I Could Write a Book
{{short description|1940 song composed by Richard Rodgers with lyrics by Lorenz Hart}}
{{Infobox song
| name = I Could Write a Book
| cover =
| alt =
| type = song
| written =
| published = 1940
| writer =
| composer = Richard Rodgers
| lyricist = Lorenz Hart
}}
"I Could Write a Book" is a show tune from the 1940 Rodgers and Hart musical Pal Joey,{{cite book |last=Banfield |first=Stephen |chapter=Popular Song and Popular Music on Stage and Film |editor-last=Nicholls |editor-first=David |title=The Cambridge History of American Music |year=1998 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-45429-2 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/cambridgehistory0000unse_y6c4/page/329 329–330]|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/cambridgehistory0000unse_y6c4/page/329 }} where it was introduced by Gene Kelly and Leila Ernst. It is considered a standard.
Critical reception
An uncredited critic reviewing "New Plays in Manhattan" for Time said of Pal Joey that the musical contains "all the dancing anyone could want and at least three more great Richard Rodgers tunes: 'I Could Write a Book' (sweet), 'Love Is My Friend' (torchy), 'Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered' (catchy)."(No author.) "New plays in Manhattan," Time, 37:1, 6 January 1941.
Cover versions
The song has been covered by such artists as: Anita O'Day,{{cite web|title=www.allmusic.com|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/anita-oday-and-billy-may-swing-rodgers-and-hart-mw0000687483|website=www.allmusic.com|accessdate=July 3, 2024}} Frank D'Rone,{{cite web|url=https://jazzjournal.co.uk/2019/06/15/frank-drone-sings-after-the-ball/|title=Frank D'Rone: Sings / After The Ball|last=Wright|first=Matthew|date=June 15, 2019|work=Jazz Journal|access-date=September 1, 2019}} Vince Guaraldi,{{cite web |url= http://www.fivecentsplease.org/dpb/vincecd.html |title= Vince Guaraldi on LP and CD: The Navy Swings|last= Bang |first=Derrick |website= fivecentsplease.org |publisher= Derrick Bang, Scott McGuire |access-date= 25 July 2020 }} Frank Sinatra,{{cite web|url=https://www.allaboutjazz.com/a-voice-in-time-1939-1952-frank-sinatra-columbia-records-review-by-david-rickert.php|title=Frank Sinatra: A Voice In Time (1939-1952)|last=Rickert|first=David|date=January 12, 2008|website=All About Jazz|access-date=September 1, 2019}} Harry Connick Jr.,{{sfn|Hischak|2007|p=123}} and Dinah Washington.{{cite web|url=https://www.vulture.com/2015/12/ash-vs-evil-dead-recap-season-1-episode-9.html|title=Ash vs. Evil Dead Recap: 'Hey Evil, Why Don't You Eat My Butt!'|last=Wade|first=Chris|date=December 26, 2015|website=Vulture|access-date=September 1, 2019}}
In popular culture
- Harry Connick Jr.'s version of "I Could Write a Book" was used in the 1989 film When Harry Met Sally..., appearing on the film's soundtrack, and also appears on the soundtrack of the 1997 film Deconstructing Harry.{{sfn|Hischak|2007|p=123}}
- Dinah Washington's version of "I Could Write a Book", from her 1955 album For Those in Love, was used in the ninth episode of the first season of the television series Ash vs Evil Dead.
References
{{reflist}}
=Sources=
- {{cite book|last=Hischak|first=Thomas S.|title=The Rodgers and Hammerstein Encyclopedia|year=2007|publisher=Greenwood|isbn=978-0313341403}}
{{Frank Sinatra singles}}
{{Rodgers and Hart}}
{{authority control}}
Category:Ella Fitzgerald songs
Category:Songs from Pal Joey (film)
Category:Songs from Pal Joey (musical)
Category:Songs with lyrics by Lorenz Hart
Category:Songs with music by Richard Rodgers
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