"It's Magic": Song history, Commentary, Discography, Performances on Video

"It's Magic"

In 1948, Jule Styne and Sammy Cahn were signed by the Hungarian director Michael Curtiz at Warner Brothers to do the score for the movie Romance on the High Seas, which had a screenplay by the Epstein Brothers, perhaps most well-known now for writing the screenplay for Casablanca a few years before this. Curtiz had wanted Judy Garland for the lead but she was unavailable as was his second choice, Betty Hutton. The idea was floated to audition Betty's sister Marion, a very good band singer as well as Janis Paige. Cahn suggested that if they were going to lower their sites from stars like Garland and Betty Hutton to a band singer, they should look at Doris Day who was singing with the Les Brown band and had a hit with "Sentimental Journey." On the day they screened the tests, writes Cahn in his autobiography, "first came Marion Hutton; she was not earth shaking. Then came Janis Paige--by comparison, excellent. Then came Doris Day--and the projection room, when they ran the film, exploded." Of the three songs Day sang in her audition, the one that won her the day was "it's Magic," which Cahn had prompted her to learn. Within three years, Cahn notes, Doris Day was "queen of the Warners lot." (I Should Care, p. 101, hard-bound edition)

The birth of "It's Magic" occurred, again according to Cahn, when he and Styne were checking out the script for the movie.

As I was reading [the script, Jule was fooling around at the piano with this waltz and then this tango he always warmed up with. We needed a song for a scene in which Jack Carson is to take Doris Day to a night club in Cuba. Suddenly I began to listen to the tango and I said: "What's that?" and Jule said: "Just something I've been playing for two years," and I said: "Play it again, slowly ." And he did. "Once more, slower ." He did, and we wrote "It's Magic." ( I Should Care , p. 101, hard-bound edition) Editor's note: Cahn's memory may be putting the cart before the horse here because in another place he suggests that "It's Magic" was written before Day got the part, that in fact she used it, at his behest, to audition for the role. Whichever account is accurate, it doesn't change the importance of the role that "It's Magic" played in getting Day started in the movies.

Romance on the High Seas is one of those comedies based on confusion of identities. Peter Virgil (Jack Carson) a private detective has been hired by Michael Kent (Don DeFore) to follow his wife, whom he suspects of infidelity, because she is supposedly going off on a cruise to Rio. His wife, Elvira Kent (Janis Paige), also suspects her husband of less than above board behavior, so she secretly stays at home in New York to keep an eye on him. In her place on the cruise, she sends would-be club singer Georgia Garrett (Doris Day). Of course, Virgil winds up following Garrett believing she is Mrs. Kent. And, also of course, Virgil falls in love with Garrett and she with him in the process. Much comic sturm und drang takes place before everything gets fixed.

"It's Magic" is sung three times during the film (and used as a background theme on several other occasions). The first time "It's Magic" is heard it's sung in Spanish by a group of Cuban guitarist-singers during a cruise layover in Havana. In the same scene, Garrett (Day), conveniently having been provided with a copy of the English lyrics, joins them, singing the song to Virgil (Carson). The song lives up to its title working its magic on both of them as they begin to fall for each other. Garrett reprises the song on the beach in Rio with Virgil accompanying her on guitar. (Who knew that Jack Carson played guitar?) By this time sparks have begun to fly between the two, but matters are far from settled because both are concealing their real identities form each other. All is not well until the finale during which Garrett/Day yet again sings "It's Magic," this time accompanied by a full orchestra and Oscar Lazaar (Oscar Levant) on piano in a fancy Rio club. This is the climax of the film and serves to start Garrett off on an undoubtedly brilliant singing career while at the same time freeing the lovers from their misconceptions about each other so they can live happily ever after. It's magic alright, Hollywood magic.

The Finale of Romance on the High Seas: The plot complications and mistaken identities are resolved as Elvira Kent (Janis Paige) introduces Georgia Garrett (Doris Day) to sing "It's Magic."

"It's Magic" was nominated for the Academy Award for best song in a 1948 movie, but the Oscar went to "Buttons and Bows" by Jay Livingston and Ray Evans for the move The Paleface.

Neverteless, the song was so successful that when Romance on the High Seas was released in Great Britain, riding on the crest of the song's wave of popularity, it bore the title It's Magic.

