"I Could Write a Book" is a

show tune A show tune is a song originally written as part of the score of a work of musical theatre or musical film, especially if the piece in question has become a standard, more or less detached in most people's minds from the original context. Th ...

from the 1940

Rodgers and Hart Rodgers and Hart were an American songwriting partnership between composer Richard Rodgers (1902–1979) and the lyricist Lorenz Hart (1895–1943). They worked together on 28 stage musicals and more than 500 songs from 1919 until Hart's ...

musical '' Pal Joey'', where it was introduced by

Gene Kelly Eugene Curran Kelly (August 23, 1912 – February 2, 1996) was an American dancer, actor, singer, director and choreographer. He was known for his energetic and athletic dancing style and sought to create a new form of American dance accessibl ...

and Leila Ernst. It is considered a

standard Standard may refer to: Symbols * Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs * Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification Norms, conventions or requirements * Standard (metrology), an object ...

Critical reception

An uncredited critic reviewing "New Plays in Manhattan" for ''

Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

'' said of ''Pal Joey'' that the musical contains "all the dancing anyone could want and at least three more great Richard Rodgers tunes: 'I Could Write a Book' (sweet), 'Love Is My Friend' (torchy), ' Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered' (catchy)."(No author.) "New plays in Manhattan," ''Time'', 37:1, 6 January 1941.

Cover versions

The song has been

covered Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of ...

by such artists as:

Anita O'Day Anita Belle Colton (October 18, 1919 – November 23, 2006), known professionally as Anita O'Day, was an American jazz singer and self-proclaimed “song stylist” widely admired for her sense of rhythm and dynamics, and her early big band appe ...

, Frank D'Rone,

Vince Guaraldi Vincent Anthony Guaraldi (; birth name, né Dellaglio, July 17, 1928 – February 6, 1976) was an American jazz pianist best known for composing music for animated television adaptations of the ''Peanuts'' comic strip. His compositions for this s ...

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Honorific nicknames in popular music, Nicknamed the "Chairman of the Board" and "Ol' Blue Eyes", he is regarded as one of the Time 100: The Most I ...

Harry Connick Jr. Joseph Harry Fowler Connick Jr. (born September 11, 1967) is an American singer, pianist, composer, actor, and former television host. As of 2019, he has sold over 30 million records worldwide. Connick is ranked among the top60 best-selling ma ...

, and

Dinah Washington Dinah Washington (; born Ruth Lee Jones; August 29, 1924 – December 14, 1963) was an American singer and pianist, one of the most popular black female recording artists of the 1950s. Primarily a jazz vocalist, she performed and recorded in a ...

In popular culture

*Harry Connick Jr.'s version of "I Could Write a Book" was used in the 1989 film '' When Harry Met Sally...'', appearing on the film's soundtrack, and also appears on the soundtrack of the 1997 film ''

Deconstructing Harry ''Deconstructing Harry'' is a 1997 American black comedy Black comedy, also known as black humor, bleak comedy, dark comedy, dark humor, gallows humor or morbid humor, is a style of comedy that makes light of subject matter that is genera ...

''. *Dinah Washington's version of "I Could Write a Book", from her 1955 album ''

For Those in Love ''For Those in Love'' is a studio album by American jazz vocalist Dinah Washington with musical arrangements by Quincy Jones. It was originally released by EmArcy Records in June 1955, and was reissued by EmArcy Records in 1991. In popular cult ...

'', was used in the ninth episode of the first season of the television series ''

Ash vs Evil Dead ''Ash vs Evil Dead'' is an American comedy horror television series developed by Sam Raimi, Ivan Raimi, and Tom Spezialy for Starz. The series is set in the '' Evil Dead'' universe created by Raimi, with Bruce Campbell reprising his role a ...

''.

References

Sources

* 1940s jazz standards 1940 songs Ella Fitzgerald songs Songs about writers Songs from Pal Joey (film) Songs from Pal Joey (musical) Songs with lyrics by Lorenz Hart Songs with music by Richard Rodgers Real Book Song {{Show-tune-stub