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The Lusty Month of May

by Alan Jay Lerner (1918-1986)
Click HERE to hear original cast recording (MP3, 3.9 MB)

Tra la! It’s May!
The lusty month of May!
That lovely month when everyone goes
Blissfully astray!

Tra la! It’s here!
That shocking time of year!
When tons of wicked little thoughts
Merrily appear!

It’s May! It’s May!
That gorgeous holiday
When every maiden prays that her lad
Will be a cad!

It’s mad! It’s gay!
A libelous display!
Those dreary vows that everyone takes,
Everyone breaks!
Everyone makes
Divine mistakes!
The lusty month of May!

    Whence this fragrance wafting through the air?
    What sweet feelings does its scent transmute?
    Whence this perfume floating everywhere?
    Don’t you know? It’s that dear forbidden fruit!

Tra la! It’s May!
The lusty month of May!
That darling month when everyone throws
Self-control away!

It’s time to do
A wretched thing or two,
And try to make each precious day
One you’ll always rue!

It’s May! It’s May!
The month of, “Yes, you may!”
The time for every frivolous whim,
Proper or im-!

It’s wild! It’s gay!
A blot in every way!
The birds and the bees with all of their vast
Amorous past
Gaze at the human race aghast!
The lusty month of May!

Tra la! It’s May!
The lusty month of May!
That lovely month when everyone goes
Blissfully astray!

Tra la! It’s here!
That shocking time of year!
When tons of wicked little thoughts
Merrily appear!

It’s May! It’s May!
The month of great dismay,
When all the world is brimming with fun
Wholesome or un-!

It’s mad! It’s gay!
A libelous display
Those dreary vows that everyone takes,
Everyone breaks!
Everyone makes divine mistakes!
The lusty month of May!


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