He affirmed the political symbolism he found in Oz - the scarecrow heartland farmer who feels he’s too dumb to think though he has abundant wisdom the factory worker so dehumanized by the assembly lines of modern times that he’s reduced to a tin man with no heart. That Yip wrote “Dime” is significant, as unlike many of his contemporaries writing Broadway musical songs, Yip’s songs were about the common man, reflecting an America beyond Broadway, the America of breadlines, poverty and the downtrodden. Though “Somewhere Over The Rainbow” is his most famous song, and one of the most famous songs ever written (declared the “Number One Song of the 20 th Century” by the NEA and the “number one film song of all time” by AFI), he’s written lyrics for many other classics, including “April In Paris,” with music by Vernon Duke, “It’s Only A Paper Moon” with music by Arlen, Groucho Marx’s signature song “Lydia The Tattooed Lady,” also with Arlen, and “Brother, Can You Spare A Dime,” written with Jay Gorney. It was everything he wanted and more, and a classic was created. Yip soon realized it would work by changing the line from the “other side” to “over the rainbow,” for the mellifluence of the long o, and that led him to the opening word, “somewhere,” which fit the octave ascension ideally.
Yip relented.īut writing lyrics for it was tough, considering that Arlen began with a dramatic octave leap, hard to lyricize. Ira suggested Arlen abandon his grandiose piano accompaniment to play it instead like a pop song, and that that made all the difference. He asked Yip to reconsider, so Yip asked Ira Gershwin for advice. It isn’t Nelson Eddy!’” Arlen, although crest-fallen, labored all week to write a new tune, but nothing could match the power and poignancy of the original. “I said, ‘My God, Harold, this is a 12 year old girl wanting to be somewhere over the rainbow. Yip, however, was less than pleased when he heard it, as he recalled in an interview late in his life. Arlen took that title and ran with it, composing the famous melody for the song.
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