Yip Harburg, Yip was
short for Yipsel,
which some people
say means squirrel
in Polish, or Russian,
but actually it’s from
YPSL, Young People’s
Socialist League.
He not only wrote
all the songs in The Wizard of Oz,
including
“Somewhere, Over the Rainbow,” he worked on
the script. But didn’t get credit. He wrote the lyrics for
“Brother, Can You
Spare a Dime.” What am I going to do
after I finish
writing 40-Year Run? Buy a Yamaha guitar
and teach myself to
be a songwriter. If I’m serious about
it,
I will buy a
Martin. Wear Florsheim shoes. Buy Martin guitars.
Only one way to find
out, and that’s to do it.
When I get old I’ll
wear purple.