Songs from MAME (NOT REQUIRED for Film Class)

MAME

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Mame opened on Broadway in 1966 and was a big hit. Listen to the title song from Mame (here), as sung by Bobby Darin (lyrics below). (A choral version is here.)

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You coax the blues right out of the horn, Mame,
You charm the husk off of the corn, Mame,
You've got those banjoes strummin'
And plunkin' out a tune to beat the band,
The whole plantation is hummin'
Since you brought Dixie back to Dixieland.
You make that cotton easy to pick, Mame,
You give my old mint julep a kick, Mame,
You make the old magnolia tree blossom at the mention of your name
You've made us feel alive again,
And given us the drive again,
To make the South revive again, Mame.
{Oh, I love that kind of music!}
You've got those banjoes strummin'
And plunkin' out a tune to beat the band,
The whole plantation is hummin'
Since you brought Dixie back to Dixieland.
You make the cotton easy to pick, Miss Mame,
You give my old mint julep a kick {kick, kick}, Miss Mame,
You make the old magnolia tree blossom at the mention of your name
Your special fascination'll
Be inspirational
We think you're just sensational, Mame!

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IF HE WALKED INTO MY LIFE

The hit "torch" ballad from Mame, in the Grammy-winning recording by Eydie Gorme (here). A torch ballad is a song about romantic regret. ("To carry the torch" for someone means one can't forget a romantic relationship that has ended.) Here the woman wonders if she could have done anything different to have saved the relationship, and even if she could change if he came back. This is a vocal for the ages.

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Mame:
Did he need a stronger hand? Did he need a lighter touch?
Was I soft or was I tough? Did I give enough? Did I give too much? At the moment that he needed me, Did I ever turn away? Would I be there when he called, If he walked into my life today? Were his days a little dull? Were his nights a little wild? Did I overstate my plan? Did I stress the man and forget the child? And there must have been a million things
that my heart forgot to say. Would I think of one or two
if he walked into my life today. Would I blame the times I pampered him or blame the times I bossed him? What a shame! I never really found the boy before I lost him.
Were the years a little fast? Was his world a little free?
Was there too much of a crowd all too lush and loud and not enough of me? Though I'll ask myself my whole life long,
What went wrong along the way--would I make the same mistakes if he walked into my life today?

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PUT THE BLAME ON MAME

Another Mame song, from the film Gilda (1946), starring Rita Hayworth. Because she's sexy, Mame is blamed for everything that happens. Michael Jackson used this song in his "Smooth Criminal" video. Go here for song and lyrics.

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