The Real American Folk Song (1959 Stereo Version) - Ella Fitzgerald
Page format: | ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Real American Folk Song (1959 Stereo Version) Lyrics
Near Barcelona, the peasant crooned
The old traditional Spanish tunes
The Neapolitan street song sighs
You think of Italian skiesEach nation has a creative vein
Originating a native strain
With folk songs plaintive and others gay
In their own peculiar wayAmerican folk songs, I feel
Have a much stronger appealThe real American folksong is a rag, a mental jag
A rhythmic tonic for the chronic blues
The critics called it a 'Joke Song'
But now they've changed their tune and they like it, somehowFor it's inoculated with a syncopated sort of meter
Sweeter than a classic strain, boy you can't remain still and quiet
For it's a riotThe real American folksong is like a fountain of youth
You taste and it elates you and then invigorates you
The real American folksong, the masses coaxed on, is a ragThe real American folksong is a rag, a mental jag
A rhythmic tonic for the chronic blues
The critics called it a 'Joke Song'
But now they've changed their tune and they like it, somehowFor it's inoculated with a syncopated sort of meter
Sweeter than a classic strain, boy you can't remain still and quiet
For it's a riotThe real American folksong is like a fountain of youth
You taste and it elates you and then invigorates you
The real American folksong is a rag
Songwriters
GERSHWIN, GEORGE/GERSHWIN, IRAPublished by
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
![](https://damnlyrics.com/images/space.gif)
![](https://damnlyrics.com//images/space.gif)
More lyrics by Ella Fitzgerald
![](https://damnlyrics.com//images/space.gif)