Como was also very popular in the UK. His chart successes ranged from 1953 to 1974 and included two number one's, his first hit 'Don't Let The Stars Get In Your Eyes' in 1953 and 'Magic Moments' which stayed at the top for 8 weeks in 1958. His other big UK hits were 'Delaware' ( No 3 in 1960), ' It's Impossible' (No 4 in 1971) , 'And I Love You So' (No 3 in 1973), and 'For The Good Times' (No 7 in 1973).
As well as TV and recording success, Perry Como also made a number of films, including ' Something For The Boys' and 'Doll Face' which were released during WW2.
He died in his sleep on 12 May 2001.
Accentuate the Positive
Perry Como Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
E-lim-inate the negative,
Ac-cent-thu-ate the positive, an' latch on! )
You gotta accent-thu-ate the positive,
E-lim-inate the negative,
An' latch on
To the affirmative
You gotta spread joy up to the maximum,
Bring gloom down to the minimum,
An' have faith ( amen! )
Or pandemonium's
Liable to walk upon the scene!
To illustrate
My last remark
Jonah in the whale!
Noah in the arc!
An' what did they do ( what did they do? )
Just when everything looked so dark?
( what did they, what did they, what did they do? )
Man! they said
You better accent-thu-ate the positive,
E-lim-inate the negative,
An' latch on
To the affirmative
Don't mess with mister in-between!
No, don't mess with mister in-between!
( to illustrate
His last remark
Jonah in the whale!
Noah in the arc! )
An' what did they do
( what did they do?
Just when everything looked so dark?
What did they do, what did they do? )
Man! they said
You better accent-thu-ate the positive,
E-lim-inate the negative,
An' latch on
To the affirmative
Don't mess with mister in-between!
No, don't mess with mister in-between!
No, don't you mess with mister in-between!
No, don't mess with mister in-between!
Perry Como's "Accentuate the Positive" is a song that encourages listeners to focus on the positive aspects of life and to not get stuck with negative thoughts. The lyrics encourage people to accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative and not to mess with indecision or uncertainty. The song begins by asking people to accentuate the positive and eliminate the negative, and to latch on to the affirmative. This is because indecision or uncertainty can cause chaos or pandemonium in our lives which we want to avoid.
The lyrics go on to say that we need to spread joy to the maximum and reduce gloom to the minimum. However, this can only happen if we have faith. The faith being referred to here is not necessarily religious faith, but rather a belief in ourselves and in our ability to overcome challenges. The song illustrates this point with the stories of Jonah in the whale and Noah in the ark, who managed to stay positive and believed that they would find a way out of their predicaments.
In conclusion, the song encourages us to always look on the bright side of life, to have faith in ourselves, and to focus on positive outcomes rather than negative ones. It reminds us that we have the power to change our perspective and to control our thoughts and attitudes.
Line by Line Meaning
You gotta accent-thu-ate the positive,
You have to emphasize the good things in life,
E-lim-inate the negative,
And get rid of the bad things,
An' latch on
And hold onto
To the affirmative
All the good things that life has to offer
Don't mess with mister in-between!
Don't get stuck in the middle or in limbo
You gotta spread joy up to the maximum,
You should maximize happiness and positivity,
Bring gloom down to the minimum,
And minimize sadness and negativity,
An' have faith ( amen! )
And have faith in goodness (amen!)
Or pandemonium's
Otherwise chaos and confusion can
Liable to walk upon the scene!
Easily enter your life
To illustrate
To give an example
My last remark
My final point
Jonah in the whale!
You can see this in the story of Jonah being swallowed by a whale
Noah in the arc!
And in the story of Noah and the ark
An' what did they do ( what did they do? )
What did they do when they faced challenges?
Just when everything looked so dark?
When everything seemed hopeless?
Man! they said
They said,
No, don't mess with mister in-between!
Don't get stuck in the middle or in limbo
( to illustrate
(As a further example)
His last remark
His final point
What did they do
What did they do when they faced challenges?
( what did they do?
(What did they do when everything seemed hopeless?)
No, don't mess with mister in-between!
Don't get stuck in the middle or in limbo
No, don't you mess with mister in-between!
Do not, under any circumstances, become stuck in the middle
No, don't mess with mister in-between!
Don't get stuck in the middle or in limbo
Contributed by Kayla M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Miss Yvonne
Peace.
Wikipedia gives some background on the origin of one of the most popular song in the 1940s, “Accentuate the Positive”, the attitude of doing right.
In 1944, singer/songwriter Johnny Mercer came to hear of one of the Sermons of the Reverend M. J. Divine (better known as FATHER DIVINE), Founder of the International Peace Mission Movement and Fulfiller of Scripture Prophecy of the Second Coming of the Christ for the Christian world and the Coming of the Messiah for the Jewish world. Rev. Divine became well-known to the public in 1931 while carrying on HIS Work and Mission in Sayville, Long Island, New York.
The Rev. Divine’s Sermon subject was “Accentuate the positive to eliminate the negative."
Mercer said, "Wow, that's a colorful phrase!” (according to John Gilliland, Pop Chronicles the 1940’s and Bob McKenzie, “40’s Sounds Return to Radio”). He went back to Hollywood and, together with songwriter Harold Arlen ("Over The Rainbow"), wrote "Ac-cent-tchu-ate The Positive", which Mercer recorded himself with the Pied Pipers in 1945. It was also recorded by Bing Crosby with the Andrews Sisters that same year. Other artists recording the song include Ella Fitzgerald, Patti Page with Jo Stafford, Sam Cooke, Aretha Franklin, Bette Midler with Bing Crosby, Tami Gunden, Paul McCartney, Dr. John, Thomas Quasthoff with Till Bronner. It was an Academy Award nominee for Best Song in 1945.
Josephine Doolan
This song is the epitome of seeing the glass half full as opposed to half empty... a great reminder that this is still an amazing world despite all the sadness - there is still amazing positive acts of kindness seen everyday. Perry Como's voice is like velvet... superb!!!
Y K
This is by far my favourite version of this song!
LJ Miller
Mine too. Nobody else kicks it off with that high hat pattern and sings this song with Como's pure positivity. This version of the song is the best ringtone to use to put you in a good mood for your boss.
History & Politics - Історія та політика
Much better than the bing Cosby version
Juan Manuel Parada Contreras
Nada como el gran Perry Como en poder disfrutar plenamente. Todo un clásico por partida doble, como es la canción tan pegajosa en interpretar magistralmente.
Imani M
I love Perry Como! This song is no exception (: Accentuate The Positive is one of my favorite songs
JayIceColdD
So underrated as a singer.
sophia angelini
He had a beautiful Voice - and Italian charisma
lois Hopton
Memories of that smooth voice, also one of the Good Guys.Mother loved this song.
robin smiles
This is one of the songs for the ballroom preference at my school I loved it so much I can’t wait to dance to it