"You Can't Get a Man with a Gun" is a song from the 1946 musical Annie Get Your Gun, written by Irving Berlin. It was originally performed by Ethel Merman.[1]
| "You Can't Get a Man with a Gun" | |
|---|---|
| Song by Ethel Merman | |
| from the album Annie Get Your Gun (musical) | |
| Released | 1946 |
| Genre | |
| Length | 3:13 |
| Songwriter(s) | Irving Berlin |
Background
editIn the song, Annie Oakley sings about how a girl with talent as a sharpshooter nevertheless finds that her abilities do not help her attract men. She introduces herself with: "I'm quick on the trigger/with targets not much bigger/than a pinpoint I'm number one." The song is humorous in that she imagines different scenarios in which shooting a man will not make him fall in love with you, e.g. "A man may be hot/but he's not/when he's shot/oh, you can't get a man with a gun!" and "But you can't shoot a lover,/and use him for a cover/oh, you can't get a man with a gun!"
Recordings
edit- Doris Day - for her album Annie Get Your Gun (1963)[2]
- Judy Garland - recorded for the film soundtrack but not used as Garland was subsequently dropped from the film.[3]
- Eydie Gormé - for her album Gormé Sings Showstoppers (1959).[4]
- Betty Hutton - included in the album Annie Get Your Gun (Original Soundtrack) (1950).[5]
- Ethel Merman - included in Annie Get Your Gun [Original Cast Album] (1946).[6]
- Mary Martin - released as part of album of a 1957 TV recording with John Raitt. [7]
- Björk - included in Gling-Gló (1990).
- Bernadette Peters - included in Annie Get Your Gun [1999 Broadway Revival Cast] (1999).[8]
- Suzi Quatro – starred as Annie Oakley in the 1986 West End (London) production of Annie Get Your Gun. She sings the song in the album Annie Get Your Gun – 1986 London Cast (1986),[9] and the associated single "I Got Lost in His Arms" (1986).[10]
References
edit- ^ Magee, J. (2012). Irving Berlin's American Musical Theater. Broadway Legacies. Oxford University Press. p. 436. ISBN 978-0-19-991163-9. Retrieved 1 August 2018.
- ^ "www.discogs.com". discogs.com. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
- ^ "The Judy Room". The Judy Room. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
- ^ "Discogs.com". Discogs. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
- ^ "Discogs.com". Discogs. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
- ^ "allmusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
- ^ "Mary Martin, John Raitt - Annie Get Your Gun". Discogs. 1957.
- ^ "allmusic.com". AllMusic. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
- ^ Ruhlmann, William. "Annie Get Your Gun (Original London Cast Recording) – Original London Cast, AllMusic, Overview". Ann Arbor, USA: AllMusic. Retrieved 11 May 2012.
- ^ "Suzi Quatro Timeline". thecoverzone.com. Bristol, USA: Suzi Quatro Rocks – Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Mission. Retrieved 11 May 2012.