BMM 11 - All I Ask of You

No more talk of darkness
Forget these wide-eyed fears
I'm here
Nothing can harm you
My words will warm and calm you 

Let me be your freedom
Let daylight dry your tears
I'm here
With you, beside you
To guard you and to guide you

Say you love me every waking moment
Turn my head with talk of summertime
Say you need me with you
Now and always
Promise me that all you say is true
That's all I ask of you 

Let me be your shelter
Let me be your light
You're safe
No one will find you
Your fears are far behind you 

All I want is freedom
A world with no more night
And you, always beside me
To hold me and to hide me 

Then say you'll share with me
One love, one lifetime
Let me lead you from your solitude
Say you need me with you here, beside you
Anywhere you go, let me go too
That's all I ask of you 

Say you'll share with me
One love, one lifetime
Say the word and I will follow you
Share each day with me
Each night, each morning
Say you love me
You know I do
Love me
That's all I ask of you 

Anywhere you go, let me go too
Love me
That's all I ask of you 

From Wikipedia: "All I Ask of You" is a song from the 1986 English musical The Phantom of the Opera, between characters Christine Daaé and Raoul, originally played on stage by Sarah Brightman and Steve Barton, respectively. It was written by Andrew Lloyd Webber, Charles Hart, and Richard Stilgoe, and solely produced by Lloyd Webber. An operatic pop piece, its lyrics serve as dialogue between the two characters and discuss themes such as commitment and romance. Like Lloyd Webber's song "The Music of the Night," "All I Ask of You" was compared to the music found in Giacomo Puccini's 1910 opera La fanciulla del West. 

Author and music historian Ethan Mordden stated that the song contains "lyrical magnificence" and noted that its brilliance helped it "accomplish wonderful things" on stage. The song was described as one of the biggest and most commercially successful hits from The Phantom of the Opera by the staff at Show Music.

"All I Ask of You" was commercially successful in several territories internationally. In the United Kingdom, it became Richard's 52nd top ten single by peaking at number three on 4 October 1986. Its success allowed it to be listed on the year-end chart in that country, where it was ranked at number 31. The song was later certified Silver by the British Phonographic Industry on 1 October 1986 for shipments of 250,000 physical copies. It topped the Irish Singles Chart for one week, replacing Status Quo's cover of "In the Army Now" (1986). The song reached the same peak in South Africa on the country's Springbok Radio chart, while in Australia, it peaked at number 24, according to the Kent Music Report.

My own thoughts: Although I haven't yet made up my mind about this musical, I have listened to a couple of the songs, including this one, and I like them. I especially like the duet between Susan Boyle and Donny Osmond.

I can easily hear a platonic version between some of my own characters, mainly between Reid, Beowulf, and the Windwillows. Since Beowulf is a werewolf and must avoid the sunlight at all times, this lyric is particularly fitting: "All I want is freedom, a world with no more night." When his path crosses with Reid's path, he gets his wish of being loved and being taken seriously at the same time. That's what cracks his tough shell for good.

And all Reid wants is to love the Windwillows, something they're a little too afraid and too proud to give him at first. But that's all they ever ask, too, to be loved and wanted and respected. Not everyone hates them, but a lot of people have given them a hard time for a whole host of reasons, so it kind of makes sense that they're reluctant to trust Reid wholeheartedly.

The sad irony is, Reid has always respected them, wanted them, and loved them with no strings attached, and they realize (almost too late) that they've always loved him as well and can't bear to lose him. Jonathan was the first one (and the only one at first) to take a chance on Reid and he's never regretted his decision yet.

I think being loved and understood is all everyone ever asks.

BMM 10 - The Sound of Music

The hills are alive with the sound of music
With songs they have sung for a thousand years
The hills fill my heart with the sound of music
My heart wants to sing every song it hears 

My heart wants to beat like the wings of the birds
That rise from the lake to the trees
My heart wants to sigh like a chime that flies
From a church on a breeze 

To laugh like a brook when it trips and falls
Over stones on its way
To sing through the night
Like a lark who is learning to pray

 I go to the hills when my heart is lonely
I know I will hear what I've heard before
My heart will be blessed with the sound of music
And I'll sing once more 

From Wikipedia: "The Sound of Music" is the title song from the musical of the same name that premiered in 1959. It was composed by Richard Rodgers with lyrics written by Oscar Hammerstein II. The song introduces the character of Maria, a young novice in an Austrian abbey. 

