A column dedicated to great songs, old and new.
June 28, 2005
Written by Cole Porter
From Songs for Swingin' Lovers!, Reprise Records, 1961
Cole Porter was a badass. It's been 71 years since he wrote "Anything Goes", and you'd be hard-pressed to find a songwriter who came after him with as much literate charm and cheeky humor. For those of us raised on R&B, rock, and rap, the style of early 20th century popular songwriters may at first seem dated/corny (and embarrassingly devoid of street edge and grit) but there is a staggering amount of songwriting smarts behind many of the songs of that era.
Songs For Swingin' Lovers!
Frank Sinatra
Cole Porter had the wit, the rag, the singalong melodies, and, when needed, the cornball instincts to capture the ears of his listeners. "Anything Goes"; possesses that seemingly-effortless-yet-highly-disciplined craft typical of Porter's work. Dig this lyric, characterized by the ragtime-influenced accents and phrasing:
"In olden days, a glimpse of stocking
was looked on as something shocking.
Now heaven knows,
Anything goes!";
The song goes on to give similar examples of how "anything goes", including a (seeming) jab at contemporary writers:
"Good authors, too, who once knew better words
Now only use four-letter words writin' prose...
Anything goes!"
Interestingly, Sinatra's version here omits the one verse of "Anything Goes" which hints at the economic difficulties of the thirties and the unpredictablity of the stock market ("anything goes", indeed). Perhaps Sinatra wanted to keep the feel a little more upbeat, as this particular album is supposed to celebrate the romance of 60s swingin' lovers, not the financial realities of the thirties. Nevertheless, Sinatra's vocal throughout this version is archetypal Frank: cool, precise, dead-on. One of the fun things about exploring the work of songwriters like Porter or Irving Berlin is discovering the various interpretations recorded over the years. I've found that I like Sinatra and Ella Fitzgerald best for this material. I've also found that withholding judgement on the high-society milieu which Porter loved, and which many of these types of songs celebrate, really helps to appreciate these pieces on a musical level.
After all, once you get past your hang-ups, anything goes.
pcm
Purchase:
Songs for Swingin' Lovers!
at Amazon.com
at Tower
Records
Recommended Reading:
The Poets of Tin Pan Alley: A History of America's Great Lyricists (Oxford
Paperbacks)
at Amazon.com