I always liked the 1957 movie The Sweet Smell of Success, which was written by a fine writer I was privileged to know a little, Ernest Lehman. In 2002, a musical based on its screenplay opened on Broadway with a book by John Guare, lyrics by Craig Carnelia and music by Marvin Hamlisch. It closed three months later so I never got to see it.
If I had, I would not have heard this song which was written for the show and included in workshops and outta-town tryouts…but cut before the show got to New York. Usually, songs that are cut from musicals disappear forever but this one is often performed in cabarets and concerts. It's one of those songs — perhaps you have a few of these — that connects with a personal moment in my life and reminds me of it. A lady I liked a lot — and who seemed to like me — had to go away.
I don't mean she died. I mean she had to go away, not by her choice and certainly not by mine. Last I heard, she was living in a country I almost certainly will never visit, nor is she likely to come back this way…but I think of her when I hear it. I don't think I ever heard her sing but I can imagine her singing this song. This is Idina Menzel actually singing it…