My Ship

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Composer of the song: Kurt Weill

My Ship is a popular song written for the Broadway musical Lady in the Dark ,which premiered in 1941. The music is by Kurt Weill , the lyrics by Ira Gershwin .

background

The song should be played “ andante espressivo ”; Ira Gershwin describes the song as "orchestrated by Kurt to sound at times lovely and simple, at times mysterious and threatening".

The song premiered by Gertrude Lawrence in the role of Liza Elliott, editor of a fashion magazine. In the plot of the musical, the song is sung in a scene in which Elliott remembers a turn-of-the-century song she knew from her childhood in psychoanalysis.

The song was not included in the 1944 Hollywood film Lady in the Dark from 1944, a fact that Ira Gershwin found incomprehensible:

“Later, when Lady in the Dark was filmed, the script necessarily had many references to the song. But for some unfathomable reason the song itself — as essential to this musical drama as a stolen necklace or a missing will to a melodrama — was omitted. Although the film was successful financially, audiences evidently were puzzled or felt thwarted or something, because items began to appear in movie-news columns mentioning that the song frequently referred to in Lady in the Dark was 'My Ship'. I hold a brief for Hollywood, having been more or less a movie-goer since I was nine; but there are times ... "

“Later, when Lady in the Dark was filmed, the script inevitably had a lot of references to the song. But for some unknown reason the song - which was as important to this musical drama as a stolen collar or a missing will for a melodrama - was left out. The film was financially successful, but viewers were visibly confused or felt slowed down or similar because of reports in film news sections that mentioned that My Ship was the song that was often referred to in Lady in the Dark. I break a lance for Hollywood because I have been a more or less regular moviegoer since the new year of my life; but sometimes ... "

Cover versions

Artists who recorded the song include (in alphabetical order):

Awards

In 2003 Herbie Hancock won the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Solo for his version of the song that was released on the album Directions in Music: Live at Massey Hall .

literature

  • Philip Furia: Ira Gershwin. The Art of the Lyricist . 1st edition. Oxford University Press, New York 1996, ISBN 0-19-508299-0 .
  • Bruce McClung: Lady in the Dark, Biography of a Musical. Oxford University Press, 2007, ISBN 0-19-512012-4 .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b My Ship (1941). at jazzstandards.com, accessed February 14, 2017 .
  2. ↑ Ira Gershwin: Lyrics on Several Occasions . 1st edition. Knopf, New York 1959, OCLC 538209 .
  3. ↑ Herbie Hancock. on grammy.com, accessed February 14, 2017 .
  4. ↑ Directions in Music: Live at Massey Hall. at allmusic.com, accessed February 14, 2017 .