AMERICAN composer Harold Arlen (1905-86) was one of the kings of the romantically inspired compositions that became known as "torch songs".The label tends to invoke expectations of haunting melodies ruled by sentimentality with the word "love" in every stanza. Love, however, means much more than a word wrapped in rhyme. Arlen worked with lyricists Yip Harburg and co-lyricist Billy Rose to show during the Great Depression just how the "love" theme could brighten up the world, rather than make the struggling populations reach for their handkerchiefs.
Originally titled If You Believe In Me, their handiwork spoke joyfully and the key phrases echoed around the dance halls and from the gramophones.
"But it wouldn't be make believe, if you believed in me." That's the message that comes from It's Only A Paper Moon, the new name the song has carried since 1933.
More than a decade later in the 1940s, versions by Nat King Cole and Ella Fitzgerald revived the song's popularity.
Wikipedia has a list of 40 recorded versions but there would be many more, as the appeal of It's Only a Paper Moon lives on in the "Barnum and Bailey" modern world, often "just as phony as it can be".
A lady under aged care in the Redlands requested the song because it was the favourite for her husband and herself during their long and happy marriage.
It's great to play in the key of G with minor and diminished chords that make the bridge really exciting. It's Only a Paper Moon still makes people feel good, more than 80 years after its creation.
Pamper yourself with this version by the one and only Ella
Sources consulted for this article:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It%27s_Only_a_Paper_Moonhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qc5RMYvXOhAhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CHCMWaiG-gIhttp://www.haroldarlen.com
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