“Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive”
A Reason To Smile
During World War II, entertainers did their best to lift war-weary Americans’ spirits. We thought we’d dust off one of that era’s great pick-me-ups to eke out some smiles today.
“Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive” by Harold Arlen, with lyrics by crooner Johnny Mercer, was written as a morale-boosting pep talk during some of the darkest days of the war. Yes, that’s Mercer’s spelling of the title.
Mercer’s inspiration was “a sermon and the subject was ‘you got to accentuate the positive and eliminate the negative’. And I said ‘Wow, that’s a colorful phrase!’” The original 1944 recording by Mercer included a preamble in the style of a sermon.
Mercer’s and a Bing Crosby/Andrew Sisters rendition of “Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive” spent multiple, simultaneous weeks on the pop charts in early 1945. The song was also nominated for an Academy Award, and Mercer’s version was inducted into the Library of Congress’s National Recording Registry for its “cultural, artistic and/or historical significance to American society and the nation’s audio legacy.”
We have chosen to share a Crosby/Bette Midler duet of the song from 1977. It certainly gave me a much-needed reason to smile.
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Stay Steady,
Dan
The No Kings rallies worldwide yesterday felt the positive!
Great choice, Dan. Didn’t expect that one. It was a pleasant surprise. If anyone can make you feel good, Bette Midler is a top choice.
We all need to look at the positive and affirmative things more often, even tho they seem very rare these days.