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Something's Gotta Give (Johnny Mercer song)

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"Something's Gotta Give" is a popular song with words and music by Johnny Mercer in 1954.[1] It was published in 1955. It was written for and first performed by Fred Astaire in the 1955 musical film Daddy Long Legs, and was nominated the same year for an Academy Award for Best Original Song, losing to "Love is a Many Splendored Thing" from the film of the same name.

Background

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The song playfully uses the irresistible force paradox – which asks what happens when an irresistible force meets an immovable object – as a metaphor for a relationship between a vivacious woman and an older, world-weary man. The man, it is implied, will give in to temptation and kiss the woman. The song's lyrics echo the plot of Daddy Long Legs, in which a reserved man in his 50s (Astaire) falls in love with a woman in her early 20s (Leslie Caron).

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Notes

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  1. ^ Furia, Philip (1992). Poets of Tin Pan Alley (ABBA ed.). New York & Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 278. ISBN 0-19-507473-4.
  2. ^ a b Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, 8th Edition (Billboard Publications).
  3. ^ "A Bing Crosby Discography". BING magazine. International Club Crosby. Retrieved December 9, 2017.
  4. ^ "allmusic.com". allmusic.com. Retrieved December 9, 2017.
  5. ^ ""The Stripper" (1963) Joanne Woodward & Richard Beymer". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2021-12-13. Retrieved 2019-02-08.