“It Might As Well Be Spring” | Stories of Standards

Tune in to First Take with Lando and Chavis – weekdays from 6-9 am MT – for Stories of Standards to hear our favorite versions of this song all week long!

“It Might As Well Be Spring” won the 1945 Oscar for Best Song in “State Fair”, the only score by Richard Rodgers (1902-1979) and Oscar Hammerstein II (1895-1960) first written for film rather than stage. Originally a 1933 non-musical film starring Will Rogers and Janet Gaynor, it was also remade in 1962. Gerald Mast said of this song in “Can’t Help Singin’” that “The meanings and sounds of Hammerstein’s words are inseparable from the sounds and feelings of Rodgers’ music.” While Rodgers originally wanted the song to have a brisker tempo, the studio disagreed, as did a test audience, so Rodgers reluctantly kept the slower pace.

Richard Rodgers’ partnership with Oscar Hammerstein II began with the 1943 hit “Oklahoma!”, which led studio producers to select them for “State Fair”. While the prospect was appealing, both artists had activities in New York and no intention of giving them up. Consequently they carefully put together a contract which allowed them to write the music in Fairfield, Connecticut, and the lyrics in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, for a story set in Iowa which would be filmed in California.

Together, Rodgers and Hammerstein wrote scores for “Oklahoma!”, “State Fair”, “Carousel”, “South Pacific”, “The King and I”, “Flower Drum Song”, “The Sound of Music” and “South Pacific”, among others. They were awarded 34 Tony Awards, 15 Academy Awards, the Pulitzer Prize and 2 Grammy Awards. In their partnership they brought exceptional lyricism and breadth of social awareness to the musical stage.