1935
Written for the London stage revue Spread It Around, this achingly melancholy love song was introduced in the show by British musical comedy actress Judy Campbell. Lyricist Marvell (real name Eric Maschwitz) apparently composed the words after leaving his great love, Chinese-American actress Anna May Wong (pictured), to return to England. The rarely sung final verse, which contains the phrase, "The song that Crosby sings," was ironically changed when Bing himself first recorded the song.
Lyrics:
A cigarette that bears a lipstick's traces,
An airline ticket to romantic places,
And still my heart has wings--
These foolish things remind me of you.
A tinkling piano in the next apartment,
Those stumbling words that told you what my heart meant,
A fairground's painted swings--
These foolish things remind me of you.
You came, you saw, you conquered me.
When you did that to me,
I knew somehow this had to be.
The winds of March that make my heart a dancer,
A telephone that rings but who's to answer?
Oh, how the ghost of you clings--
These foolish things remind me of you.
The smile of Turner and the scent of roses,
The waiters whistling as the last bar closes,
The song that Crosby sings--
These foolish things remind me of you.
Recorded By:
- The Nat King Cole Trio
- Billie Holiday
- Frank Sinatra
- Ella Fitzgerald
- Benny Goodman
