Maybe This Time | Liza Minnelli | 1966 | Olympia, Paris

Here is Liza Minnelli's performance of the song "Maybe This Time" during a June 1966 concert at the Olympia in Paris, FR. The music is by John Kander, with lyrics by Fred Ebb.

This video comes from the full concert, uploaded by niceclips2. To view the full show:    • Видео  

Though made famous by Liza in the 1972 film version of Cabaret, the song first started being performed by Liza sometime between 1963 and 1964 in her night-club act. She also recorded the song in June 1964 for her debut album, Liza! Liza!

As confirmed by Fred Ebb in the book Colored Lights, the song was originally written in late 1962 for singer and comedian Kaye Ballard. A regular performer on the Perry Como Show (at that time, known as Perry Como's Kraft Music Hall), she was known primarily as a comedic performer. Because of this, when Kander and Ebb brought the song "My Coloring Book" to the producers for Kaye to sing on the show, they instead gave it to Sandy Stewart. The song soon became a hit for the songwriters. Feeling bad about the switch, the next day Fred offered to write another song for Kaye. In response, Kaye quipped "Yes, maybe next time I'll be lucky!"

In the book How I Lost 10 Pounds in 53 Years: A Memoir, Kaye writes, "A few days later, Fred came to me with the song 'Maybe This Time.' I was delighted with it. It was a beautiful song, and Fred said, 'Kaye, this is your song forever.' I recorded that song on a single for Reprise Records, and I'm sorry to say, it didn't go anywhere. But hey, it was my song."

Kaye goes on to talk about Liza's connection to the song, stating, "Fred broke my heart when he gave 'Maybe This Time' to Liza to record. Adding insult to injury, my arrangement was copied. [...] Like a fool, I went to Liza's opening night at the Plaza. Just before she sang 'Maybe This Time,' she announced, 'This song was written especially for me.' Fred Ebb and I did not speak for years. Even after all this time it hurts to recall this experience. But that's show business."

The two eventually made amends, with Kaye writing in her memoir, "I could not remain angry at someone I truly loved and respected. I remember seeing him across the room at one of the performances of his show The Rink, and that was all it took; we were instantly back together. I forgave Fred right there on the spot."

In Colored Lights, Fred says of Kaye, "She was one of the first people who had credentials to validate me, and she did. She is warm and wise and funny, and I'm crazy for her. In my dictionary, under 'loyal friend,' the definition should be Kaye Ballard."