The song was sung by Mary Martin in the 1959 original Broadway production and by Julie Andrews in the 1965 film version, with a reprise by the Von Trapp family later in the film. The song was ranked tenth in the American Film Institute's list of the 100 Greatest Songs in Movie History.

My own thoughts: As I mentioned before, I don't have a lot of patience for musicals due to how long they are, and The Sound of Music, while good, doesn't really hold my interest all the way. I'd rather listen to a song here and a song there on my own timetable. 

At least the songs are super-catchy. Rodgers and Hammerstein most definitely knew how to make music. Like the Sherman Brothers and the majority of Disney songs, it's almost impossible not to sing along.

BMM 9 - Seize the Day

Open the gates and seize the day
Don't be afraid and don't delay
Nothing can break us
No one can make us
Give our rights away
Arise and seize the day

Now is the time to seize the day
(Now is the time to seize the day)
Send out the call and join the fray
(Send out the call and join the fray)
Wrongs will be righted
If we're united
Let us seize the day

Friends of the friendless, seize the day
(Friends of the friendless, seize the day)
Raise up the torch and light the way
(Raise up the torch and light the way)
Proud and defiant
We'll slay the giant
Let us seize the day

Neighbor to neighbor
Father to son
One for all
And all for one

Open the gates and seize the day
(Open the gates and seize the day)
Don't be afraid and don't delay
(Don't be afraid and don't delay)
Nothing can break us
No one can make us
Give our rights away

Neighbor to neighbor
Father to son
One for all
And all for one

I can't find anything on Wikipedia about this song, so I'll just share my own thoughts. 

I never liked Newsies all that much. I saw the movie once and I remember it being okay, but it didn't really grip me, either. At best, I'm "meh" about the whole thing. 

This was pretty much the only song I liked for real. I just wish it wasn't so short; the end is so abrupt that it almost gives me whiplash.

BMM 8 - The Good Old Days

Whenever I'm, from time to time, depressed
And a trauma wells and swells within my breast
I find some pride deep inside of me
As I fondly walk the lane of memory 

I see Bonaparte, a mean one
If ever I've seen one
And Nero fiddlin' through that lovely blaze
Antoinette, dainty queen,
With her quaint guillotine
Ha-ha-ha-ha
Those were the good old days! 

I see Indians a-draggin'
An empty covered wagon
When scalping the settlers was the latest craze
And that glorious morn
Jack the Ripper was born
Ha-ha-ha-ha
Those were the good old days! 

I'd sit in my rocking chair
Peacefully rockin' there
Counting my blessings by the score
The rack was in fashion
The plagues were my passion
Each day held a new joy in store
Was anybody happy?

 I see cannibals a-munchin'
A missionary luncheon
The years may have flown but the memory stays
Like the hopes that were dashed
When the stock market crashed
Ha-ha-ha-ha
Those were the good old days! 

I'd walk a million miles or more
For some of the gore
Of those good...
Old...
Days!

I was so contented
When prisons were invented
And the ones with the gallows set my heart ablaze
I was burning with pride
The day Bonnie met Clyde
Ha-ha-ha-ha
Those were the good old days! 

I doze by the fireside
Dreaming of cyanide
Never a worry or a care
And how can one measure
The infinite pleasure
Of dreaming of the electric chair?
Some people found it shocking!
Skip it! 

In any aisle I'd lay 'em
With arson and with mayhem
It's a hammy routine but it always plays
And my favorite encore
Was the Hundred Year War!
Ha-ha-ha-ha
Those were the good old days!

 I'd gladly sail the seven seas
For just one reprise
Of those good...
Old...
Days! 

From Wikipedia: "Those Were The Good Old Days" is from the musical Damn Yankees. It's about Mr. Applegate (who is the Devil disguised as a salesman) recalling some historical events at its cruelest and worst.

My own thoughts: In my last semester of college, I attended my university's rendition of this musical for my theater class. We had to write a critique on it, and our grade depended more on thoroughness than anything else. A relatively simple assignment, but the professor had his way of knowing whether we actually did it.

By far, I found Mr. Applegate the most entertaining. While it was fairly obvious he was the Devil in disguise, the actor provided more than half the entertainment by himself, and it was no surprise that he received some of the most enthusiastic applause at the end. 

