From the 1954 musical “Salad Days”
Words and music by Julian Slade and Dorothy Reynolds
The sheet music:
Accompaniment by James Pitt-Payne:
Lyrics
When I was given this high position
I pictured myself (poor fool that I was)
As a wise, all powerful magician
A sort of political Wizard of Oz
“At last,” I thought, “I know for certain
What diplomacy really means
I’ll soon ring up that Iron Curtain
I’ll soon be seen behind the scenes”
But all my job appeared to consist of
(Much to my chagrin and dismay)
Was a painfully comprehensive list of
Things I must never do or say
Don’t ever ask what job your on
It’s hush-hush
Don’t ever ask where the Empire’s gone
It’s hush-hush
If you invent a code that’s new
Nobody must be able to
Decipher the code, not even you
It’s hush-hush
Your safes must be as safe as rockes
And baffle all investigations
Double-cross your double locks
And keep on changing your combinations
Always travel in darkened specs
Use a cross to sign your cheques
And never reveal your age or sex
It’s hush-hush, hush-hush, hush-hush
Hush-hush, hush-hush, hush-hush
Don’t ever ask who won the war
It’s hush-hush
Don’t ever ask what the war was for
It’s hush-hush
If a foreigner comes to stay
(Especially from the U. S. A.)
Don’t ever say, “What a lovely day”
It’s hush-hush
When you go to a foreign shore
Take (to give you a certain cachet)
The briefest case you ever saw
And also a semi-detached attache
How do you do?
At Russian teas, lest you forget
And make a remark you might regret
Write on a Soviet serviette
Necrasniette, hush-hush, hush-hush, hush-hush
Hush-hush, hush-hush, hush-hush
If you are knighted by and by
Accept the honor, don’t be shy
But don’t ever try to find out why
It’s hush-hush, hush-hush, hush-hush
Hush-hush, hush-hush, hush-hush
Hush-hush, hush-hush, hush-hush