I Get Along Without You Very Well

By Hoagy Carmichael
1939

A sublime tune by Carmichael, who based his lyrics on a poem by Jane Brown Thompson. Ironically, Thompson passed away the night before the song was introduced on the radio by Dick Powell. The big hit would come that year for the Red Norvo orchestra. Hoagy himself would play the song in the 1952 movie The Las Vegas Story.

Lyrics:

I get along without you very well,
Of course I do.
Except when soft rains fall,
And drip from leaves, then I recall
The thrill of being sheltered in your arms.
Of course, I do.
But I get along without you very well.

I've forgotten you just like I should,
Of course I have.
Except to hear your name,
Or someones laugh that is the same.
But I've forgotten you just like I should.

What a guy, what a fool am I
To think my breaking heart could kid the moon.
What's in store? Should I phone once more?
No, it's best that I stick to my tune.

I get along without you very well,
Of course I do.
Except perhaps in spring, but I should never think of spring,
For that would surely break my heart in two.

Recorded By:

Chet Baker
Charlie Barnet
Frank Sinatra
Diana Krall
Peggy Lee