AC-CENT-TCHU-ATE THE POSITIVE
From the Film "Here Come The Waves" (1944)
(Lyrics: Johnny Mercer / Music: Harold Arlen)
Bing Crosby & Sonny Tufts (Film Soundtrack) - 1944
Johnny Mercer - 1944
The Four King Sisters - 1944
Bing Crosby & The Andrews Sisters - 1945
Artie Shaw & His Orch. (vocal: Imogene Lynn) - 1945
Kay Kyser & His Orch. (vocal: Dolly Mitchell) - 1945
Jack Payne & His Orch. (vocal: The Crackerjacks) - 1945
Sammy Davis Jr. - 1955
Ella Mae Morse (with Billy May's Orch.) - 1956
Perry Como - 1958
Sam Cooke - 1958
Roy Hamilton - 1959
The Four Lads - 1960
Gene Vincent - 1960
The Peters Sisters - 1960
Pearl Bailey - 1961
Ella Fitzgerald - 1961
The Four Freshmen - 1961
Aretha Franklin - 1962
Vikki Carr - 1963
The Belmonts - 1963
NRBQ - 1972
Teresa Brewer - 1985
Willie Nelson - 1988
Dr. John - 1989
Mel Torme & George Shearing - 1991
Susan McCorkle - 1993
Maureen McGovern - 1996
Sylvia McNair & Andre previn - 1996
Al Jarreau - 2004
Cliff Richard - 2010
Barbara Cook - 2011
Paul McCartney - 2011
Rumer - 2012
Jools Holland & His R&B Orch. - 2012
Jackie Ryan - 2013
Also recorded by:
Connie Evingson; Monica Mancini; Peggy Lee; Annie Lykke;
Dave Van Ronk; Rosemary Squires; Mary Margaret O'Hara;
Clint Eastwood; Duke Ellington; Al Jarreau; Maxine Sullivan;
Oscar Peterson; Martha Raye; Zoot Money; Victor Silvester;
Dorothy Carless; Nancy LaMott; Buddy Rich; Charlie Spivak;
Harold Arlen; Louis Armstrong; Tony Bennett; Dick Haymes;
Tom Gaebel; Bill Black's Combo ......... and many others.
As performed by BING CROSBY & SONNY TUFTS
in the 1944 Paramount film "Here Come The Waves":
BING:
You've gotta accent-tcu-ate the positive
Eli-mi-nate the negative
Latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between.
You got to spread joy up to the maximum
Bring gloom down to the minimum
Have faith or pandemonium
Li'ble to walk upon the scene
To illustrate my last remark
Jonah in the whale, Noah in the Ark
What did theyou do
Just when everything looked so dark
Man, they said you gotta accent-tchu-ate the positive
Elim-mi-nate the negative
Latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between
No, do not mess with Mister In-Between
SONNY:
You gotta accent-tchu-ate the positive
Eli-mi-nate the negative
Latch on to the affirmative
BOTH: Don't mess with Mister In-Between
SONNY: You've got to spread joy
BING: Up to the maximum
SONNY: Bring gloom
BING: Down to minimum
Look out, Jack
BOTH: Or pandemonium li'ble to walk upon the scene
SONNY: To illustrate
BING: Well, demonstrate
SONNY: My last remark
BING: The floor is yours
SONNY: Jooooooooooo
BING: Jonah in the whale, Noah in the Ark
SONNY: What did you say
BING: Don't yell at me
BOTH: Just when ev'rything looked so dark
Man, they said you gotta accent-tchu-ate the positive
Eli-mi-nate the negative,
Latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-between
No, don't mess with Mister In-Between
(Dance Routine)
BOTH:
You gotta accent-tchu-ate the positive
Eli-mi-nate the negative,
Latch on to the affirmative
BING: Don't mess with Mister In-between
BOTH:
You got to spread joy up to the maximum,
Keep gloom way down minimum.
Have faith or pandemonium
BING: Li'ble to walk upon the scene
(To illustrate my last remark)
(There's Jonah) BING: In the whale
(There's Noah) BING: In the Ark
SONNY: What did they say when ev'rything looked so dark
BING: And we quote
And they said
BOTH:
You gotta accent-tchu-ate the positive
Eli-mi-nate the negative,
Latch on to the affirmative
BING: Don't mess with Mister In-Between, unquote
(Don't mess with Mister In-Between)
BING:
You got to spread joy up to the maximum
You got to keep gloom down to the minimum
ALL:
You gotta accent-tchu-ate the positive
Eli-mi-nate the negative,
Latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between
BING: Take Noah
SONNY: In the whale
BING: Take Jonah
SONNY: In the Ark
What did they say (What did they say)
BING:
You got to accent-tchu-ate the positive
Eli-mi-nate the negative,
Latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between
ALL: No, don't mess with Mister In-Between
(Transcribed by Mel Priddle - December 2015)
**************
As recorded by THE KING SISTERS
with Buddy Cole & his Orch., Sept 15th 1944, New York:
(scat)
Gather round me, everybody,
Gather round me while I preach some.
Feel a sermon comin' on me,
The topic will be sin', and that's what I'm agin!
If you wanna hear my story,
Then settle back and just sit tight,
While I start reviewin'
The attitude of doin' right!
(scat)
You gotta ac-cent-tchu-ate the positive,
Elim-inate the negative,
Latch on to the affirmative,
Don't mess with Mister Inbetween!
You gotta spread joy up to the maximum,
Bring gloom down to the minimum,
Have faith, or pandemonium
Liable to walk upon the scene!
To illustrate my last remark,
Jonah in the whale, Noah in the Ark,
What did they do
Just when everything looked so dark?
Man, they said, "You better
Accentuate the positive,
Eliminate the negative,
Latch on to the affirmative,
Don't mess with Mister Inbetween!
No, don't mess with Mister Inbetween!
To illustrate my last remark,
Oh, Jonah in the whale, Noah in the Ark,
What did he do, what did he do
Just when everything looked dark?
Man he said, "You better
Accentuate the positive,
'Liminate, ooh, the negative,
Latch on to the affirmative,
Don't mess with Mister Inbetween!
So, now you've heard my sermon,
Cut out, don't mess with Mister Inbetween!
(Transcribed by Peter Akers - April 2011)