As is suggested above, the beginning of Doris Day's career, especially in movies, is tied very closely to "It's Magic." Not only did it help her land her first starring role, but, of course, she wound up singing the song in the film and having a hit record of it too boot.

Gerald Mast comments that Day's "song style became her screen style--the sweet ingenue with a touch of the tomboy, the girl next door who was one of the fellas (with a hairstyle to match)." The stardom she achieved at Warner Bros. derived both from the Michael Curtiz musicals in which she acted and the Styne-Cahn songs that she sang in them, songs "which projected both sides of her personality: the breathily romantic, 'It's Magic,' and its sassy reversal, 'Put 'Em in a Box, Tie 'Em with a Ribbon'." (Mast, p. 221). These two songs, both from Romance on the High Seas were in fact released as the A and B sides of the same Columbia 78 RPM record.

Notes: The "It's Magic" track was originally released on the 1972 album Constellation with Stitt on tenor and alto sax, Barry Harris on piano, Sam Jones on Bass and Roy Brooks on Drums. "Along with the previous [album] Tune Up, this set (which has been reissued by Muse) is one of Sonny Stitt's greatest recordings. The bop master is stunning on most of the eight selections, particularly "Constellation," "Webb City," and "It's Magic," switching between alto and tenor and sounding quite creative. . ." (from Scott Yanow CD Universe album description)

The selection of recordings of "It's Magic" on this page (both in the Cafe Songbook Record/Video Cabinet and the list of charted versions) reveal an evolution from the pop ballad style of Doris Day, Dick Haymes, Gordon MacRae, Tony Martin and Vic Damone that predominated in 1948, the year the song was introduced by Day, to the jazz inflected interpretations of Sarah Vaughan, Beverly Kenney, Keely Smith, Dinah Washington, Sue Raney, Billy Valentine and Diane Schuur.

Sarah Vaughan is the pioneer here with a recording that came out in the same year, 1948, the song was introduced by Day. Keely Smith actually presents a straight ballad version on her first run through and then swings it on the repeat. All the others, whether giving us ballad tempo or up-tempo, underpin the song with a jazz base both in the vocal renderings and the instrumental accompaniments. A straight jazz instrumental comes from Sonny Stitt/Barry Harris Quartet.

Click here to read the lyrics for "It's Magic" as sung by Frank Sinatra. The track can be found at iTunes on the album It's Magic . Sinatra's version does not include the verse . In fact, none of the recordings available on this page (or just about anywhere) include it, not even Doris Day's in the movie. The role of the verse is almost always to introduce the main theme of the song as expressed in the refrain . Cahn's idea in the verse is to contrast what might be called the conventional magic of "Houdini and the rest" to the magic the singer experiences in the presence of his or her love: "you sigh, the song begins / You speak and I hear violins, / It's magic." The singer is willing to put his or her love "up against the best of them," but finally knows, "the magic is my love for you."

• Keely Smith: Jazz and Blues Experience
• Doris Day in Romance on the High Seas: epropuesta
• Billy Valentine: TravelWithMusic
• Steve Tyrell: Steve Tyrell

Notes

• "It's Magic" on the charts:
• Doris Day (Columbia 38188): first charted 7/17/48, remained on charts for 21 weeks peaking at number #2.
• Dick Haymes (Decca 23826): first charted 7/24/48, remained on charts for 18 weeks peaking at #9.
• Gordon MacRae (Capitol 15072): first charted 7/03/48, remained on charts for 17 weeks peaking at #9.
• Tony Martin (RCA Victor 2862): first charted 8/7/48, remained on charts for 14 weeks peaking at number #11.
• Sarah Vaughan (Musicraft 557): first charted 8/14/48, remained on charts for 11 weeks peaking at number 11.
• Vic Damone: (Mercury 5138) first charted 9/18/48, remained on charts for 1 week peaking at number 24.
• Source: Joel Whitburn, Pop Memories 1890-1954: The History of American Popular Music , 1986
• Other songs written for title currently included in the Cafe Songbook Catalog of The Great American Songbook : none.
• For a complete listing of songs used in this movie, see IMDB Soundtracks .
• 1972 Sonny Stitt Barry Harris Quartet NYC Jazz Masters '72
• The complete, authoritative lyrics for "It's Magic" can be found in:

Cite this page: "It's Magic": Song history, Commentary, Discography, Performances on Video, Cafe Songbook, https://greatamericansongbook.net/pages/songs/i/its_magic.html