Rodgers and Hart were an American songwriting partnership between composer Richard Rodgers (1902–1979) and the lyricist Lorenz Hart (1895–1943). They worked together on 28 stage musicals and more than 500 songs from 1919 until Hart's death in 1943.[1]
Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart were introduced in 1919; Rodgers was still in high school while Hart had already graduated from Columbia University.[2] Their first collaboration together was at Columbia, and resulted in the 1920 Varsity Show, Fly With Me, which incidentally also involved Oscar Hammerstein II.[3] After writing together for several years, they produced their first successful Broadway musical, The Garrick Gaieties, in 1925, which introduced their hit song, "Manhattan" and led to a series of successful musicals and films.[1] They quickly became among the most popular songwriters in America, and from 1925 to 1931 had fifteen scores featured on Broadway. In the early 1930s they moved to Hollywood, where they created several popular songs for film, such as "Isn't It Romantic?" and "Lover", before returning to Broadway in 1935 with Billy Rose's Jumbo.[4] From 1935 to Hart's death in 1943, they wrote a string of highly regarded Broadway musicals, most of which were hits.
Many of their stage musicals from the late 1930s were made into films, such as On Your Toes (1936) and Babes in Arms (1937), though rarely with their scores intact. Pal Joey (1940), termed their "masterpiece",[4] has a book by The New Yorker writer John O'Hara. O'Hara adapted his own short stories for the show, which featured a title character who is a heel. So unflinching was the portrait that critic Brooks Atkinson famously asked in his review "Although it is expertly done, how can you draw sweet water from a foul well?" When the show was revived in 1952, audiences had learned to accept darker material (thanks in large part to Rodgers' work with Oscar Hammerstein II). The new production had a considerably longer run than the original and was now considered a classic by critics. Atkinson, reviewing the revival, wrote that "it renews confidence in the professionalism of the theatre."[5]
Analysis
Time Magazine devoted a cover story to Rodgers and Hart (September 26, 1938). They wrote that their success "rests on a commercial instinct that most of their rivals have apparently ignored". The article also noted the "spirit of adventure." "As Rodgers and Hart see it, what was killing musicomedy [sic] was its sameness, its tameness, its eternal rhyming of June with moon."[6]
Their songs have long been favorites of cabaret singers and jazz artists. For example, Ella Fitzgerald recorded their songbook. Andrea Marcovicci based one of her cabaret acts entirely on Rodgers and Hart songs.[7]
Hart's lyrics, facile, vernacular, dazzling, sometimes playful, sometimes melancholic, raised the standard for Broadway songwriting. "His ability to write cleverly and to come up with unexpected, polysyllabic rhymes was something of a trademark, but he also had the even rarer ability to write with utmost simplicity and deep emotion."[8] Rodgers, as a creator of melodies, ranks with Jerome Kern and Irving Berlin.
Their shows belong to the era when musicals were revue-like and librettos were not much more than excuses for comic turns and music cues. Still, just as their songs were a cut above, so did the team try to raise the standard of the musical form in general. Thus, A Connecticut Yankee (1927) was based on Mark Twain's novel, and The Boys From Syracuse (1938) on William Shakespeare's The Comedy of Errors. "They had always considered the integration of story and music a crucial factor in a successful show." They used dance significantly in their work, using the ballets of George Balanchine.[9]
Comparisons between Rodgers and Hart and the successor team of Rodgers and Hammerstein are inevitable. Hammerstein's lyrics project warmth, sincere optimism, and occasional corniness. Hart's lyrics showed greater sophistication in subject matter, more use of overt verbal cleverness, and more of a "New York" or "Broadway" sensibility. The archetypal Rodgers and Hart song, "Manhattan," rhymes "The great big city's a wondrous toy/Just made for a girl and boy" in the first stanza, then reprises with "The city's clamor can never spoil/The dreams of a boy and goil" in the last. Many of the songs ("Falling in Love with Love", "Little Girl Blue", "My Funny Valentine") are wistful or sad, and emotional ambivalence seems to be perceptible in the background of even the sunnier songs. For example, "You Took Advantage of Me" appears to be an evocation of amorous joy, but the very title suggests some doubt as to whether the relationship is mutual or exploitative.[citation needed]
(1943) A Connecticut Yankee (revised, with additional songs, their last collaboration)
Songs
One of Rodgers and Hart's best known songs, "Blue Moon", had an unusual genesis. The tune was originally called "Prayer," and was to be sung by Jean Harlow in the 1934 film Hollywood Party, but was cut. Hart then wrote a new lyric, intended to be the title song for Manhattan Melodrama (1934), which was cut again. A third lyric, "The Bad in Every Man," was used in the film.[10] At the urging of Jack Robbins, head of MGM's music publishing unit, Hart wrote a fourth lyric as a standalone song.[11] Glen Grey and the Casa Loma Orchestra recorded it in 1936, and that version topped the charts for three weeks. Elvis Presley included a haunting version on his self-titled debut album, in 1956. It again was #1 in 1961, this time in the doo-wop style, by the Marcels. Bob Dylan included his Nashville-inflected version of the song on his Self Portrait album of 1970.
