Jerry Herman — I Dont Want to Know from Dear World

[JERRY HERMAN, spoken] Three in a row... was I spoiled? Three in a row... I thought you just wrote a musical and it ran for seven years. But the seventies took me right back down to earth First, I wrote a show called Dear World, a musical—oh, you were there? The musical version of Giraudoux's The Madwoman of Chaillot, in which, by the way, Angela Lansbury won her second Tony Award in a musical of mine. But when we got to Boston to try the show out, every conceivable thing that can go wrong with a musical did. Songs were being changed, I had to— I had to replace two songs in forty eight hours, cast members wеre being hired and firеd, and scenes were being changed nightly. It was sturm und drang, I promise you But when I look back at that time today, it's fascinating that my favorite song from the score, and the song that I feel best captures the spirit of the Giraudoux heroine, was written in a Boston hotel room in an atmosphere of absolute chaos [KAREN MORROW] If music is no longer lovely If laughter is no longer lilting If lovers are no longer loving Then I don't want to know If summer is no longer carefree If children are no longer singing If people are no longer happy Then I don't want to know Let me hide every truth from my eyes With the back of my hand Let me live in a world full of lies With my head in the sand For my memories all are exciting My memories all are enchanted My memories burn in my head with a steady glow So if, my friends, if love is dead I don't want to know [LEE ROY REAMS] If music is no longer lovely If laughter is no longer lilting If lovers are no longer loving Then I don't want to know If summer is no longer carefree If children are no longer singing If people are no longer happy Then I don't want to know Let me hide every truth from my eyes With the back of my hand Let me live in a world full of lies With my head in the sand For my memories all are exciting My memories all are enchanted My memories burn in my head with a steady glow So if, my friends, if love is dead I don't want to know [LEE ROY & KAREN] La da da La da da da da La da da La da da da da La da da La da da da da da da