I have been thinking a lot about “Over the Rainbow” lately.

Over the Rainbow
Words by E.Y. Harburg
Music by Harold Arlen
Illustrated by Eric Puybaret
Published by Imagine Publishing Inc.
ISBN 978-1-936140-00-8

This book comes with a CD of Judy Collins singing “Over the Rainbow.”  The book opens with, and Judy Collins sings, the rarely heard song introduction.

Over the Rainbow
Words by E. Y. Harburg
Music by Harold Arlen
From the Movie Musical “Wizard of Oz”

When all the world is a hopeless jumble
And the raindrops tumble all around,
Heaven opens a magic lane.

When all the clouds darken up the skyway,
There’s a rainbow highway to be found,
Leading from your window pane
To a place behind the sun,
Just a step beyond the rain.

Somewhere over the rainbow,
Way up high,
There’s a land that I heard of once in a lullaby.

Somewhere over the rainbow
Skies are blue
And the dreams that you dare to dream
Really do come true.

Some day I’ll wish upon a star
And wake up where the clouds are far behind me.
Where troubles melt like lemon drops,
Away above the chimney tops,
that’s where you’ll find me.

Somewhere over the rainbow,
Bluebirds fly.
Birds fly over the rainbow,
Why then, oh why can’t I?

If happy little bluebirds fly
Beyond the rainbow
Why, oh, why can’t I?

Though “Over the Rainbow” is a standard in popular culture, I never get sick of hearing it.  Now, Eric Puybaret’s new illustration for “Over the Rainbow” has got me all excited about singing it again.  The rich jewel toned rainbow colors Puybaret chooses inspire me.  They show joie de vivre and a free-spirit in a song that is so often played with longing to the point of anguish.  This book captures a sentiment that became one of my mother’s central messages to me, “You can achieve anything if you set your mind to it!”

I like to point out to the children that, to me, the last lines mean, “If the bluebirds, or anyone, can make their dreams come true, then I can make my dreams come true, too!”  It doesn’t have to be a sad song of painful longing.  It CAN be a sweet (just a dash wistful) song about an epiphany of self empowerment, always mixed beautifully with a purity of heart.

A Wikipedia article about “Over the Rainbow,”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Over_the_Rainbow

I think it is interesting that two outstanding and sadly short-lived artists, Israel Kamakawiwo’ole and Eva Cassidy, captured this empowerment and purity of heart in their brilliant and amazingly singular arrangements of  “Over the Rainbow.”

Sing-along with Israel Kamakawiwo’ole’s “Somewhere Over The Rainbow/What A Wonderful World”

www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FBKa-bCasY

A link to Eva Cassidy’s “Over the Rainbow,” here she sings live at Blues Alley in Washington, DC:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ce-5OWBNGNw

The original by Judy Garland (it still gives me goosebumps)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=QhzbzwPNgXA

For a more conventional but lovely sing-along experience, Ginger Sands includes “Over the Rainbow” on her CD “The Gift of Make Believe.”  Sands’ wonderful collection of children’s poetry (and this song) set to music includes vocal and instrumental tracks for each poem.  The vocals for “Over the Rainbow” are on Track 10.  The instrumental sing-along is found on Track 20.

Hear musical clips or buy the tracks at many online music sellers, including Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Gift-of-Make-Believe/dp/B0019VU8QU/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&s=dmusic&qid=1267562676&sr=8-4

The longing and wonder in the song, and the beauty and simplicity of the melody, make “Over the Rainbow” universally appealing.  But, it is that each of us strives for something specific to who we are and our  unique  purpose in the world that keeps this song forever fascinating.

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I’m thrilled to write that “Over the Rainbow” is one of the songs we selected to be part of
“Oh, What a Beautiful Day: Sing Books with Emily, the Cabaret.”

