I love these nominees for Best Original Song. Many of the nominees we heard in Musical Score, and gosh, isn't nice to see them back? The nominees:
"You Keep Coming Back Like a Song" from Blue Skies
music and lyrics by Irving Berlin
****
past winner, sixth of seven song nominations
Thematically relevant, at least! Blue Skies is about a man who can't commit to any work, and that means his wife finds it difficult to commit to a life with him (there's no security in a marriage like that!). This serves as "their" song, ending the film on a hopeful, self-effacing note. They've got their issues, but they keep coming back to each other - they love each other - and they're always willing to work things out.
"Ole Buttermilk Sky" from Canyon Passage
music by Hoagy Carmichael
lyrics by Jack Brooks
****
first of two nominations for Carmichael; first of three nominations for Brooks
Pops up throughout with Hoagy Carmichael himself performing it in character. It's a catchy song that neatly captures the environment of the film in which it plays - you hear it and you know what that set's gonna look like, what the tone's gonna be (surprisingly lighthearted, by the way, despite the, you know, murders and stuff). Now you've heard a snippet of it, be prepared to hum it the rest of the week.
"All Through the Day" from Centennial Summer
music by Jerome Kern
lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II
**
past two-time winner, seventh and final song nomination for Kern; past two-time winner, fourth of five nominations for Hammerstein
Once the chorus starts and everyone joins in for the final sing-along, it's a pretty song - and as you can see, our intendeds react appropriately. It is the dullest song in the show, however, probably the last one I would consider worth nominating.
"I Can't Begin to Tell You" from The Dolly Sisters
music by James V. Monaco
lyrics by Mack Gordon
*
fourth and final nomination for Monaco; past winner, sixth of nine nominations for Gordon
I honestly thought the point of this song is that it is kind of boring?
"On the Atchison Topeka and the Santa Fe" from The Harvey Girls
music by Harry Warren
lyrics by Johnny Mercer
*****
past two-time winner, eighth of eleven nominations for Warner; ninth of eighteen song nominations for Mercer
The lyrics are a roadmap, the music is like the rhythm of a train, neither element is just that. This is a song of true momentum, right up there with "Something's Coming" from West Side Story, a tribute to the spirit of adventure that takes us to new horizons, new adventures, new settings - and we are awed by the fact that it is all possible!
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For the second time in as many days, I co-sign Oscar's pick and vote for:
"ON THE ATCHISON, TOPEKA AND THE SANTE FE"
by
WARREN & MERCER
from
THE HARVEY GIRLS
Tomorrow, the nominees for Best Motion Picture Story: The Dark Mirror, The Strange Love of Martha Ivers, The Stranger, To Each His Own, and Vacation from Marriage.
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