The Wonderful Life of Mr. WannaB

Ep.5 - Cockeyed Optimist

Lately I have been gathering a portfolio of songs for my singing classes, mostly standards of jazz and songs from the great American composers of the golden era. A song, from a musical called South Pacific, stands out due to it’s name: Cockeyed Optimist. Not only due to the word «cock» being in the name, it’s got everything to do we me.

The lyrics go:

When the skies are brighter canary yellow
I forget ev’ry cloud I’ve ever seen,
So they called me a cockeyed optimist
Immature and incurably green.

I have heard people rant and rave and bellow
That we’re done and we might as well be dead,
But I’m only a cockeyed optimist
And I can’t get it into my head.

I hear the human race
Is fallin’ on its face
And hasn’t very far to go,
But ev’ry whippoorwill
Is sellin’ me a bill,
And tellin’ me it just ain’t so.

I could say life is just a bowl of Jello
And appear more intelligent and smart,
But I’m stuck like a dope
With a thing called hope,
And I can’t, no I can’t get it out of my heart!
Not this heart…

I’ve been working a lot the past few months, and have been away from many people I care about. I’ve seen Summer pass by and with Fall here now, having still such little time for the special people in my life, running around all day from studio to studio, feeling tired and stressed, I wonder if I’m getting in to my heart a passionless life?

Not this heart!