Bobby Troup was born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. He graduated from The Hill School, a preparatory school in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, in 1937. He went on to graduate Phi Beta Kappa from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in economics. He was a member of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon (ΣΑΕ) fraternity and the Mask and Wig Club.
His earliest musical success came with the song "Daddy" which was a regional hit in 1941. Sammy Kaye and His Orchestra recorded "Daddy", which was number one for 8 weeks on the Billboard Best Seller chart and the number five record of 1941. Glenn Miller and His Orchestra performed "Daddy" on their radio broadcasts, and The Andrews Sisters also recorded the song. In the same year, Troup's song "Snootie Little Cutie" was recorded by Frank Sinatra and Connie Haines with the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra and the Pied Pipers.
Upon graduating from college in 1941 he enlisted in the US Marines, but did not receive orders until January 1942. After completing officer training, he was assigned as one of two dozen white officers to direct recruit training at Montford Point, recruit depot for the first African-American Marines. By spring of 1943 he became recreation officer, in which capacity he was able to spearhead improvements to the facilities at Montford, including building a recreation hall, basketball court, and outdoor boxing ring. He was even able to get a friend to install a miniature golf course. During this time he composed the song "Take Me Away From Jacksonville" which was to become an anthem of sorts for the Marines at Montford Point, even extending to other areas of Camp Lejeune. By numerous accounts Troup was the most popular officer among the Montford recruits. In October 1944 he was promoted to Captain, given command of a depot company, and eventually deployed to Saipan where he served to the end of the war.
Bobby Troup's first marriage was to Cynthia Hare. They were married in May 1942 and had two daughters, Cynnie Troup (b. 1943) and Ronne Troup (b. 1945), both of whom had careers in the entertainment industry.
In 1946, Nat King Cole had a hit with Troup's best known song "(Get Your Kicks On) Route 66". It became a popular standard recorded by many artists, including Chuck Berry (1961) and The Rolling Stones (1964). In 1987, Depeche Mode combined the tune with their own composition, "Behind the Wheel", released it as the B-side of "Behind the Wheel" and it became a radio hit on KROQ 106.7 FM in Los Angeles. In 2006, "Route 66" was featured in the animated movie Cars, and the movie RV with Robin Williams.
Troup met his second wife, torch singer Julie London, at the Celebrity Room, where he was singing. It was Troup who encouraged London to pursue her singing career, and in 1955 he produced her million selling hit record "Cry Me a River". London, previously married to actor Jack Webb (1947 to 1953), married Troup in 1959. They remained married until Troup's death in 1999.
Troup's own recordings in the 1950s and 1960s were not commercially successful. He made recordings for Liberty Records and Capitol Records, many with musicians from the West Coast jazz scene.
Troup also wrote the title song (sung by Little Richard) in the classic 1950s rock and roll movie The Girl Can't Help It. An instrumental rendition of his song "The Meaning of the Blues" appeared on the landmark Miles Davis album, Miles Ahead. Troup's hipster interpretation of the fairy tale "The Three Bears" is often erroneously credited to "anonymous" and re-titled "Three Bears Rap", "Three Bears with a Beat", etc. This song was first recorded by the Page Cavanaugh Trio and later by Western Swing bandleader Leon McAuliffe.
Circa 1969 Troup collaborated with entertainer Tommy Leonetti, penning the lyrics for Leonetti's song "My City of Sydney". Leonetti's original recording was used for many years in the close-down sequence for TV station ATN-7 in Sydney, and was also covered by Sydney punk band XL Capris.
In February 1999, Troup died at UCLA Medical Center of a massive heart attack; he was buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in the Hollywood Hills. His wife, Julie London died the following year, and her cremated remains were placed in the columbarium (Columbarium of Providence) niche, next to his.
In the mid-1950s, Troup was one of three regular panelists (along with Mel Blanc and Johnny Mercer) in the game show Musical Chairs, a Bill Leyden-hosted quiz program that aired locally on Los Angeles television for two years before NBC broadcast it in the summer of 1955. On the program, the viewing audience was encouraged to submit questions about music in an effort to stump the panel. The Troup Group provided much of the music in the game show. He also served as host of the ABC show Stars of Jazz featuring various jazz luminaries, particularly those working in Hollywood.
