Meredith Willson — The Sadder but Wiser Girl

[Hill, spoken] No wide-eyed, eager, wholesome, innocent Sunday-school teacher for me That kinda gal spins webs no spider ever... now, listen boy... A gal who trades on all that purity Merely wants to trade my independence for her security [Sung] The only affirmative she will file Refers to marching down the aisle No golden, glorious, gleaming pristine goddess, no sir! For no Diana do I play faun, I can tell you that right now I snarl, I hiss, how can ignorance be compared to bliss? I spark, I fizz, for the lady who knows what time it is I cheer, I rave, for the virtue I'm too late to save The sadder but wiser girl for me No bright-eyed, blushing, breathless baby-doll baby, no sir! That kinda child ties knots no sailor ever knew I prefer to take a chance on a more adult romance No dewy young miss who keeps resisting All the time she keeps insisting No bright-eyed, wholesome, innocent female, no sir! Why, she's the fisherman, I'm the fish, you see? Plop! I flinch, I shy when the lass with the delicate air walks by I smile, I grin when the gal with a touch of sin walks in I hope, and I pray for Hester to win just one more 'A' The sadder but wiser girl's the girl for me The sadder but wiser girl for me