composer Brad Mehldau, released on the Warner Bros. label in 1995.

<i>Progression: The Art of the Trio, Vol. 5</i> 2001 live album by Brad Mehldau

Progression: The Art of the Trio, Vol. 5 is a live album by American pianist and composer Brad Mehldau released on the Warner Bros. label in 2001.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 134. ISBN   1-904994-10-5.
  2. ↑ "Something Wonderful: Top 10 Songs by Rodgers & Hammerstein".
  3. ↑ Brown, Mick (2004). The Great American Songbook: stories behind the standards. Bandon OR: Robert D. Reed. p. 82. ISBN   9-7819317-4142-2.
  4. ↑ Purdum, Todd S. (2018). Something Wonderful. New York: Henry Holt and Company. p. 104. ISBN   978-1-62779-834-1.
  5. ↑ San Francisco Examiner October 5, 1995, "Pretty Fair 'State Fair' by Robert Hurwitt p.39
  6. 1 2 Gilliland, John (c. 1975). "Pop Chronicles 1940s Program #13". UNT Digital Library.
  7. 1 2 3 Whitburn, Joel (1973). Top Pop Records 1940-1955. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research.
  8. ↑ 1 December 1988 Philadelphia Inquirer 'The Divine Sarah Vaughan: The Columbia Years 1949-1953' reviewed by Francis Davis p. 82
  9. ↑ "www.allmusic.com". www.allmusic.com. Retrieved June 26, 2024.
  10. ↑ "www.allmusic.com". www.allmusic.com. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  11. ↑ "Hold Me Tight". amazon.co.uk. December 4, 2013. Retrieved 19 October 2016.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.