The songs of West Side Story

[The Jet Song] [Something's Coming] [Maria] [America] [Cool]
[One Hand, One Heart] [Tonight] [I Feel Pretty] [Somewhere]
[Procession and Nightmare] [Gee, Officer Krupke]
[A Boy Like That/I Have a Love]
[Finale]

THE JET SONG

RIFF:
When you're a Jet,
You're a Jet all the way
From your first cigarette
To your last dyin' day.

When you're a Jet,
If the spit hits the fan,
You got brothers around,
You're a family man!

You're never alone,
You're never disconnected!
You're home with your own:
When company's expected,
You're well protected!

Then you are set
With a capital J,
Which you'll never forget
Till they cart you away.
When you're a Jet,
You stay a Jet!

ALL:
Oh, when the Jets fall in at the cornball dance,
We'll be the sweetest dressin' gang in pants!
And when the chicks dig us in our Jet black ties,
They're gonna flip, gonna flop, gonna drop like flies!

ACTION and BABY JOHN:
When you're a Jet,
You're the top cat in town,
You're the gold medal kid
With the heavyweight crown!

A-RAB, ACTION, BIG DEAL:
When you're a Jet,
You're the swingin'est thing:
Little boy, you're a man;
Little man, you're a king!

ALL:
The Jets are in gear,
Our cylinders are clickin'!
The Sharks'll steer clear
'Cause ev'ry Puerto Rican's a lousy chicken!

Here come the Jets
Like a bat out of hell.
Someone gets in our way,
Someone don't feel so well!

Here come the Jets:
Little world, step aside!
Better go underground,
Better run, better hide!

We're drawin' the line,
So keep your noses hidden!
We're hangin' a sign,
Says "Visitors forbidden"
And we ain't kiddin'!

Here come the Jets,
Yeah! And we're gonna beat
Ev'ry last buggin' gang
On the whole buggin' street!
On the whole!
Ever!
Mother!
Lovin'!
Street!
Yeah!

SOMETHING'S COMING

TONY:
Could be!
Who knows?
There's something due any day;
I will know right away,
Soon as it shows.
It may come cannonballing down through the sky,
Gleam in its eye,
Bright as a rose!

Who knows?
It's only just out of reach,
Down the block, on a beach,
Under a tree.
I got a feeling there's a miracle due,
Gonna come true,
Coming to me!

Could it be? Yes, it could.
Something's coming, something good,
If I can wait!
Something's coming, I don't know what it is,
But it is
Gonna be great!

With a click, with a shock,
Phone'll jingle, door'll knock,
Open the latch!
Something's coming, don't know when, but it's soon;
Catch the moon,
One-handed catch!

Around the corner,
Or whistling down the river,
Come on, deliver
To me!
Will it be? Yes, it will.
Maybe just by holding still,
It'll be there!

Come on, something, come on in, don't be shy,
Meet a guy,
Pull up a chair!
The air is humming,
And something great is coming!
Who knows?
It's only just out of reach,
Down the block, on a beach,
Maybe tonight . . .

MARIA

TONY:
The most beautiful sound I ever heard:
Maria, Maria, Maria, Maria . . .
All the beautiful sounds of the world in a single word . .
Maria, Maria, Maria, Maria . . .
Maria!
I've just met a girl named Maria,
And suddenly that name
Will never be the same
To me.
Maria!
I've just kissed a girl named Maria,
And suddenly I've found
How wonderful a sound
Can be!
Maria!
Say it loud and there's music playing,
Say it soft and it's almost like praying.

Maria,
I'll never stop saying Maria!

The most beautiful sound I ever heard.
Maria.

AMERICA

ROSALIA:
Puerto Rico,
You lovely island . . .
Island of tropical breezes.
Always the pineapples growing,
Always the coffee blossoms blowing . . .

ANITA:
Puerto Rico . . .
You ugly island . . .
Island of tropic diseases.
Always the hurricanes blowing,
Always the population growing . . .
And the money owing,
And the babies crying,
And the bullets flying.
I like the island Manhattan.
Smoke on your pipe and put that in!

OTHERS:
I like to be in America!
O.K. by me in America!
Ev'rything free in America
For a small fee in America!

ROSALIA:
I like the city of San Juan.

ANITA:
I know a boat you can get on.

ROSALIA:
Hundreds of flowers in full bloom.

ANITA:
Hundreds of people in each room!

ALL:
Automobile in America,
Chromium steel in America,
Wire-spoke wheel in America,
Very big deal in America!

ROSALIA:
I'll drive a Buick through San Juan.

ANITA:
If there's a road you can drive on.

ROSALIA:
I'll give my cousins a free ride.

ANITA:
How you get all of them inside?

ALL:
Immigrant goes to America,
Many hellos in America;
Nobody knows in America
Puerto Rico's in America!

ROSALIA:
I'll bring a T.V. to San Juan.

ANITA:
If there a current to turn on!

ROSALIA:
I'll give them new washing machine.

ANITA:
What have they got there to keep clean?

ALL:
I like the shores of America!
Comfort is yours in America!
Knobs on the doors in America,
Wall-to-wall floors in America!

ROSALIA:
When I will go back to San Juan.

ANITA:
When you will shut up and get gone?

ROSALIA:
Everyone there will give big cheer!

ANITA:
Everyone there will have moved here!

