Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate The Positive
Johnny Mercer & The Pied Pipers Lyrics


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Gather 'round me, everybody
Gather 'round me, while I preach some
Feel a sermon coming on here
The topic will be sin
And that's what I'm agin'
If you wanna hear my story
Then settle back and just sit tight
While I start reviewing
The attitude of doing right

You got to ac-cent-tchu-ate the positive
E-lim-i-nate the negative
And latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mr. In-between
You got to spread joy up to the maximum
Bring gloom down to the minimum
And have faith, or pandemonium
Liable to walk upon the scene

To illustrate my last remark
Jonah in the whale, Noah in the ark
What did they do, just when everything looked so dark?

Man, they said, we better ac-cent-tchu-ate the positive
E-lim-i-nate the negative
And latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mr. In-between
No, don't mess with Mr. In-between
You got to spread joy up to the maximum
Bring gloom down to the minimum
And have faith or pandemonium
Liable to walk upon the scene

You got to ac-cent-tchu-ate the positive
E-lim-i-nate the negative
And latch on to the affirmative




Don't mess with Mr. In-between
No, don't mess with Mr. In-between

Overall Meaning

In Johnny Mercer's song Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate The Positive, he employs religious imagery and metaphors to communicate the importance of having a positive attitude towards life. He likens life to a sermon and himself to a preacher, gathering everyone around to preach about the sin of having a negative attitude. Mercer presents his argument using the example of Jonah in the whale and Noah in the ark, both of whom found themselves in dire circumstances, but rather than focusing on the negatives, they chose to accentuate the positives and have faith.


Throughout the song, the message is clear - in order to navigate the ups and downs of life, we must eliminate negativity, latch onto positivity and have faith. The repetition of the phrase, "you got to ac-cent-tchu-ate the positive" reinforces the message and creates a catchy tune. Mercer's use of rhyme and rhythm creates a memorable sermon that is easy to sing along to and reminds us to focus on the good in life.


Line by Line Meaning

Gather 'round me, everybody
Attention everyone, please come close


Gather 'round me, while I preach some
Stay here and listen to my sermon


Feel a sermon coming on here
I sense that I have an important message to share


The topic will be sin
I will discuss the wrongdoings of humanity


And that's what I'm agin'
I am against sin and negative behavior


If you wanna hear my story
If you want to listen to my message


Then settle back and just sit tight
Please sit comfortably and be patient


While I start reviewing
While I begin to discuss


The attitude of doing right
The mindset of positive and moral behavior


You got to ac-cent-tchu-ate the positive
Focus on and emphasize the positive aspects


E-lim-i-nate the negative
Get rid of any negative aspects


And latch on to the affirmative
Hold onto the positive aspects tightly


Don't mess with Mr. In-between
Avoid the gray areas or ambiguous situations


You got to spread joy up to the maximum
Maximize the happiness and positivity in your life


Bring gloom down to the minimum
Minimize the sadness and negativity in your life


And have faith, or pandemonium
Believe and have hope, or chaos may unravel


Liable to walk upon the scene
Likely to enter and cause disruption


To illustrate my last remark
To provide an example to emphasize my previous point


Jonah in the whale, Noah in the ark
The biblical stories of Jonah and Noah


What did they do, just when everything looked so dark?
What action did they take when things seemed hopeless?


Man, they said, we better ac-cent-tchu-ate the positive
They realized the importance of focusing on the positive aspects


E-lim-i-nate the negative
They got rid of any negative aspects


And latch on to the affirmative
And held onto the positive aspects tightly


No, don't mess with Mr. In-between
Avoid the gray areas or ambiguous situations


You got to spread joy up to the maximum
Maximize the happiness and positivity in your life


Bring gloom down to the minimum
Minimize the sadness and negativity in your life


And have faith or pandemonium
Believe and have hope, or chaos may unravel


Liable to walk upon the scene
Likely to enter and cause disruption


You got to ac-cent-tchu-ate the positive
Focus on and emphasize the positive aspects


E-lim-i-nate the negative
Get rid of any negative aspects


And latch on to the affirmative
Hold onto the positive aspects tightly


Don't mess with Mr. In-between
Avoid the gray areas or ambiguous situations




Lyrics Ā© Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Johnny Mercer, Harold Arlen

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Most interesting comments from YouTube:

@d3faultgh0st

Lyrics:

Gather ā€˜round me, everybody
Gather ā€˜round me while Iā€™m preachinā€™
Feel a sermon cominā€™ on me
The topic will be sin and thatā€™s what Iā€™m agā€™inā€™
If you wanna hear my story
Then settle back and just sit tight
While I start reviewinā€™
The attitude of doinā€™ right

Youā€™ve got to accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
And latch on to the affirmative
Donā€™t mess with mister in-between

Youā€™ve got to spread joy up to the maximum
Bring gloom down to the minimum
Have faith or pandemonium
Liable to walk upon the scene

To illustrate my last remark
Jonah in the whale, Noah in the ark
What did they do just when everything looked so dark



