Sherman was just a television producer, most famous for the quiz show "I've Got a Secret," not at all known as a comedian or performer, and it shocked everyone in the know when songs from his album My Son, The Folk Singer became popular. In fact, president John F. Kennedy was heard singing the song Sarah Jackman. Sherman's overnight popularity suddenly ended when the nation's attention focused on Kennedy's assassination, and the nation was too sad for such up-beat musical offerings.
Sherman then slipped back into his longtime depression, and died, quietly, at the young age of 48.
It's a Most Unusual Play
Allan Sherman Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Feel like throwing my tickets away,
'Cause the boy gets the boy
And the girl gets the girl
And it's way too far off Broadway
It's a most unusual plot
Which I've either blocked out or forgot
But they all wear blue jeans
And they scratch themselves quite a lot
There's no scenery, there's no lighting,
There's no costumes, oh, what art!
If there only were no house lights,
I would sneak up the aisle and depart
There's a most unusual scene
Where this man dates this Xerox machine,
So his girlfriend gets mad
And she murders the cad
To the tune of "Begin the Beguine"
In this most unusual, most unusual, most unusual play
Oh, the language is a bit loose
It's decidedly not Mother Goose
Outside on the marquee
This quotation you'll see
"I was shocked!" and it's signed Lenny Bruce
It's a play where something went wrong
'Cause it's five hours, twelve minutes long
If you sit there, my friend,
From beginning to end
Then your bladder better be strong
There are people hitting people
There's a couple in a cage
There's neurotics, there's narcotics,
And the bathroom is right on the stage!
It's a great big critical smash,
And it's raking in all kinds of cash
But the theater's appalling
With things that are crawling
I think I am getting a rash
From this most unusual, most unusual, most unusual play
Allan Sherman's song "It's a Most Unusual Play" is a humorous commentary on a musical theater production. The lyrics describe the play as being so unusual that the singer is tempted to throw away his tickets. The plot of the play is not clear, although the actors wear blue jeans, scratch themselves, and engage in unsavory behavior. The singer complains about the lack of costumes, scenery and lighting, and the fact that the bathroom is on the stage.
One of the most unusual scenes in the play involves a man dating a Xerox machine, which results in his girlfriend murdering him to the tune of "Begin the Beguine." The play also features people hitting each other, a couple in a cage, and a bathroom on stage. The language in the play is deemed loose and is not appropriate for young audiences. The marquee outside the theater quotes Lenny Bruce saying he was shocked by the play.
Despite its bizarre elements, the play is receiving positive reviews and making money. However, the singer complains that the theater is appalling and crawling with things that give him a rash. The song endorses the idea that the play is unsuitable for theatergoers who are looking for a standard musical theater experience.
Line by Line Meaning
It's a most unusual play
This play is extremely different from the usual plays that I attend
Feel like throwing my tickets away,
I feel like not attending this play anymore
'Cause the boy gets the boy
This play has a homosexual storyline where a boy gets another boy
And the girl gets the girl
This play has a lesbian storyline where a girl gets another girl
And it's way too far off Broadway
This play is not a Broadway production and is being staged elsewhere
It's a most unusual plot
The storyline of this play is very unique
Which I've either blocked out or forgot
I don't remember the plot details of this play
I don't know what it means
I am unable to comprehend the overall meaning of this play
But they all wear blue jeans
The characters in this play wear blue jeans
And they scratch themselves quite a lot
The characters in this play have a habit of scratching themselves
There's no scenery, there's no lighting,
This play has a minimalistic approach with no scenery or lighting
There's no costumes, oh, what art!
This play has no costumes, which is considered an art form in the theater world
If there only were no house lights,
If there were no lights in the auditorium, I would leave the play in the middle
I would sneak up the aisle and depart
I would leave the play through the aisle instead of waiting for the intermission
There's a most unusual scene
There is a particularly unique scene in this play
Where this man dates this Xerox machine,
In this scene, a man goes out on a date with a Xerox machine
So his girlfriend gets mad
His real girlfriend gets angry about his date with a machine
And she murders the cad
The girlfriend murders the man in a fit of rage
To the tune of "Begin the Beguine"
The murder of the man is timed to the music of "Begin the Beguine"
In this most unusual, most unusual, most unusual play
All-in-all, this play is very different from the norm
Oh, the language is a bit loose
The language used in this play is a bit vulgar and profane
It's decidedly not Mother Goose
It's not a play that's suitable for children
Outside on the marquee
On the theater's billboard outside
This quotation you'll see
You'll see this quote
"I was shocked!" and it's signed Lenny Bruce
The quote on the billboard reads 'I was shocked!' signed by Lenny Bruce
It's a play where something went wrong
Something seems off about this play
'Cause it's five hours, twelve minutes long
This play goes on for an inconveniently long time
If you sit there, my friend,
If you choose to sit and watch this play
From beginning to end
All the way through, from start to finish
Then your bladder better be strong
You should make sure to empty your bladder completely before watching this play because it is so long
There are people hitting people
In this play, people hit other people
There's a couple in a cage
This play features a couple confined in a cage on stage
There's neurotics, there's narcotics,
This play contains characters who suffer from mental illness and who take drugs
And the bathroom is right on the stage!
The stage setting even includes a bathroom on stage
It's a great big critical smash,
Despite all of its shortcomings, critics have rated this play favorably
And it's raking in all kinds of cash
Despite being unusual, this play has earned a significant amount of money
But the theater's appalling
The theater is not up to acceptable standards
With things that are crawling
There are even insects and other crawling creatures in the theater
I think I am getting a rash
The conditions of the theater are so bad that I may end up with a rash
From this most unusual, most unusual, most unusual play
All things considered, this play is extremely unique
Lyrics © TUNECORE INC
Written by: HAROLD ADAMSON, JIMMY MC HUGH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
goldenskyhook
on Here's to the Crabgrass
Does anyone know what the original classical pieces are, especially for Here's to the Crabgrass?