BMM 7 - Endless Night

Where has the starlight gone?
Dark is the day
How can I find my way home?
Home is an empty dream
Lost to the night
Father, I feel so alone 

You promised you'd be there
Whenever I needed you
Whenever I call your name
You're not anywhere
I'm trying to hold on
Just waiting to hear your voice
One word, just a word will do
To end this nightmare 

When will the dawning break
Oh, endless night
Sleepless I dream of the day
When you were by my side
Guiding my path
Father, I can't find the way 

You promised you'd be there
Whenever I needed you
Whenever I call your name
You're not anywhere
I'm trying to hold on
Just waiting to hear your voice
One word, just a word will do
To end this nightmare

I know that the night must end
And that the sun will rise
And that the sun will rise
I know that the clouds must clear
And that the sun will shine
And that the sun will shine 

And I know that the night must end
And that the sun will rise
And that the sun will rise
I know that the clouds must clear
And that the sun will shine
And that the sun will shine 

I know
Yes, I know
The sun will rise
Yes, I know
I know
The clouds must clear

 I know that the night must end
I know that the sun will rise
And I'll hear your voice deep inside
I know that the night must end
And that the clouds must clear 

The sun
The sun will rise
The sun
The sun will rise

From Wikipedia: "Endless Night" is a song written by Lebo M, Hans Zimmer, Julie Taymor, and Jay Rifkin. It premiered in 1997 as part of the musical The Lion King, a stage adaptation of Disney's 1994 animated feature film of the same name. Mark Mancina produced the song and arranged by Mark A. Brymer. Taymor wrote the lyrics based on the melody from "Lala", a song from the 1995 soundtrack album Rhythm of the Pride Lands. Jason Raize, who first performed the role of Simba for the Broadway production, first performed and recorded "Endless Night"; his version is included on the original cast recording. 

"Endless Night" is a ballad that lyrically deals with Simba grieving the death of his father Mufasa. The song includes vocals by a choir that encourages Simba to move forward. Reception to the song was mainly positive. Some commentators praised how it helped to develop Simba's character.

My own thoughts: The Lion King was never my favorite movie, but when I gave this song a try, I found myself liking it. 

It does a great job of showing how much Simba is still hurting from his father's loss, how the "Hakuna Matata" approach isn't really working, and it adds an extra layer of sadness to Mufasa's death. 

I can very easily hear a few of my own characters singing something like this.

BMM 6 - If I Were a Rich Man

Oh, dear Lord, you made many, many poor people
I realize, of course, it's no shame to be poor
But it's no great honor, either
So, what would have been so terrible
If I had a small fortune?

 

If I were a rich man,
Ya-ba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dum
All day long, I'd biddy-biddy-bum
If I were a wealthy man
I wouldn't have to work hard
Ya-ba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dum
If I were a biddy-biddy rich
Yidle-diddle-didle-didle man

 

I'd build a big, tall house with rooms by the dozen
Right in the middle of the town
A fine tin roof with real wooden floors below
There would be one long staircase just going up
And one even longer coming down
And one more leading nowhere, just for show

 

I'd fill my yard with chicks and turkeys and geese and ducks
For the town to see and hear
Squawking just as noisily as they can
And each loud of the "gee," be it "gow," be it "geh," be it "guh"
Would land like a trumpet on the ear
As if to say, "Here lives a wealthy man!"

 

Ahhh...

 

If I were a rich man,
Ya-ba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dum
All day long, I'd biddy-biddy-bum
If I were a wealthy man
I wouldn't have to work hard
Ya-ba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dum
If I were a biddy-biddy rich
Yidle-diddle-didle-didle man

 

I see my wife, my Golde, looking like a rich man's wife
With a proper double chin
Supervising meals to her heart's delight
I see her putting on airs and strutting like a peacock
Oh, what a happy mood she's in!
Screaming at the servants day and night

 

The most important men in town would come to fawn on me
They would ask me to advise them
Like a Solomon the Wise
"If you please, Reb Tevye!"
"Pardon me, Reb Tevye!"
Posing problems that would cross a rabbi's eyes
And it won't make one bit of difference
If I answer right or wrong
When you're rich, they think you really know

 

If I were rich, I'd have the time that I lack
To sit in the synagogue and pray
And maybe have a seat by the Eastern wall
And I'd discuss the holy books with the learned men
Several hours every day
And that would be the sweetest thing of all

 

Ahhh...

