"Miss Otis Regrets" (Ethel Waters, 1934)

A charmingly sinister tale, elegantly told by Ethel Waters. One of Cole Porter's quirkier and more ghoulish tunes:

MISS OTIS REGRETS

Miss Otis regrets she's unable to lunch today, Madam.
Miss Otis regrets she's unable to lunch today.
She is sorry to be delayed,
But last evening down in Lover's Lane she strayed.
Madam.
Miss Otis regrets she's unable to lunch today.

When she woke up and found, that her dream of love was gone.
Madam.
She ran to the man who had lead her so far astray.
And from under a velvet gown,
She drew a gun and shot her lover down,
Madam.
Miss Otis regrets she's unable to lunch today.

When the mob came and got her and dragged her from the jail,
Madam,
They strung her from the old willow cross the way.
And the moment before she died,
She lifted up her lovely head and cried,
Madam.
Miss Otis regrets she's unable to lunch today.

Miss Otis regrets... she's unable to lunch today...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

More, from our friends at Wiki:

Miss Otis Regrets is a song by Cole Porter from 1934. It was first performed on stage by Douglas Byng in Hi Diddle Diddle, which opened October 3, 1934 at the Savoy Theatre, London. However, the song was originally written for Ada "Bricktop" Smith[1] to perform.

"Miss Otis Regrets" is a song in the blues style, and Porter's wry take on some common lyrical subject matter of the genre, telling the tale of a woman who comes to a bad end after an encounter with a man. But Porter's peculiar twist is that Miss Otis is a polite society lady, and the story of her last evening is told by her servant after Miss Otis has met her demise. In a few compact lines, the servant reveals how, after being seduced and then abandoned, Miss Otis hunted down and shot her seducer, was arrested, taken from the jail by a mob, and hanged. The servant conveys Miss Otis's final, polite, apologetic words to her friends: "Miss Otis regrets she's unable to lunch today."

The song has been recorded by Nat King Cole, Ethel Waters, Edith Piaf,Nancy Wilson, Jose Feliciano, Linda Ronstadt, Ella Fitzgerald, Kirsty MacColl with The Pogues, The Mills Brothers, LaBelle, Bette Midler, John Barrowman, Josh White, Bryan Ferry, The Pine Valley Cosmonauts, Shani Rigsbee, Richard Manuel, The Lemonheads and others. The title of the Cheers episode "Mr. Otis Regrets" is also, presumably, a reference to the song.

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[jewellrian27]

I am 27 yrs. old, and you would not believe it but my uncle always talks about Ethel Waters, and you gave me the opportunity to hear one of the greatest singers that ever walked the earth. i want to Thank You for posting, it was GREATLY appreciated. I have a new appreciation for the music in this era, and I will be looking forward to more of your postings.

Ethel Waters........A name tattooed on my heart.

[RReady555]

Thanks, Jewell! Wish I had more of Ethel's early work to upload... ;)

Best wishes,

-RR

[Daisy4dk]

Thank you for posting this excellent song. Goes straight to my favorites.

[RReady555]

Thanks so much, Daisy...Ethel had a long and amazing career--have always loved her work in "Cabin in the Sky".

Best,

-RR

[paul bonser]

thanks rr such gems stand the test of time and yet still hold a ear in todays market

[RReady555]

I applaud your taste, Paul. "Classic" means "Timeless". Folks in 2508 will still be whistling this one... ;)

Kindest wishes,

-RR

[owlzguy]

Legend has it that Cole Porter was bragging to a friend that he could write a song about anything. So the friend picked up an invitation containing the title words from Porter's desk and challenged him to write a song around it. I think Porter succeeded admirably.

[Barry I. Grauman]

Recorded on August 20, 1934.

[direfranchement]

Lena Horne (b. 1917) was not a contemporary of Ethel Waters (b. 1896). Lena Horne was part of the second generation of jazz singers including Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald born around World War I and coming to the national stage in the 1930's and 40's. Ethel Waters was already playing in Blues clubs by the time Lena Horne was borne. Louis Armstrong, Ethel Waters, Bessie Smith, Adelaide Hall and Mabel Mercer are luminaries of the first generation of influential jazz and blues singers.

[jeetjerome]

Why cant we travel in time?

Cause the golden years are over ; )

[carolcheny]

Ethel Waters ware short changed because of racism at the time. She was a superstar despite of that.

[John West]

Continuing. I'd like to post the two cd's I have of hers. But first I want to make sure that what I'm doing will be legal. Care must be exercised, after all. But standouts are "Birmingham Bertha," There'll Be Some Changes Made," my favorite, "Cabin in the Sky," and playful, "Come Up And See Me Sometimes," among many others. "I'm Coming Virginia" is given sthe same dramatic input as "At the End of the Road," by Irving Berlin. She will ALWAYS be one of my early favorites!!

[John West]

Continuing. She autographed a book I was reading, Thor Hyerdahl's "Kon Tiki," and I was most appreciative. My fascination with her is manifold. But it is primarily what she does with a song and how she does it. I should like to believe that Waters was classically trained from the manner in which she trills her "r.s." And her phrasing, breathing, if you will, is a lesson many today could learn. Her honesty about life is punctuated cleared in "His Eyes Are on the Sparrow.

[John West]

Thank you, please, for posting this Cole Porter evergreen. Ethel Waters was an enormous influence on my early musical tastes. Her presentation - diction, dramatics, boldness - was just intoxicating. And she could dare do things others feared to tread into. For example, "Darkies Never Dream" is a standout with me for its incredible boldness. I fortunately had a brief meeting with her many a summer ago as I boarded an American Airline plane to Virginia and she was deboarding.

[Alan Di Diego]

Great song, deserves to be in Fallout 3 though....

[ATsarIsBorn]

True about the bet, but the friend chose the phrase "I Love You," and THAT was the song he wrote to win the bet. (It's NOT one of his great songs.)

[Timmybear]

The beauty of aesthetics is that, being subjective, it is not a field in which one can definitively say someone did a song 'better'. :)