I make a strong committment to each song I perform and completing my Song Craft Worksheet is part of that process,

 Emily’s Song Craft Worksheet

Because the first section of the Song Craft Worksheet involves background research on the song, I’ll share the answers with you so you can know about the song, too.  The more about the song you know (both concrete facts and less tangible artistic choices), the more “authority,” and heart and soul you can put into the singing and sharing of the song with others.  If you are interested in improving your artistic abilities for singing songs in any capacity, just simply filling out the Song Craft Worksheet is a great place to start!  After the background research, the rest of the Song Craft Worksheet gets VERY personal…don’t worry!  I won’t bore you with that.

1 Q: Who wrote the words?
1 A: E. Y. Harburg

2Q: Who wrote the music?
2A: Harold Arlen

3Q: When was the song written?
3A: 1938

4Q: At what point in the lyricists’ and composer’s career was the song written?
4A: For both Mr. Arlen and Mr. Harburg (who was a little older) this song was written around the beginning of the middle of their careers.

5Q: What is the song from?
5A: Wizard of Oz

6Q: If from a show, what character sang it?
6A: Dorothy

7Q: If from a show, from what situation does the song arise?  Why does the character sing the song?  What function does the song/character play in the story?
7A: Dorothy is feeling pushed aside by her family, it is a song of intense longing of a young woman to break out of childhood and to make her dreams come true.

8Q:  What other contextual elements of the song are significant?
8A: Dorothy is deeply loved by her Aunt and Uncle who look after her and Dorothy clearly loves them as well, but she is an imaginative child with deep feelings, hopes and dreams beyond the farmstead where she has spent her childhood.  She is just on the verge of becoming a woman.

9Q: Was the song written for a particular singer?  Why?
9A: The song was written for the fabulous 15 year old Judy Garland to sing in the role of Judy for the 1938 film “Wizard of Oz.”

10Q: If not from a show, why did the songwriter write the song?
10A: NA

11Q: What do you feel the lyricist is trying to say?
11A: The longing of someone who feels stuck in a situation to break free and make dreams come true.

12Q: Does the song tell a story or just express feelings or ideas?
12A: This song very elegantly uses the telling of a story, describing a place the singer wants to go to express feelings of hope and longing.

13Q: Who else has recorded this song:
13A: ”Over the Rainbow” has been beautifully recorded by hundreds of wonderful performers including:  Judy Garland, Israel Kamakawiwo’ole, Eva Cassidy, Frank Sinatra, Sarah Vaughn, Ella Fitzgerald, Jane Monheit, Johnny Mathis and Ray Charles, Harry Nilsson, Carly Simon…

The rest of the questions require VERY personal answers and I will spare you those!

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Related Articles

Over the Rainbow…Additional Info
http://singbookswithemily.wordpress.com/2011/04/23/over-the-rainbow-a-singable-picture-book-additional-info/

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Incidentally…as a curio of my past, I got to perform in a production of “The Wizard of Oz” with Phyllis Diller in the summer of 1992.  I was in the “Adult Chorus” (playing everything from a Munchkin’s voice into a microphone off stage, to a Jitterbug, to one of those Wookie things in a huge fake fur costume) and Phyllis Diller played the Wicked Witch of the West.  It was fabulous fun.  Plus, they let her add in a few “gags” during the show.  She was absolutely GREAT.

My daughter Eloise checkin’ out the gags.

Eloise with The Wig

Sweet Eloise took this picture of her mom with the gag file.

Smithsonian’s Exhibit webpage for Phyllis Diller’s Gag File:
http://americanhistory.si.edu/documentsgallery/exhibitions/diller/

Article about the aquisition of Phyllis Diller’s Gag File (card catalogue of jokes) in Smithsonian Magazine 2007:
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/people-places/comedy_central.html

Link to Smithsonian’s page about Phyllis Diller’s Gag File:
http://americanhistory.si.edu/news/factsheet.cfm?key=30&newskey=1243

Link to blog post about the file:
http://blog.americanhistory.si.edu/osaycanyousee/2011/08/hah-phyllis-dillers-gag-file.html

Video on Smithsonian Channel about Phyllis Diller’s Gag File:
http://www.smithsonianchannel.com/site/sn/video/player/laughter-in-the-vaults/74113624001/
(This really is a fabulous video!)