Saturday Night in Central Park
This song is from a 1947 musical, Make Mine Manhattan, and refers to the popular Saturday night square dances led by Ed Durlacher in Central Park. Clearly, the dances were enough of a phenomenon that a New York theatre-going crowd would understand the reference.
You can hear a solo rendition of the song here, with the score unfolding in the video. Also available on YouTube is a 1948 recording by Ray Noble and his orchestra and another big band version by Guy Lombardo and the Royal Canadians.
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From Make Mine Manhattan, 1947
Words by Arnold B. Horwitt
Music by Richard Lewine
Introduction
There’s some goin’s-on in Central Park
That strike a man as weird
Some goin’s-on in Central Park
The likes of which you never “heared”
From Sunday morn till Friday
It’s peaceful on the mall
But Saturday night in Central Park
Bejabbers what a brawl
Lyrics:
Everyone’s got that easy feelin’
Even the dogs forget to bark
Soon as they start Virginia reelin’
Saturday night in Central Park
Jitterbug, Jive and Suzy Qu’-in’
Hasn’t a chance to make its mark
Nothin’s allowed but Square Dance doin’
Saturday night in Central Park
The band on the stand gets the signal
To start a John Paul Jones
And do-see-do, around they go
Galivanting, isn’t it enchanting
Afterwards there’ll be time for kissin’
Plenty of benches in the dark
Jiminy crickets, don’t be missing
Saturday night in Central Park
Subjects: General - Dance and Culture
Tags: Central Park, Ed Durlacher, Make Mine Manhattan, Saturday Night in Central Park
Item Relations
| This Item | is related to | Item: Ed Durlacher - Central Park Newsreel |
| This Item | is related to | Item: Ed Durlacher - Central Park, photos |
| This Item | is related to | Item: Square Dancing in the Park |
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Title
Subject
Description
You can hear a solo rendition of the song here, with the score unfolding in the video. Also available on YouTube is a 1948 recording by Ray Noble and his orchestra and another big band version by Guy Lombardo and the Royal Canadians.
===
From Make Mine Manhattan, 1947
Words by Arnold B. Horwitt
Music by Richard Lewine
Introduction
There’s some goin’s-on in Central Park
That strike a man as weird
Some goin’s-on in Central Park
The likes of which you never “heared”
From Sunday morn till Friday
It’s peaceful on the mall
But Saturday night in Central Park
Bejabbers what a brawl
Lyrics:
Everyone’s got that easy feelin’
Even the dogs forget to bark
Soon as they start Virginia reelin’
Saturday night in Central Park
Jitterbug, Jive and Suzy Qu’-in’
Hasn’t a chance to make its mark
Nothin’s allowed but Square Dance doin’
Saturday night in Central Park
The band on the stand gets the signal
To start a John Paul Jones
And do-see-do, around they go
Galivanting, isn’t it enchanting
Afterwards there’ll be time for kissin’
Plenty of benches in the dark
Jiminy crickets, don’t be missing
Saturday night in Central Park