Lyrics for Brecht & Weill songs

[Lawrence French <lrfrench>]

Here's the lyrics for the three Kurt Weill songs patti
played at the Getty show.  Let's hope somebody
recorded this show, as the acoustics in the hall were
great, and being such a high-brow crowd, there was
very little audience noise, so any kind of recording
should come out pretty decent. 



PIRATE JENNY 

 By Bertolt Brecht, Kurt Weill 
 (From THREE PENNY OPERA -1928)    
          
You people can watch while I'm scrubbing 
these floors
And I'm scrubbin' the floors while you're gawking
Maybe once ya tip me and it makes ya feel swell
In this crummy Southern town
In this crummy old hotel
But you'll never guess to who you're talkin'. 
No. You couldn't ever guess to who you're talkin'.

Then one night there's a scream in the night
And you'll wonder who could that have been
And you see me kinda grinnin' while I'm scrubbin'
And you say, "What's she got to grin?"
I'll tell you.

There's a ship
The Black Freighter
with a skull on its masthead
will be coming in

You gentlemen can say, "Hey gal, finish them floors!
Get upstairs! What's wrong with you! Earn your keep
here!
You toss me your tips
and look out to the ships
But I'm counting your heads
as I'm making the beds
Cause there's nobody gone to sleep here, honey
Nobody
Nobody!

Then one night there's a scream in the night
And you say, "Who's that kicking up a row?"
And ya see me kinda starin' out the winda
And you say, "What's she got to stare at now?"
I'll tell ya.

There's a ship
The Black Freighter
turns around in the harbor
shootin' guns from her bow

Now
You gentlemen can wipe off that smile off your face
Cause every building in town is a flat one
This whole frickin' place will be down to the ground
Only this cheap hotel standing up safe and sound
And you yell, "Why do they spare that one?"
Yes.
That's what you say.
"Why do they spare that one?"

All the night through, through the noise and to-do
You wonder who is that person that lives up there?
And you see me stepping out in the morning 
Looking nice with a ribbon in my hair

And the ship
The Black Freighter
runs a flag up its masthead
and a cheer rings the air

By noontime the dock
is a-swarmin' with men
comin' out from the ghostly freighter
They move in the shadows
where no one can see
And they're chainin' up people
and they're bringin' em to me
askin' me,
"Kill them NOW, or LATER?"
Askin' ME!
"Kill them now, or later?"

Noon by the clock
and so still by the dock
You can hear a foghorn miles away
And in that quiet of death
I'll say, "Right now.
Right now!"

Then they'll pile up the bodies
And I'll say,
"That'll learn ya!"

And the ship
The Black Freighter
disappears out to sea
And 
on 
it 
is
me 

-----------------------------------




MOON OVER ALABAMA 
        
By Kurt Weill, Bertolt Brecht 
(From THE RISE AND FALL OF THE CITY OF MAHAGONNY -
1930)  
          
Show us the way to the next whiskey bar
Don't ask why
For we must find the next whiskey bar
Or if we don't find the next whiskey bar
I tell you we must die
I tell you we must die
I tell you  - I  tell you - I tell you we must die

Oh Moon of Alabama
We now must say goodbye
We've lost our good old mama
And must have whiskey ... you know why

Oh Moon of Alabama
We now must say goodbye
We've lost our good old mama
And must have whiskey ... you know why

Show us the way to the next dollar
Don't ask why
For we must find the next little dollar
Or if we don't find the next little dollar
I tell you we must die
I tell you we must die
I tell you 
I tell you
I tell you we must die

Oh Moon of Alabama
We now must say goodbye
We've lost our good old mama
And must have dollar or you know why

Oh Moon of Alabama
We now must say goodbye
We've lost our good old mama
And must have dollar or you know why

Oh show us the way to the next little girl
Oh don't ask why
For we must find the next little girl
Or if we don't find the next little girl
I tell you we must die
I tell you we must die
I tell you - I tell you
I tell you we must die

Oh moon of Alabama
It's time to say goodbye
We've lost our good old mama
We must have little girl or you know why

Oh moon of Alabama
It's time to say goodbye
We've lost our good old mama
We must have little girl or you know why

-----------------------------------------------

LOST IN THE STARS 
By Maxwell Anderson & Kurt Weill 

Before Lord God made the sea and the land, 
He held all the stars in the palm of his hand. 
And they ran through his fingers like grains of sand, 
And one little star fell alone. 
Then the Lord God hunted through the wide night air
For the little dark star on the wind down there. 
And he stated and promised he'd take special care
So it wouldn't get lost again. 
Now a man don't mind if the stars grow dim
And the clouds blow over and darken him, 
So long as the Lord God's watching over them, 
Keeping track of how it all goes on. 
But I've been walking all the night and the day, 
Till my eyes get weary and my head turns gray.
And sometimes it seems maybe God's gone away,
And we're lost out here in the stars.
Little stars, big stars, blowing through the night,
And we're lost out here in the stars.
Little stars, big stars, blowing through the night,
And we're lost out here in the stars.






--- Lawrence French <lrfrench> wrote:
> 
> As Patti said before one song during this show, if
> we
> don't get it right, since we're in a museum, just
> call
> it art.  Despite a few mis-steps, it was that -
> being
> a totally unique and brilliant evening of
> performance
> art.    
>   
>  
> Piss Factory
> Notebook  
> Dog Dream  
> Oath  
> Come Back Little Sheba
> (Patti intrroduced Jackson after this song, by
> saying
> "we did practice today in the bathroon of our hotel.
> -
> Jackson has played a bit here and there, with my
> band,
> but this is the first time Jackson and I have played
> together by ourselves, other than the family
> bathroom).   
> 
> Grateful 
> Little Lamb 
> Boy Cried Wolf 
> Jackson solo 
> Jenny's Song (From THREE PENNY OPERA) 
> Moon Over Alabama 
> (from THE RISE AND FALL OF THE CITY OF MAHAGONNY) 
> Poem writ in memory of Harry Smith  
> Lost in the Stars (From LOST IN THE STARS) 
> 
> encore 
> 
> Dancing Barefoot 
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> 
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