@Sunnyside760

Lyrics : You got to ac-cent-tchu-ate the positive
E-lim-i-nate the negative
And latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mr. In-between
You got to spread joy up to the maximum
Bring gloom down to the minimum
And have faith, or pandemonium
Liable to walk upon the scene
To illustrate his last remark
Jonah in the whale, Noah in the ark
What did they do, just when everything looked so dark?
Man, they said we better ac-cent-tchu-ate the positive
E-lim-i-nate the negative
And latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mr. In-between
No, do not mess with Mister In-Between
Do you hear me?
Oh, listen to me children and-a you will hear
About the eliminatin' of the negative
And the accent on the positive
And gather 'round me children if you're willin'
And sit tight while I start reviewin'
The attitude of doin' right
You've gotta ac-cent-tchu-ate the positive
E-lim-i-nate the negative
And latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mr. In-between
You got to spread joy up to the maximum
Bring gloom down to the minimum
Otherwise (otherwise), pandemonium
Liable to walk upon the scene
To illustrate my last remark
Jonah in the whale, Noah in the ark
What did they say
Say when everything looked so dark?
Man, they said we better ac-cent-tchu-ate the positive
E-lim-i-nate the negative
And latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mr. In-between
No, do not mess with Mister In-Between



@MyLuckyNumberIz7

Lyrics:

Gather round me
Everybody
Gather round me
While I preach some

Feel a sermon
Coming on me
The topic will be sin and thatā€™s what Iā€™m again

If you wanna hear my story
Then settle back and just sit tight
While I start reviewing the attitude of doing right

You've got to accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
And latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between

You've got to spread joy up to the maximum
Bring gloom down to the minimum
Have faith or pandemonium
Liable to walk upon the scene

To illustrate my last remark
Jonah in the whale, Noah in the ark
What did they do
Just when everything looked so dark

Man, they said we better, accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
Latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between

No, donā€™t mess with Mister In-Between


You've gotta accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
Latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between

You've got to spread joy up to the maximum
Bring gloom, down to the minimum
And have faith or pandemonium
Liable to walk upon the scene

To illustrate my last remark
Jonah in the whale, Noah in the ark
What did they do
Just when everything looked so dark

Man, they said we better accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
Latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between
No, don't mess with Mister In-Between

You've gotta accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
Latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between

No, donā€™t mess with Mister In-Between
Mercer and the Pied Pipers 1945

Gather round me
Everybody
Gather round me
While I preach some

Feel a sermon
Coming on me
The topic will be sin and thatā€™s what Iā€™m again

If you wanna hear my story
Then settle back and just sit tight
While I start reviewing the attitude of doing right

You've got to accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
And latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between

You've got to spread joy up to the maximum
Bring gloom down to the minimum
Have faith or pandemonium
Liable to walk upon the scene

To illustrate my last remark
Jonah in the whale, Noah in the ark
What did they do
Just when everything looked so dark

Man, they said we better, accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
Latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between

No, donā€™t mess with Mister In-Between


You've gotta accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
Latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between

You've got to spread joy up to the maximum
Bring gloom, down to the minimum
And have faith or pandemonium
Liable to walk upon the scene

To illustrate my last remark
Jonah in the whale, Noah in the ark
What did they do
Just when everything looked so dark

Man, they said we better accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
Latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between
No, don't mess with Mister In-Between

You've gotta accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
Latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between

No, donā€™t mess with Mister In-Between



All comments from YouTube:

@GekkoKamen

After 71 years this song still helps to get through and by, many thanks for uploading this version.

@semperfi818

My mother, who adored Mercer's songwriting and his singing and introduced me to both when I was a boy, especially loved this tune; it was a shame she never took its excellent message to heart, though -- however, I did, and am still loving the work of Savannah, GA's favorite son at age 63 and rocking in the free world.

@bigbay1159

I do love the message if the song as well. A wonderful classic

@tallpaul521

My father's funeral was today. Major Edward Driscoll..WWII Veteran..one of the vanishing Greatest Generation. He was 93, and this song was one of his favorites and was played at the service.

@rcair123

Truly the greatest generation. Imagine if we could bring a couple hundred of those boys back today, they would have things back in shape in no time flat.

@carolchambeland1279

One day I spent an enjoyable dinner with Mr. and Mrs. Johnny Mercer at a fabulous restaurant. We talked a bout him and his mother and wife, waiting 40 years before they finally got together and wedding. His wife, Jeff Lee turned and left at him with a laughing look up on her face. His wife and I took a little walk around the restaurant had a short conversation and went back to the table soon after that as we were finishing up our mail, the owner of salmon need a race track walk Jan, according to Johnny, and said that they would spread the word that he was there in Most likely would be expected to get up in sync. At that point Johnny wanted to leave so we all got up and left the restaurant. Itā€™s such a shame that these famous people cannot live a normal life without the end-user hijacked by the public or the press. Thatā€™s the way the ball bounces I guess it was time for himword is spread that he is in a public place. They want him to get up and sing went. All he wants is to go out for dinner with his wife and friends. We all got up and left. as famous and popular people may be,

@carolchambeland1279

3:30 3:30

@jessicagiovanni5773

To Major Edward whom is no longer with us. Thank you for my freedom. Thank you for your service. You will be missed Major.

1 More Replies...

@firstnamelastname9918

I was introduced to this song about 6 years ago and it helped me through a tremendously dark time and helped me become a better person.

@zuzannawisniewska4464

I adore his voice...He was a beautiful soul...absolutely stunning...

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