From “The Ziegfeld Follies of 1927”
Words and music by Irving Berlin
The sheet music:
Accompaniment by James Pitt-Payne:
Lyrics
I can feel my spirits change
In a manner very strange
It happens so unexpected
My temperature is affected
By the music of a band
I could never understand
Why each melody makes a change in me
So when I hear you asking
Chorus
How do I feel?
I’ll answer you by saying
It depends a good deal
On what the band is playing
As to whether I’m blue or I’m happy
It’s up to the band
Why am I glad?
I heard a jazzy melody
And why am I sad?
It’s ’cause they played the “Rosary”
So whether I’m laughing or crying
It’s up to the band
I want those sad musicians to play
But after they start
I feel like shouting “Take ’em away
They’re breaking my heart”
And then a rhythm that’s new
Will give the gloomy tune a kick
And what do I do?
I act just like a lunatic
And I’m not to blame for what happens
It’s up to the band