Tra-la-la

This article is about a song. For other uses, see Tra la la.

"Tra-la-la" is a song composed by George and Ira Gershwin for the 1922 Broadway show For Goodness' Sake, produced by frequent Gershwin collaborator Alex A. Aarons. ^[1] It was published with lyrics credited to "Arthur Francis," the pseudonym (derived from the names of his two youngest siblings) that Ira Gershwin used through 1923. ^[2] Of the four songs the Gershwins supplied for this show, ^{[Note 1]} it was the only one to be dropped during tryouts. Ira Gershwin revised the lyric for the 1951 American film An American in Paris , in which the song is performed by Gene Kelly and Oscar Levant. In An American in Paris, it was listed as Tra-la-la (This Time It's Really Love). ^{[3] [4]}

External links

• Original sheet music Digitized copy in the Lest S. Levy Sheet Music Collection, Sheridan Libraries and University Museums, Johns Hopkins University. (Includes undated note from Ira Gershwin about forthcoming new edition, presumably for An American in Paris.)

Notes

1. For Goodness Sake has music primarily by William Daly Jr. and Paul Lannin (1894–1953), lyrics primarily by Arthur Jackson (1893–1922), and book by Fred Jackson. In addition to "Tra-la-la," the Gershwins also supplied the songs "Someone" (published in 1922) and "All to Myself" (part of the music of which is preserved in a piano medley from the show). Additionally, Arthur Jackson and Ira were co-lyricists of "French Pastry Walk," which has music by Lannin and Daly (also published in 1922), and which was used in the 2015 musical A Damsel in Distress . Pollack, Howard (2006). George Gershwin: His Life and Work. Berkeley: University of California Press. p. 265, 751n6.

References

1. Inglis, Thomas; Grower, Janice (2007). The Sheet Music of George Gershwin: A Pictorial Price Guide. Vena Books.
2. "Tra-la-la". Library of Congress Catalog. Library of Congress. Retrieved 28 December 2025.
3. Kimball, Robert (1993). The Complete Lyrics of Ira Gershwin (First ed.). New York: Alfred A. Knopf. p. 25–26. ISBN   0-394-55651-8.
4. Pollack, Howard (2006). George Gershwin: His Life and Work. Berkeley: University of California Press. p. 265–266.