Lyrics To My Funny Valentine

My father’s job had him travel a lot, but everyday that he was home, we would play songs from the Great American Songbook on the upright piano, singing along with quite a few of the songs.  He played all on the black keys; couldn’t read a note of music, and couldn’t identify Middle C, but he played with Vitality and Romance, playing most of the songs as Love Songs to our Mom.  I believe that the Optimism of those tonalities and the Devoted Love implied by most of the lyrics (some of Cole Porter only sardonically so!) set me on a Good Path toward growing up.  By junior high school, the Beach Boys were singing about California girls and blondes, and I knew I wasn’t either of those; later, the Rolling Stones were singing, “Hey, you, get off of my Cloud,” which, for some reason, I took personally.  The first rock ‘n roll song where I ever thought I might recognize myself as being the girl who was loved was Van Morrison’s Brown-Eyed Girl, and I was well into college by then.  But, having heard those Great American Songbook songs from my earliest years, and knowing that my Dad expressed his deep love for our mom everyday in many ways, but especially each time he sang those songs, were what gave me Optimism that I would be Romantically Loved myself one day.  And then there was the music itself, which is probably why I LOVED to dance, and was delighted with the Swing Dance revival that we have experienced in Rhode Island over the last number of years!  Thanks for this show, in advance!

I’ve mentioned this here before:  

My father’s job had him travel a lot, but everyday that he was home, he would play songs from the Great American Songbook on the upright piano, singing along with quite a few of the songs.  He played all on the black keys; couldn’t read a note of music, and couldn’t identify Middle C, but he played with Vitality and Romance, playing most of the songs as Love Songs to our Mom.  I believe that the Optimism of those tonalities and the Devoted Love implied by most of the lyrics (some of Cole Porter only sardonically so!) set me on a Good Path toward growing up.  By junior high school, the Beach Boys were singing about California girls and blondes, and I knew I wasn’t either of those; later, the Rolling Stones were singing, “Hey, you, get off of my Cloud,” which, for some reason, I took personally.  The first rock ‘n roll song where I ever thought I might recognize myself as being the girl who was loved was Van Morrison’s Brown-Eyed Girl, and I was well into college by then.  But, having heard those Great American Songbook songs from my earliest years, and knowing that my Dad expressed his deep love for our mom everyday in many ways, but especially each time he sang those songs, were what gave me Optimism that I would be Romantically Loved myself one day.  And then there was the music itself, which is probably why I LOVED to dance, and was delighted with the Swing Dance revival that we have experienced in Rhode Island over the last number of years!  Thanks for this show, in advance!