Album: Anything Goes (1934)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • "You're The Top" is another of Cole Porter's list songs. It was introduced by Ethel Merman and William Gaxton in the 1934 musical Anything Goes.

    According to Robert Kimball in The Complete Lyrics of Cole Porter, the result was that "Porter and the newspapers were inundated with imitations and parodies". P.G. Wodehouse wrote some of the lyrics for the English production.

    Actually, list song is a bit of an understatement; the song mentions Johann Strauss, William Shakespeare, Mahatma Gandhi, Napoleon, Mae West and Greta Garbo, to name but six in no particular order, and that's just some of the people.

    Probably the most obscure allusion occurs in the last verse - which is not always sung; a Drumstick lipstick was manufactured by the French cosmetics firm Charbert.
  • "You're The Top" has long become a standard, and has been widely recorded, principally as a duet, for obvious reasons, including by Barbra Streisand and Ryan O'Neal in the 1972 comedy What's Up, Doc?. The best selling version was by jazz musician Paul Whiteman, whose orchestral version (also a duet) was released on the Victor label in 1934; it made the Top 5 in the US. >>>
    Suggestion credit:
    Alexander Baron - London, England, for above 2

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Mick Jones of Foreigner

Mick Jones of ForeignerSongwriter Interviews

Foreigner's songwriter/guitarist tells the stories behind the songs "Juke Box Hero," "I Want To Know What Love Is," and many more.

Colin Hay

Colin HaySongwriter Interviews

Established as a redoubtable singer-songwriter, the Men At Work frontman explains how religion, sobriety and Jack Nicholson play into his songwriting.

90s Metal

90s MetalFact or Fiction

Test your metal - Priest, Maiden, and Beavis and Butt-head show up in this one.

Psychedelic Lyrics

Psychedelic LyricsMusic Quiz

Whoa man! Do you know which band came up with these cosmic lyrics?

Jim Adkins of Jimmy Eat World

Jim Adkins of Jimmy Eat WorldSongwriter Interviews

Jim talks about the impact of "The Middle" and uses a tree metaphor to describe his songwriting philosophy.

Rob Halford of Judas Priest

Rob Halford of Judas PriestSongwriter Interviews

Rob Halford dives into some of his Judas Priest lyrics, talking about his most personal songs and the message behind "You've Got Another Thing Comin'."