Frederick Nolan writes that "My Romance" (written for Jumbo) "features some of the most elegantly wistful lyrics...[it] is, quite simply, one of the best songs Rodgers and Hart ever wrote."[12]
History of The Musical Stage, 1920s IV, by John Kenrick, musicals101.com
January 15, 2023
rodgers, hart, were, american, songwriting, partnership, between, composer, richard, rodgers, 1902, 1979, lyricist, lorenz, hart, 1895, 1943, they, worked, together, stage, musicals, more, than, songs, from, 1919, until, hart, death, 1943, 1936, contents, hist. Rodgers and Hart were an American songwriting partnership between composer Richard Rodgers 1902 1979 and the lyricist Lorenz Hart 1895 1943 They worked together on 28 stage musicals and more than 500 songs from 1919 until Hart s death in 1943 1 Rodgers and Hart 1936 Contents 1 History 2 Analysis 3 Stage and film productions 4 Songs 4 1 List of well known songs 5 Other works 6 See also 7 Notes 8 References 9 External linksHistory EditRichard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart were introduced in 1919 Rodgers was still in high school while Hart had already graduated from Columbia University 2 Their first collaboration together was at Columbia and resulted in the 1920 Varsity Show Fly With Me which incidentally also involved Oscar Hammerstein II 3 After writing together for several years they produced their first successful Broadway musical The Garrick Gaieties in 1925 which introduced their hit song Manhattan and led to a series of successful musicals and films 1 They quickly became among the most popular songwriters in America and from 1925 to 1931 had fifteen scores featured on Broadway In the early 1930s they moved to Hollywood where they created several popular songs for film such as Isn t It Romantic and Lover before returning to Broadway in 1935 with Billy Rose s Jumbo 4 From 1935 to Hart s death in 1943 they wrote a string of highly regarded Broadway musicals most of which were hits Many of their stage musicals from the late 1930s were made into films such as On Your Toes 1936 and Babes in Arms 1937 though rarely with their scores intact Pal Joey 1940 termed their masterpiece 4 has a book by The New Yorker writer John O Hara O Hara adapted his own short stories for the show which featured a title character who is a heel So unflinching was the portrait that critic Brooks Atkinson famously asked in his review Although it is expertly done how can you draw sweet water from a foul well When the show was revived in 1952 audiences had learned to accept darker material thanks in large part to Rodgers work with Oscar Hammerstein II The new production had a considerably longer run than the original and was now considered a classic by critics Atkinson reviewing the revival wrote that it renews confidence in the professionalism of the theatre 5 Analysis EditTime Magazine devoted a cover story to Rodgers and Hart September 26 1938 They wrote that their success rests on a commercial instinct that most of their rivals have apparently ignored The article also noted the spirit of adventure As Rodgers and Hart see it what was killing musicomedy sic was its sameness its tameness its eternal rhyming of June with moon 6 Their songs have long been favorites of cabaret singers and jazz artists For example Ella Fitzgerald recorded their songbook Andrea Marcovicci based one of her cabaret acts entirely on Rodgers and Hart songs 7 Hart s lyrics facile vernacular dazzling sometimes playful sometimes melancholic raised the standard for Broadway songwriting His ability to write cleverly and to come up with unexpected polysyllabic rhymes was something of a trademark but he also had the even rarer ability to write with utmost simplicity and deep emotion 8 Rodgers as a creator of melodies ranks with