Ever heard of "self plagiarism"?

This morning, as I do every morning, I was lying in my bed and singing. I like to see how many songs that I know the complete lyrics to, and, frankly, I astound myself at the thousands of them that have clogged my brain lo these many years for no substantial reason but to be able to say I know them!

It occurred to me on this particular morning that both Irving Berlin and George M. Cohan have something in common. They stole tunes from themselves!

For example, "I"m just a fella, a fella with an umbrella". Peter Lawford sings it in "Easter Parade". In talking about a break in the weather, it goes, ".....maybe the break in the weather will prove to be a break for me." In Berlin's song, "Isn't it a Lovely Day to be CAught in the Rain", Fred Astaire tells Ginger Rogers, "...the clouds broke, they broke and, oh, what a break for me!" Same composer, different songs. Gene Kelly, in "The Pirate" sings, "Be a Clown". Gene Kelly and Donald O'Connor in "Singin' in the Rain" sings, "Make 'em Laugh". Same tune. Different words. "I love a piano" echoes the song about being down on the farm in MIchigan, and "I wanna go there, I wanna go there" is where "I love a piano" came from, or versa visa!

Cohan didn't have nearly as many soundalikes as Berlin, but I must say that "For it was Mary, Mary" is the same tune as "H=A-double R-I G A N spells Harrigan".

And while we are on the subject of music, I must spout off about one of my pet peeves. WHY IS IT THAT NOBODY WHO IS ASKED TO SING OUR NATIONAL ANTHEM AT VARIOUS EVENTS WILL SING THE TUNEz?????? They improvise. Aretha sings it like a gospel song. LeeAnn Rimes like a love ballad and they and everyone else add at least 1,000 new notss to the original tune. There are only so many notes on the scale, but many new ones have been discovered lately. My message to all of these people who insist on fixing what wasn't broken is: "O, say, can you sing it properly?"

In an earlier blog I mentioned Rogers and Hammerstein's preoccupation with larks. They show up regularly in many of their songs. For the fun of it, without referring to my earlier tome, see how many lines with the word "lark" you can find.

Years ago there was a vaudevillian who claimed that many songs are simply compilations of others. He took the song, "Yes, we Have No Bananas" and really dissected it. He said the only original tune was in the word "bananas". When broken down, it went something like this: (Sing the tune that matches the words from the other songs)

Allelujah! bananas
O bring back my bonnie to me
I dreamed I dwelt in Tara's Halls
Out on the blue, blue sea
It was an old fashioned garden
In Mrs. Murphy's chowder
Allelujah !bananas
O bring back my bonnie to me.

Ultimately, I guess, it isn't illegal to borrow words and music from onesself. There aren't many other nitpickers like me out there and I am ptobably the only one to notice!