While he relied on songwriting royalties, Troup also worked as an actor, playing musician Tommy Dorsey in the film The Gene Krupa Story (1959). He played himself in the short-lived NBC television series Acapulco. Troup made three guest appearances on Perry Mason, and on two appearances, "The Case of the Jaded Joker" in 1959 and "The Case of the Missing Melody" in 1961, he showed his musical talents. In 1969 and 1970, he appeared as "Bobby" in two episodes of Mannix, where he was a lounge piano player who helped Mannix unravel cases. He again appeared as a piano player in a cameo on The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries in 1978.
In Robert Altman's 1970 film M*A*S*H he had a memorable cameo as a disgruntled staff sergeant assigned to driving Hawkeye and Trapper John around in Japan. (His only line of dialogue is a repeated exasperation, "Goddamn army!") In 1972, Jack Webb, who had previously used Troup in a 1967 episode of the television series Dragnet, cast him opposite Julie London in the US TV series Emergency!. Emergency! was created by Webb, who had recently starred in a revival of Dragnet and was producing NBC's popular Adam-12. London and Troup had remained on cordial terms with Webb, who had used Troup (and his daughter Ronne) in episodes of Adam-12 as well as the revived Dragnet. On Emergency! Troup played Dr. Joe Early, one of the two emergency room doctors featured on the series, while London played head nurse Dixie McCall.
Manhattan
Bobby Troup Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
To Niagara
And to other places
Aggravate all our cares
We'll save our fares
I've a cozy little flat
In what is known as old Manhattan
Right here in town
We'll have Manhattan
The Bronx and Staten Island, too
It's lovely going through
The zoo
It's very fancy
On old Delancey Street, you know
The subway charms us so
When balmy breezes blow
To and fro
And tell me what street
Compares with Mott Street
In July
Sweet pushcarts gently gliding by
The great big city's a wondrous toy
Just made for a girl and boy
We'll turn Manhattan
Into an isle of joy
We'll go to Greenwich
Where modern men itch
To be free
And Bowling Green you'll see
With me
We'll bathe at Brighton
The fish you'll frighten
When you're in
Your bathing suit so thin
Will make the shellfish grin
Fin to fin
I'd like to take a
Sail on Jamaica Bay with you
And fair Canaries's lake
We'll view
The city's bustle cannot destroy
The dreams of a girl and boy
We'll turn Manhattan
Into an isle of joy
We'll go to Yonkers
Where true love conquers
In the wilds
And starve together, dear
In Childs'
We'll go to Coney
And eat baloney
On a roll
In Central Park we'll stroll
Where our first kiss we stole
Soul to soul
Our future babies
We'll take to "Abie's Irish Rose"
I hope they'll live to see
It close
The city's clamor can never spoil
The dreams of a boy and goil
We'll turn Manhattan
Into an isle of joy
We'll have Manhattan
The Bronx and Staten Island, too
We'll try to cross Fifth Avenue
As black as onyx
We'll find the Bronx Park Express
Our Flatbush flat, I guess
Will be a great success
More or less
A short vacation
On Inspiration Point
We'll spend
And in the station house we'll end
But civic virtue cannot destroy
The dreams of a girl and boy
We'll turn Manhattan
Into an isle of joy
The song "Manhattan" by Bobby Troup describes the joys of living in the city and exploring all it has to offer. The first stanza sets the tone by mentioning how summer journeys can be stressful, but that they will save their fares by staying in Manhattan. The rest of the song is a tribute to all the boroughs and neighborhoods within Manhattan, and the wide range of activities and experiences available to people there. From the zoo to Mott Street in July, from the fancy Delancey Street to Brighton Beach, the lyrics paint a picture of a city full of life and adventure. The song ends with a nod to the dreams of a boy and goil (girl) who will turn Manhattan into an isle of joy.
One interpretation of the lyrics is that the song is about the idea of making the most of what you have. Rather than going on expensive and stressful vacations, the singer is saying that there is plenty to do and explore within the city limits of Manhattan. The lyrics celebrate the simple pleasures of city life, from taking the subway to seeing the pushcarts on Mott Street. The song is a love letter to New York City, and a reminder to appreciate the things around us that we might take for granted.