Jerome Kern and Irving Berlin Their shows belong to the era when musicals were revue like and librettos were not much more than excuses for comic turns and music cues Still just as their songs were a cut above so did the team try to raise the standard of the musical form in general Thus A Connecticut Yankee 1927 was based on Mark Twain s novel and The Boys From Syracuse 1938 on William Shakespeare s The Comedy of Errors They had always considered the integration of story and music a crucial factor in a successful show They used dance significantly in their work using the ballets of George Balanchine 9 Comparisons between Rodgers and Hart and the successor team of Rodgers and Hammerstein are inevitable Hammerstein s lyrics project warmth sincere optimism and occasional corniness Hart s lyrics showed greater sophistication in subject matter more use of overt verbal cleverness and more of a New York or Broadway sensibility The archetypal Rodgers and Hart song Manhattan rhymes The great big city s a wondrous toy Just made for a girl and boy in the first stanza then reprises with The city s clamor can never spoil The dreams of a boy and goil in the last Many of the songs Falling in Love with Love Little Girl Blue My Funny Valentine are wistful or sad and emotional ambivalence seems to be perceptible in the background of even the sunnier songs For example You Took Advantage of Me appears to be an evocation of amorous joy but the very title suggests some doubt as to whether the relationship is mutual or exploitative citation needed Stage and film productions Edit 1920 Fly with Me 1925 The Garrick Gaieties 1925 Dearest Enemy 1926 The Girl Friend 1926 Betsy 1926 Peggy Ann 1926 The Fifth Avenue Follies 1926 Lido Lady 1926 The Garrick Gaieties 2nd Edition 1927 A Connecticut Yankee 1927 One Dam Thing After Another 1928 Present Arms 1928 Chee Chee 1928 She s My Baby 1929 Heads Up 1930 Spring Is Here 1930 Ever Green 1930 Simple Simon 1931 America s Sweetheart 1932 Love Me Tonight film 1932 The Phantom President film 1933 Hallelujah I m a Bum film 1935 Mississippi film 1935 Jumbo 1962 film Billy Rose s Jumbo 1936 On Your Toes 1939 film 1936 The Show Is On Broadway revue with one song by Rodgers and Hart 1937 Babes in Arms 1939 film 1937 I d Rather Be Right 1938 The Boys from Syracuse 1940 film 1938 I Married an Angel 1942 film 1939 Too Many Girls 1940 film 1940 Higher and Higher 1943 film 1940 Pal Joey 1957 film 1940 Two Weeks with Pay 1942 By Jupiter 1943 A Connecticut Yankee revised with additional songs their last collaboration Songs EditOne of Rodgers and Hart s best known songs Blue Moon had an unusual genesis The tune was originally called Prayer and was to be sung by Jean Harlow in the 1934 film Hollywood Party but was cut Hart then wrote a new lyric intended to be the title song for Manhattan Melodrama 1934 which was cut again A third lyric The Bad in Every Man was used in the film 10 At the urging of Jack Robbins head of MGM s music publishing unit Hart wrote a fourth lyric as a standalone song 11 Glen Grey and the Casa Loma Orchestra recorded it in 1936 and that version topped the charts for three weeks Elvis Presley included a haunting version on his self titled debut album in 1956 It again was 1 in 1961 this time in the doo wop style by the Marcels Bob Dylan included his Nashville inflected version of the song on his Self Portrait album of 1970 Frederick Nolan writes that My Romance written for Jumbo features some of the most elegantly wistful lyrics it is quite simply one of the best songs Rodgers and Hart ever wrote 12 Other of their many hits include My Funny Valentine Falling in Love with Love Here In My Arms Mountain Greenery My Heart Stood Still The Blue Room Ten Cents a Dance Dancing on the Ceiling Lover Bewitched Bothered