Since this has fast turned into the thread of "Why Steve is a Better Lyricist than I Am," I'm gonna contribute one that's not from him.
The whole of "You've Got Possibilities" from It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's Superman is one of my favorite lyrics of all time. I would do that show JUST so I could sing the song.
^^^ I too love that stanza, Adam, and often quote it to show that Hammerstein could rhyme cleverly with the best of them. He CHOSE not to do so in songs like "This Nearly Was Mine".
There's also this one from Hammerstein:
"A hundred-and-one Pounds of fun. That's my little honey bun. Get a load of honey bun tonight!
I'm speaking of my Sweetie pie, Only sixty inches high: Ev'ry inch is packed with dynamite!
***
She's my baby, I'm her pap! I'm her booby, she's my trap! I am caught and I don't wanna run, 'Cause I'm havin' so much fun with honey bun!"
"I too love that stanza, Adam, and often quote it to show that Hammerstein could rhyme cleverly with the best of them. He CHOSE not to do so in songs like "This Nearly Was Mine". "
Yes, Hammerstein had lots of wit, shown both in his lyrics and in his book scenes. And i think it is to his great credit that he didn't always go for the clever rhymes but often went for the well-written and emotionally powerful lyrics in many songs that fill you with emotion, especially when paired with the soaring melodies. For me, Sondheim has the largest number of lyrics that make me notice the fun rhymes and greatly appreciate the wit, but Hammerstein writes the shows that affect me the most emotionally, and Oscar's lyrics are still my favourites, so many years later.
Another Sondheim rhyme:
Agony, far more painful than yours
When you know she would go with you, if there only were doors
My all-time favorite is this little exerpt from Everybody's Gotta Be Somewhere (City of Angels):
Though I've never seen her I've seen girls like this So young and ripe Your missing miss Is not the type To miss a misdemeanor
And though not a Broadway show, Zippel's lyrics for Zero to Hero from Hercules never fail to make me smile.
But if I were to make a selection based on the entirety of a song, rather than a selected exerpt of lyrics, I'd have to give it to On the Steps of the Palace from Into the Woods.
"What can you expect from a bunch of seitan worshippers?" - Reginald Tresilian
adam.peterson44 said: Yes, Hammerstein had lots of wit, shown both in his lyrics and in his book scenes. And i think it is to his great credit that he didn't always go for the clever rhymes but often went for the well-written and emotionally powerful lyrics in many songs that fill you with emotion, especially when paired with the soaring melodies. For me, Sondheim has the largest number of lyrics that make me notice the fun rhymes and greatly appreciate the wit, but Hammerstein writes the shows that affect me the most emotionally, and Oscar's lyrics are still my favourites, so many years later.
"
Well said. I didn't mention this in my earlier post because it's not full of great rhymes per se, but my all time favorite musical theater song is "O What a Beautiful Morning" for those exact reasons. The lyrics aren't clever, but they're evocative and lovely, and go perfectly with the melody.
I know how it feels to have wings on your heels, And to fly down the street in a trance. You fly down a street on the chance that you meet, And you meet -- not really by chance.