Jerome Kern (1885 – 1945) was an American composer of musical theatre and popular music. One of the most important American theatre composers of the early 20th century, he wrote more than 700 songs, used in over 100 stage works. A native of New York, Kern created dozens of Broadway musicals and Hollywood movies in a career that lasted for more than four decades. His musical innovations, such as 4/4 dance rhythms and the employment of syncopation and jazz progressions, built on, rather than rejected, earlier musical theatre tradition. He and his collaborators also employed his melodies to further the action or develop characterization to a greater extent than in the other musicals of his day, creating the model for later musicals. So today we will highlight some of the best tunes in chronological order.
“Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man” with music by Kern, and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, is one of the most famous songs from their classic 1927musical play, Showboat, adapted from Edna Ferber’s 1926 novel. The song, written in a blues tempo, is sung in the show by several characters, but is most closely associated with the character Julie, the biracial leading lady of the showboat Cotton Blossom. It is Julie who is first heard singing the song – to Magnolia, the daughter of Cap’n Andy Hawks and his wife Parthenia (Parthy), owners of the showboat. In the musical’s plot, the number is supposed to be a song familiar to African-Americans for years, and this provides one of the most dramatic moments in the show. When Queenie, the black cook, comments that it is strange that light-skinned Julie knows the song because only black people sing it, Julie becomes visibly uncomfortable. Later, we learn that this is because Julie is “passing” as white – she and her white husband are guilty of miscegenation under the state’s law.
“Smoke Gets in Your Eyes” written by Kern and lyricist Otto Harbach for the 1933 musical Roberta. Its first recorded performance was by Gertude Niesen, who recorded the song in October 1933. Paul Whiteman had the first hit recording of the song on the record charts in 1934. The song was reprised by Irene Dunne, who performed it in the 1935 film of the musical co-starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.. The song was also included in the 1952 remake of Roberta, Lovely to Look At, in which it was performed by Kathryn Grayson, and was a number 1 chart hit in 1959 for The Platters, the latter being the version through which I first became aware of the song.
“I Won’t Dance” is a jazz standard with music by Kern and lyrics written by Dorothy Fields in 1935. Fields was hired to help with the music for a film version of the 1933 Kern-Harbach musical Roberta. The writing team decided to make use of “I Won’t Dance” for the film. However, Fields rewrote nearly all of the lyrics, making the song more playful and suggestive by having the narrator refuse to dance because “I know that music leads the way to romance”. The song became such a hit, largely due to the fact that it was performed by Fred Astaire, that it is now included in all stage revivals and recordings of Roberta.
“A Fine Romance” composed by Kern with lyrics by Dorothy Fields, published in 1936. The song was written for the musical film ‘Swing Time’, where it was co-introduced by Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. Astaire recorded a solo version of the song in July 1936 for Brunswick records and it topped the charts of the day for five weeks.
“The Way You Look Tonight” is a also song from the film Swing Time that was performed by Fred Astaire and composed by Kern with lyrics written by Dorothy Fields. It won the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1936. Fields remarked, “The first time Jerry played that melody for me I went out and started to cry. The release absolutely killed me. I couldn’t stop, it was so beautiful.” In the movie, Astaire sang “The Way You Look Tonight” to Ginger Rogers while she was washing her hair in an adjacent room. His recording reached the top of the charts in 1936.
“All the Things You Are” is a song composed by Kern with lyrics written by Oscar Hammerstein II. The song was written for the musical Very Warm for May (1939). It appeared in the film Broadway Rhythm (1944), and again in the Kern biopic Till the Clouds Roll By (1946), Because of its combination of a strong melody and challenging but logical chord structure, “All the Things You Are” has become a popular jazz standard. The melody is reminiscent of the Ave Maria by Vavilov (often attributed to Caccini). Here is modern version of the song sung by Carly Simon.
