There Once Was a Man

From the musical “The Pajama Game”, 1954.
Words and music by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross.

The sheet music:

There-Was-Once-a-Man – Sheet MusicDownload

Accompaniment by James Pitt-Payne:

There_Once_Was_A_Man – MIDIDownload

Lyrics

  1. There once was a man who loved a woman
    She was the one he slew a dragon for
    They say that nobody ever loved as much as he-ee
    But me-ee. I love you more
    And there once was a man who loved a woman
    She was the one he gave his kingdom for
    They say that nobody ever loved as much as he-ee
    But me-ee. I love you more
    My love is a giant, fierce and defiant
    But how can I prove it to you?
    Ain’t got no kingdom, no dragon
    To back up my braggin’
    How can I show what I would do?
    I only know there once was a man who loved a woman
    She was the one he ate that apple for
    They say that nobody ever loved as much as he-ee
    But me-ee. I love you more
  2. There once was a woman who loved a man
    He was the one that she took poison for
    They say that nobody ever loved as much as she-ee
    But me-ee. I love you more
    And there once was a woman who loved a man
    He was the one she swam the channel for
    They say that nobody ever loved as much as she-ee
    But me-ee. I love you more
    My love’s meteoric, it’s merely historic
    A whirlwind, a cyclone on wheels
    It rocks ‘muh’ whole solar plexus, it’s bigger ‘n Texas
    I just can’t tell you how it feels
    I only know there once was a woman who loved a man
    Loved him enough to cause the Trojan war
    They say that nobody ever loved as much as she-ee
    But me-ee. I love you more