| Gabey's coming, Gabey's coming to town! | | | | this huge park in the middle of this huge city, and I |
| So what? Who cares? This is a song of contrasts, | | | | don't even know where to find the woman that I'm |
| just as it comes from a show of contrasts. It was | | | | not even sure I'm in love with. "Gabey's coming ..... to |
| written, it is set, during the second world war. It | | | | TOWN......" |
| concerns 3 sailors who have a day's leave in New | | | | And as soon as you hit the word "town" the motion |
| York. In 1944 they arrive at Brooklyn naval yard, | | | | starts, the rush and bustle of New York City flows |
| they get off their ship singing "New York, New York, | | | | through the accompaniment all the way through the |
| it's a helluva town" (which was incidentally changed to | | | | rest of this song, it's unstoppable and the singer can't |
| "Wonderful Town" in the film version so as not to | | | | stop or hesitate either, you're simply carried along. |
| offend the censors) and this ambivalence of wartime | | | | So, we're singing " a town's a lonely town..." and |
| on the one hand, the terrible things that have been | | | | underneath we can hear all the time the footsteps, |
| happening to them, and the wonderful, crazy things | | | | the subway, ..."when you pass through and there is |
| that can happen to them in New York city, underpins | | | | no-one waiting there for you" and we can hear the |
| the whole show, and you get it in the very first line | | | | taxis, people yelling at each other, "a million faces |
| here: "Gabey's coming, Gabey's coming to town!". | | | | pass before your eye, still it's a lonely town unless |
| There's a tremendous amount of confidence | | | | there's love..." and there's a very slight pull-back at |
| there...."So what? Who cares?" - he's wandering round | | | | that point, just to give room for the big note, a big |
| Central Park looking for the woman he's fallen in love | | | | note, big enough to carry a big thought ..."a love |
| with ( through the rather unlikely medium of a poster | | | | that's shining like a harbor light - you're lost in the |
| on the New York subway) and he begins to reflect : | | | | night unless there's love" and you slow right down |
| "Back on the ship it seemed such a snap - you'd tap | | | | here - "unless there's love, the world's an empty |
| a girl on the shoulder , she'd turn round and say "I | | | | place" - and it goes right down. ... to piano... "and |
| love you"" .....and there's a key change....to d | | | | every town's a lonely town". And all that's left for us |
| major...."but once on shore, it's not such a snap, you | | | | as performers to do is to repeat that message for |
| get the cold shoulder, the old runaround....you're left | | | | it's too important to be sung just once. And right at |
| with no-one but you..." "Gabey's coming" - loud, | | | | the end of the song, under the sustained note of |
| suddenly, pianissimo : "Gabey's coming" - and I think | | | | "town" we hear echoing in the orchestra like the |
| this is the clue to the meaning of the introduction to | | | | sound of the ships sirens in the naval yard echoing |
| this song "Gabey's coming". I'm lost in the middle of | | | | over New York "Gabey's coming". "Gabey's coming". |