and Bewildered Mimi and Have You Met Miss Jones 13 List of well known songs Edit Dorothy Hart and Robert Kimball ed 1995 The Complete Lyrics of Lorenz Hart Da Capo Press ISBN 0 306 80667 3 1925 Manhattan and Mountain Greenery from The Garrick Gaieties 1925 Here In My Arms from Dearest Enemy 1926 The Blue Room from The Girl Friend 1927 Thou Swell from A Connecticut Yankee 1927 My Heart Stood Still from One Dam Thing After Another 1928 You Took Advantage of Me from Present Arms 1929 A Ship Without a Sail from Me For You 1930 Yours Sincerely and With a Song in My Heart from Spring Is Here 1930 Ten Cents a Dance and Dancing on the Ceiling from Simple Simon 1931 I ve Got Five Dollars from America s Sweetheart 1932 Lover Mimi and Isn t It Romantic from Love Me Tonight 1932 You Are Too Beautiful from Hallelujah I m a Bum 1934 Blue Moon 1935 Little Girl Blue The Most Beautiful Girl in the World from Jumbo 1935 It s Easy to Remember from Mississippi 1936 There s a Small Hotel and Glad to Be Unhappy from On Your Toes 1937 Where or When I Wish I Were in Love Again My Funny Valentine Johnny One Note and The Lady Is a Tramp from Babes in Arms 1937 Have You Met Miss Jones from I d Rather Be Right 1938 This Can t Be Love Falling in Love with Love and Sing For Your Supper from The Boys from Syracuse 1938 Spring Is Here and I ll Tell the Man in the Street from I Married an Angel 1939 I Didn t Know What Time It Was I Like to Recognize the Tune Give It Back to the Indians from Too Many Girls 1940 It Never Entered My Mind from Higher and Higher 1940 Bewitched Bothered and Bewildered I Could Write a Book and Zip from Pal Joey 1942 Wait Till You See Her Nobody s Heart Belongs to Me Ev rything I ve Got from By Jupiter 1943 To Keep My Love Alive from A Connecticut Yankee Other works EditAll Points West 1937 monodrama commissioned by Paul Whiteman and Rodgers amp Hart s first serious compositionSee also EditRodgers and Hammerstein List of songwriter tandems Herbert FieldsNotes Edit a b Rodgers and Hart Biography Guide to Musical Theatre accessed April 5 2009 Zinnser p 31 Vinciguerra Thomas Sing a Song of Morningside The Varsity Show Retrieved January 9 2022 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint url status link a b Everett p 747 Green p 127 Block p 43 Connema Richard Review The Incomparable Andrea Marcovicci Sings Rodgers amp Hart talkinbroadway com August 7 2007 Block p 22 Everett p 754 Philip George Furia amp Michael L Lasser 2006 America s Songs Routledge p 117 ISBN 0415972469 Mordden Ethan 2016 When Broadway Went to Hollywood Oxford University Press ISBN 9780199395422 Nolan p 206 Hart Biography songwritershalloffame org accessed April 5 2009References EditBlock Geoffrey Holden The Richard Rodgers Reader 2002 Oxford University Press US ISBN 0 19 513954 2 Denison Chuck The Great American Songbook Stories of the Standards 2004 Author s Choice Publishing ISBN 1 931741 42 5 Everett William and Laird Paul The Cambridge Companion to the Musical 2008 Cambridge University Press ISBN 0 521 86238 8 Green Stanley The World of Musical Comedy 1984 4th Edition Da Capo Press ISBN 0 306 80207 4 Nolan Frederick Lorenz Hart A Poet on Broadway 1995 Oxford University Press US ISBN 0 19 510289 4 Secrest Meryle Somewhere for Me A Biography of Richard Rodgers 2002 Hal Leonard Corporation ISBN 1 55783 581 0 Zinnser William Easy to Remember 2000 Godine ISBN 1 56792 147 7External links EditInterview with Mary Rodgers about Rodgers and Hart for PBS 1999 Richard Rodgers at IMDb Richard Rodgers at the Internet Broadway Database Lorenz Hart at IMDb History of The Musical Stage 1920s IV by John Kenrick musicals101 com Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Rodgers and Hart amp oldid 1121622779, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
