Who Could Ask For Anything More? (Gershwin Medley)

"Who Could ask for Anything More?" by George and Ira Gershwin/arr. Jay Althouse
(Medley)
Love is Here to Stay
S’wonderful
Nice Work if You Can Get It
I Got Rhythm

Performed by Mak'hela Jewish Chorus of Western MA
http://www.makhela.org

Audio and video recording by Brian Bender
Clarinet arrangements by Judy Gutlerner and Elaine Broad Ginsberg

Elaine Broad Ginsberg, music director
Jamie Goodnow, piano
Judy Gutlerner, clarinet
Anna Sobel, cajon
Brian Bender, trombone
Larry Picard, Master of Ceremonies

Recorded on 5/19/24 at the Yiddish Book Center (Amherst, MA) as part of Mak'hela's "Jewish Broadway!" concert.

Who Could Ask for Anything More? George and Ira Gershwin were brothers who grew
up in New York City. The brothers collaborated on more than 20 Broadway musicals;
George was the composer and Ira the lyricist.

“Love is Here to Stay was George’s final music composition. After he died, Ira wrote the words as a tribute to his brother. It was written for the 1938 movie, “The Goldwyn Follies,”
made famous by Gene Kelly.

The next song is “S’Wonderful,” a tune that has become a jazz standard. It
is followed by “Nice Work if you can Get It,” also a jazz classic written for the 1937
film Damsel in Distress (which was performed by Fred Astaire).

The Gershwin medley concludes with “I Got Rhythm.” This became the most
popular song from the 1930 musical “Girl Crazy.” It was recorded by Ethel Merman,
Louis Armstrong, and Benny Goodman to name a few, and also became a major hit on
radio.

George (1898 - 1937) and Ira (1896 - 1983) Gershwin: George was a composer and
pianist, and Ira was a lyricist. Sons of Russian Jewish immigrants, they grew up on 2nd
Ave. in New York City. When the boys were young, their parents bought a piano which
was hauled up the side of the building to their apartment by ropes. The entire neighborhood
came out to watch this incredible spectacle. Although the piano was meant for his
brother Ira, George became most interested in it and played constantly. As a boy, he was a
frequent visitor to the Yiddish theater, running errands, and even appearing on stage as an
extra. George left school as a teenager to have a career as a songwriter in the Tin Pan
Alley. Ira went to school all the way through college.

George had his first work published when he was in his late teens. Ira began to
work with him. By the 1930s, the brothers produced many Broadway shows. The musical
“Girl Crazy” included the song “I Got Rhythm” which became the song that launched
their career.

The show that was most progressive and considered groundbreaking by many was
“Porgy and Bess.” It brought attention to a world that the white theater audience knew
little about. The music was varied from blues, gospel, jazz to Tin Pan Alley. Some songs
from the show became well-known and performed frequently such as “Summertime” and
“It Ain’t Necessarily So.” The brothers collaborated on 20 Broadway musicals and films
of their music. Much of their music remains popular today.

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We are grateful to the following organizations for their support:
Mass Cultural Council
Jewish Federation of Western Massachusetts
Harold Grinspoon Foundation

Contributions will be gratefully welcomed.
Please visit the website to make a contribution:
https://www.makhela.org/donate

Or mail to:
Mak’hela, Inc.
P.O. Box 2153
Amherst, MA, 01004