 

If I were a rich man,
Ya-ba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dum
All day long, I'd biddy-biddy-bum
If I were a wealthy man
I wouldn't have to work hard
Ya-ba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dibba-dum

 

God, who made the lion and the lamb,
You decreed I should be what I am
Would it spoil some vast eternal plan
If I were a wealthy man? 

 

From Wikipedia: "If I Were a Rich Man" is a show tune from the 1964 musical Fiddler on the Roof. It was written by Sheldon Harnick and Jerry Bock. The song is performed by Tevye, the main character in the musical, and reflects his aspirational dreams.

 

Through the first two verses, Tevye dreams of the material comforts that wealth would bring him. He describes the enormous house he would buy and the needless luxuries he would fill it with, including a third staircase "leading nowhere, just for show," and then the poultry he would buy to fill his yard. In the third verse, Tevye switches his attention to the luxuries in which he would shower his wife, Golde.

 

In the bridge, Tevye contemplates the esteem that wealth would bring him, with important men seeking his advice. In the final verse, Tevye considers how wealth would allow him to spend less time working and more time praying and studying the Torah. He ends the song by asking God if it would "spoil some vast eternal plan" if he were wealthy.

 

A repeated phrase throughout the song, "all day long I'd bidi-bidi-bum," is often misunderstood to refer to Tevye's desire not to have to work. However, in an interview with Terry Gross, Sheldon Harnick said he basically made up syllables that he thought would give the effect of Chassidic chanting. The first person to play Tevye, Zero Mostel, then replaced the syllables Harnick had written with ones that Mostel thought would be more authentic.

 

My own thoughts: This is definitely my most favorite song from the musical, and no doubt it applies to all of us at one point or another. We wonder what it might be like if we were fabulously wealthy, even as we're aware of that phrase, "Money can't buy happiness."

 

I don't ever expect to be fabulously wealthy, though it would be nice to not have to work so hard to make a decent living, especially these days. At the very least, I have a steady job with a reliable income. I also do my best to be frugal, paying only for what I really need and then splurging within reason here and there.

 

I still feel the sting of my financial loss with FanX. That was a pretty bad investment, although I think I did okay for someone who was doing this for the very first time all on their own.

 

On a side note, I really like how this one turned out. I think it's my most favorite so far. 

 

BMM 5 - Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'

There's a bright golden haze on the meadow
There's a bright golden haze on the meadow
The corn is as high as a elephant's eye
An' it looks like it's climbin' clear up to the sky

Oh, what a beautiful mornin'
Oh, what a beautiful day
I got a beautiful feelin'
Ev'rythin's goin' my way

All the cattle are standin' like statues
All the cattle are standin' like statues
They don't turn their heads as they see me ride by
But a little brown mav'rick is winkin' her eye

Oh, what a beautiful mornin'
Oh, what a beautiful day
I got a beautiful feelin'
Ev'rythin's goin' my way

All the sounds of the earth are like music
All the sounds of the earth are like music
The breeze is so busy it don't miss a tree
And a ol' weepin' willer is laughin' at me

Oh, what a beautiful mornin'
Oh, what a beautiful day
I got a beautiful feelin'
Ev'rythin's goin' my way

Oh, what a beautiful day... 

From Wikipedia: "Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'" is the opening song from the musical Oklahoma!, which premiered on Broadway in 1943. It was written by composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist/librettist Oscar Hammerstein II. The leading male character in Oklahoma!, Curly McLain, sings the song at the beginning of the first scene of the musical.

This was the first song of Rodgers and Hammerstein's musical collaboration to be heard by theater audiences. It has become one of their most famous numbers and "quickly became one of the most popular American songs to emerge from the wartime era, gaining currency away from Broadway first on the radio and recordings, and then later on numerous television variety shows." Brooks Atkinson, reviewing the original production in The New York Times, wrote that the number changed the history of musical theater: "After a verse like that, sung to a buoyant melody, the banalities of the old musical stage became intolerable."

My own thoughts: While my family has always loved Oklahoma!, I have not. Unlike Les Mis, I get bored pretty quick and I find most of the characters, especially the main characters, rather idiotic.

Of course, I make a big exception for this song. It's one of those nice feel-good songs that really help to perk up your mood.

And it makes for an easy and fun illustration, too.