Show Boat, "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man" (1927)- Jerome Kern (74-75)

Why was Can’t help lovin’ Dat Man chosen to reflect Julie’s ancestry?

It’s bluesy style

What was the earliest published score of SHow Boat labeled?

“Tempo di BLues"

What famously used blues structure did Kern NOT use for Show Boat?

12 bar blues

What is the only real blues element in “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man?”

The blues notes wavering between conventional and flatted scale tones

What recording of the song is used for the listening example? Why?

Helen Morgan’s studio recording, who played Julie in the stage musical and in the first film; There was no cast recording of the 1927 production “Show Boat”

How is “I Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man” structured?

5 part- rondo form (ABACA)

What is another name for the A sections of “I Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man?”

refrain

In the frain how do Kern and Hammerstein reference blues music?

aab structure for the lyrics

What does the spelling of “dat” capture about African American language?

Captured the African-American vernacular Enligsh

In Morgan’s recording used for the listening example why might she not use the pronunciation “dat?”

She might not have felt like she was acting in the studio.

What role does music play in the drama “Show Boat?”

It plays a unifying role

What aspect of the drama symbolizes a constant and essential presence?

The river Kern a

Kern assigned a musical motif to what tcharacteristic of the drama?

The river

The river motif features a leap of what interval?

AN upward leaps of a perfect 4th

The River Motif is used in which phrase of the A refrain? As what lyrics is sung does the motif get played?

The first phrase; “Fish got to swim”

Kern uses the River motif to make an additional point about what?

Power

How does the River motif make a point about power?

The River is powerful and so is love

Which historian explains Kern’s musical choice in “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man” and “Show Boat’s” broader themes?

Geoffrey Block

What does Geoffrey Block explain about “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man”

Kern uses the perfect 4th to connect force of natural world with the central theme of the song: A woman in love is destined to love her man forever, even when abandoned

What subject matter in “Show Boat” was far removed from what most listeners would have considered entertainment?

“Marriages destroyed by private demons(compulsive gambling) and public ills (institutional racism)”

How many times was Show Boat performed?

572

What did the performance run of show Boat demonstrate about audiences?

Audiences were ready for increased realism, and that a musical could be “taken seriously as theater”

How does “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man” open?

With a plaintive orchestral opening in the minor mode

What is a “Hack”

Horse-drawn cab

How does the Vocal intro in “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man” end?

Woodwind response

Which part of “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man” differs from the theatrical version?

The Vocal intro

How does the first phrase in the A section begin?

leaps of a fourth

What occurs in the second and 3rd sub-phrases of the A section of “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man?”

Second sub phrase moves downward a sequence and and the 3rd sub phrase has blue notes

What does the interlude between A and B foreshadow? How?

the b melody with many blue notes.

WHat accompanies the singing in the first phrase of the first A section?

offbeat banjo

The B section has what type of contour? What pitches are present?

More Conjunct melody with chromatic notes to emulate blues notes

The C section features what?

phrases that use repeated notes which end with large upward disjunct leaps

How are the B and C section different?

B section features conjunct melody and C section features disjunct leaps

Does “Can’t help lovin dat’ Man” have an intro and/or coda?

Yes it has both

WHat is in the coda of “Can’t help lovin’ dat man?”

Short orchestra tag

What lyrics comprise the vocal introduction of “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man?”

“Let me lay on my back/In a forty-dollar hack/No more gin, no more rum/For the misery’s done come.”

How does the vocal introduction of “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man” begin?

“Let me lay on my back”

How does the vocal introduction in “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man” end?

“For the misery’s done come.”

When was “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man”made?

1927

What words feature blues notes in the A section of “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man?”

“lov-” and “man”

With what lyrics does the first phrase of the A section open?

“Fish got to swim and birds got to fly.”

With what lyric does the first phrase of the A section end?

“Can’t help lovin’ dat man of mine.”

WHat are the lyrics in the phrase phrase of the A section?

“Fish got to swim and birds got to fly./I got to love one man till I die./Can’t help lovin’ dat man of mine.”

How are the first and second phrase of the A section similar?

They both feature the same melody, blues notes, and final lyrical line

How does the second phrase of the A section open lyrically?

“Tell me he’s lazy, tell me he’s slow,”

How does the second phrase of the A section end lyrically?

“Can’t help lovin’ dat man of mine”

What lyrics are in the second phrase of the A section?

“Tell me he’s lazy, tell me he’s slow,/ Tell me I’m crazy, oh, maybe I know,/Can’t help lovin’ dat man of mine.”

What is the form of “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man>”

ABACA’

How does the B section of “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man” open lyrically?

“Oh listen, sisters”

How does the B section end lyrically?

“It must be something, that the angels done planned.

Blues Notes are present in what words of the B section of “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man?”

“sis-” “Mis-” “that” “ang-”

What are the lyrics of the B section of “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man?”

“Oh listen, sisters,/ I love my Mister man,/ and I can’t tell you why/ There ain’t no reason/ Why I should love that man/ It must be something/that the angels done planned.”

How does the C section open lyrically?

“When he goes away. dat’s a rainy day”

How does the C section of “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man” end lyrically?

“de sun will shine.”

What lyrics are in the C section of “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man?”

“When he goes away, dat’s a rainy day/And when he comes back dat day is fine,/De sun will shine.”

What words feature large disjunct leaps in the C section?

“away” and “day”

How does the A’ section open lyrically?

“He can come home as late as can be”

How does the A’ section end lyrically?

“Can’t help lovin’ dat man of mine.”

What is the difference between the A and A’ sections?

A’ has differentt lyrics for the first 2 lines.

What are the lyrics of the A’ section In “Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man?”

“He can come home as late as can be/Home without him, ain’t no home to me/Can’t help lovin’ dat man of mine.”