Anything Goes

"In olden days a glimpse of stocking
Was looked on as something shocking,
But now, God knows,
Anything Goes"

The last line, taken from Cole Porter's famous song "Anything Goes", sums up this songwriter's lifestyle very well. Cole Porter knew what he was writing about. His well to do upbringing helped him to live an outrageous lifestyle. He was known for his partying, travels to foreign countries, and numerous gay and bisexual escapades. 

Cole Porter was born in the state of Indiana in 1891. His father was a shy and reserved man, his mother a dominant character, who wanted nothing but the best for her son. She spend a great deal of time and money to be able to make her son succesful in life. He learned to play the violin and the piano by age 10, and his mother helped him write his first operette at about the same age. Cole Porter studies at Yale and entered Harvard Law School, but soon decided that this was not for him, and studied music instead.

He wrote his first musicals soon after he graduated from Harvard's Music Faculty, and pretty soon was recognized by critics as well as the general public. His musical "Anything Goes" was a Broadway hit in 1934 and is still performed in theatres thoughout the United States.

I first saw "Anything Goes" in a small theatre in New Jersey in 2004, and was blown away. Not so much for its storyline (because I thought the storyline was rather bad), but because of  6 songs in this musical which I loved (and still do to this day); "I Get a Kick out of You"; "You're the Top"; "It's De-Lovely"; "Let's Misbehave"; "Blow Gabriel Blow", and of course "Anything Goes". Can you imagine, 6 great songs, in just one musical!

Hopefully I was able to transfer some of my Cole Porter enthusiasm to you. If so, you might like to watch this 2004 movie about Cole Porter's life, buy this great CD, or visit this website where you can find everything worth knowing about Cole Porter, as well as the songs and musicals he wrote, and the important books and movies about his life. But, first, take some time to listen to Pati Lupone's version of  "Anything Goes'" performed at the Toni Awards in 1988. 

Patti Lupone - "Anything Goes"