Line by Line Meaning
Summer journeys
To Niagara
And to other places
Aggravate all our cares
We'll save our fares
Going on summer vacations to places like Niagara or elsewhere can make us more stressed out. Instead, we'll save our money and stay in Manhattan.
I've a cozy little flat
In what is known as old Manhattan
We'll settle down
Right here in town
I have a comfortable apartment in Manhattan, and we'll stay put here in town.
We'll have Manhattan
The Bronx and Staten Island, too
It's lovely going through
The zoo
We'll explore Manhattan and its neighboring boroughs like the Bronx and Staten Island, and we particularly enjoy visiting the zoo.
It's very fancy
On old Delancey Street, you know
The subway charms us so
When balmy breezes blow
To and fro
Delancey Street is quite upscale and trendy, and we love taking the subway to get around, especially when the weather is pleasant.
And tell me what street
Compares with Mott Street
In July
Sweet pushcarts gently gliding by
There's no street quite like Mott Street in July, with its charming pushcarts rolling by.
The great big city's a wondrous toy
Just made for a girl and boy
We'll turn Manhattan
Into an isle of joy
The city is like a giant playground, and we'll make our own fun, turning Manhattan into our very own paradise.
We'll go to Greenwich
Where modern men itch
To be free
And Bowling Green you'll see
With me
We'll head to Greenwich Village, where the bohemian crowd seeks freedom, and we'll also visit Bowling Green together.
We'll bathe at Brighton
The fish you'll frighten
When you're in
Your bathing suit so thin
Will make the shellfish grin
Fin to fin
We'll go swimming at Brighton Beach, and your revealing bathing suit will shock the fish while making the shellfish smile from fin to fin.
I'd like to take a
Sail on Jamaica Bay with you
And fair Canaries's lake
We'll view
I'd love to take a boat ride with you on Jamaica Bay, and we'll also take in the beauty of Fair Canaries's Lake.
The city's bustle cannot destroy
The dreams of a girl and boy
We'll turn Manhattan
Into an isle of joy
We won't let the hustle and bustle of the city dampen our spirits, as we'll turn Manhattan into our own joyful haven.
We'll go to Yonkers
Where true love conquers
In the wilds
And starve together, dear
In Childs'
We'll explore Yonkers, where true love triumphs in the rugged wilderness, and we'll even eat together at Childs', despite being short on cash.
We'll go to Coney
And eat baloney
On a roll
In Central Park we'll stroll
Where our first kiss we stole
Soul to soul
We'll journey to Coney Island and enjoy some cheap baloney sandwiches on a roll, but we'll also take a romantic stroll in Central Park, reminiscing about our first soulful kiss.
Our future babies
We'll take to "Abie's Irish Rose"
I hope they'll live to see
It close
When we have kids in the future, we'll take them to see the play "Abie's Irish Rose," and we hope they'll live long enough to see its run end.
The city's clamor can never spoil
The dreams of a boy and goil
We'll turn Manhattan
Into an isle of joy
The city's noisy atmosphere won't ruin our dreams, as we'll still make Manhattan a joyful place to be.
We'll have Manhattan
The Bronx and Staten Island, too
We'll try to cross Fifth Avenue
As black as onyx
We'll explore Manhattan as well as its neighboring boroughs like the Bronx and Staten Island, and we'll attempt to cross the usually busy Fifth Avenue when it's as dark as onyx.
We'll find the Bronx Park Express
Our Flatbush flat, I guess
Will be a great success
More or less
We'll locate the Bronx Park Express train, and I have a feeling our place in Flatbush will be mostly successful.
A short vacation
On Inspiration Point
We'll spend
And in the station house we'll end
We'll take a brief break and spend some time at Inspiration Point, and afterwards, we'll wind up at the station house.
But civic virtue cannot destroy
The dreams of a girl and boy
We'll turn Manhattan
Into an isle of joy
Even if civility is lacking in the city, it won't stop us from turning Manhattan into our own happy paradise.
Lyrics © CARLIN AMERICA INC, CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Lorenz Hart, Richard Rodgers
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind