THE JOHNNY MERCER EDUCATIONAL ARCHIVES
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THE JOHNNY MERCER EDUCATIONAL ARCHIVES
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LAURA
Views and Reviews
Viewpoints of radio personalities, writers, musicians, and others who contribute to our musical portfolio
The Story of A Song "Laura" by David Raksin and Johnny Mercer There are some songs that have such a marriage of lovely melody and evocative lyric that to separate the two would diminish the piece. "Laura" is one such song. Laura was already a popular movie by the time Johnny Mercer was asked to add a lyric. David Raksin had written the melody to accompany the film, and even without words, it fit perfectly into the haunting atmosphere of the story of Laura Hunt. But without words, it was believed that the song would not go much further. Even after the film became a hit, and the tune earned its own following, musicologist Alec Wilder in his book, American Popular Song, remembers first hearing the melody. "Unanimously it was concluded (by the publishers) that so complex a melody would be highly impractical to publish." It needed a lyric, and the obvious choice to write the words about "Laura" was Johnny Mercer. This was a period, the mid-40's, when Hollywood and theater musicals were becoming more integrated with story, character and song. Mercer was unbeatable in writing good songs, whether or not they were part of a libretto. In 1945, Mercer was in New York with Harold Arlen writing a theater score for St. Louis Woman. (The show failed, but great songs came out of it, including standards like, "Come Rain or Come Shine," and "I Wonder What Became of Me.") He received a request from RKO Studios to write a lyric to Raksin's melody. By now, months had passed and the public was familiar with the film and its theme. The melody, "Laura," was closely identified with the popular mystery. Mercer was faced with writing a lyric that would continue the theme of a haunting woman thought to be dead, a woman to whom men were irresistibly drawn. The result was one of Mercer's most popular and enduring songs. Interestingly, Mercer also wrote two other poignant lyrics to movie themes -- "Moon River" and "Days of Wine and Roses." But they were written along with the film score. "Laura" came after the fact, but it was a wise move getting Mercer on board. Yip Harburg's famous words -- "The magic in song only happens when the words give destination and meaning to the music and the music gives wings to the words"
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