COOL

RIFF:
Boy, boy, crazy boy,
Get cool, boy!
Got a rocket in your pocket,
Keep coolly cool, boy!
Don't get hot,
'Cause man, you got
Some high times ahead.
Take it slow and Daddy-O,
You can live it up and die in bed!

Boy, boy, crazy boy!
Stay loose, boy!
Breeze it, buzz it, easy does it.
Turn off the juice, boy!
Go man, go,
But not like a yo-yo schoolboy.
Just play it cool, boy,
Real cool!

ONE HAND, ONE HEART

TONY:
Make of our hands one hand,
Make of our hearts one heart,
Make of our vows one last vow:
Only death will part us now.

MARIA:
Make of our lives one life,
Day after day, one life.

BOTH:
Now it begins, now we start
One hand, one heart;
Even death won't part us now.

Make of our lives one life,
Day after day, one life.
Now it begins, now we start
One hand, one heart,
Even death won't part us now.

TONIGHT

RIFF:
The Jets are gonna have their day
Tonight.

BERNARDO:
The Sharks are gonna have their way
Tonight.

RIFF:
The Puerto Ricans grumble: "Fair fight."
But if they start a rumble,
We'll rumble 'em right.

BERNARDO:
We're gonna hand 'em a surprise
Tonight.

RIFF AND JETS:
We're gonna cut 'em down to size
Tonight.

BERNARDO AND SHARKS:
We said, "O.K., no rumpus,
No tricks."
But just in case they jump us,
We're ready to mix
Tonight.

ALL :
We're gonna rock it tonight,
We're gonna jazz it up and have us a ball!
They're gonna get it tonight;
The more they turn it on the harder they'll fall!

RIFF AND JETS:
Well, they began it!

BERNARDO AND SHARKS:
Well, they began it!

ALL:
And we're the ones to stop 'em once and for all,
Tonight!

ANITA:
Anita's gonna get her kicks
Tonight.
We'll have our private little mix
Tonight.
He'll walk in hot and tired,
So what?
Don't matter if he's tired,
As long as he's hot
Tonight!

TONY:
Tonight, tonight,
Won't be just any night,
Tonight there will be no morning star.
Tonight, tonight, I'll see my love tonight.
And for us, stars will stop where they are.
Today
The minutes seem like hours,
The hours go so slowly,
And still the sky is light . . .
Oh moon, grow bright,
And make this endless day endless night!

RIFF:
I'm counting on you to be there
Tonight.
When Diesel wins it fair and square
Tonight.
That Puerto Rican punk'll
Go down.
And when he's hollered "Uncle"
We'll tear up the town!

(RIFF, TONY, and MARIA sing simultaneously)

RIFF:
So I can count on you, boy?

TONY:
All right.

RIFF:
We're gonna have us a ball.

TONY:
All right.

RIFF:
Womb to tomb!

TONY:
Sperm to worm!

RIFF:
I'll see you there about eight.

TONY:
Tonight . . .

MARIA:
Tonight, tonight
Won't be just any night,
Tonight there will be no morning star,

(JETS, SHARKS, MARIA, TONY, and ANITA sing simultaneously)

SHARKS:
We're gonna rock it tonight!
They're gonna get it tonight,
They began it,
They began it,
The began it.
We'll stop 'em once and for all.
The Sharks are gonna have their way,
The Sharks are gonna have their day,
We're gonna rock it tonight.
Tonight!

JETS:
We're gonna jazz it tonight!
Tonight!
They began it,
And we're the ones to stop 'em once and for all!
The Jets are gonna have their way,
The Jets are gonna have their day.
We're gonna rock it tonight.
Tonight!

ANITA:
Tonight, tonight,
Late tonight,
We're gonna mix it tonight.
Anita's gonna have her day,
Anita's gonna have her day,
Bernardo's gonna have his way
Tonight, tonight,
Tonight, this very night,
We're gonna rock it tonight!

MARIA:
Tonight, tonight,
I'll see my love tonight.
And for us, stars will stop where they are.

MARIA AND TONY:
Today the minutes seem like hours.
The hours go so slowly,
And still the skiy is light.
Oh moon, grow bright,
And make this endless day endless night,

ALL:
Tonight!

I FEEL PRETTY

MARIA:
I feel pretty,
Oh, so pretty,
I feel pretty and witty and bright!
And I pity
Any girl who isn't me tonight.

I feel charming,
Oh, so charming
It's alarming how charming I feel!
And so pretty
That I hardly can believe I'm real.

See the pretty girl in that mirror there:
Who can that attractive girl be?
Such a pretty face,
Such a pretty dress,
Such a pretty smile,
Such a pretty me!

I feel stunning
And entrancing,
Feel like running and dancing for joy,
For I'm loved
By a pretty wonderful boy!

GIRLS:
Have you met my good friend Maria,
The craziest girl on the block?
You'll know her the minute you see her,
She's the one who is in an advanced state of shock.

She thinks she's in love.
She thinks she's in Spain.
She isn't in love,
She's merely insane.

It must be the heat
Or some rare disease,
Or too much to eat
Or maybe it's fleas.

Keep away from her,
Send for Chino!
This is not the
Maria we know!

Modest and pure,
Polite and refined,
Well-bred and mature
And out of her mind!

MARIA:
I feel pretty,
Oh, so pretty
That the city should give me its key.
A committee
Should be organized to honor me.

GIRLS:
La la la la . . .

MARIA:
I feel dizzy,
I feel sunny,
I feel fizzy and funny and fine,
And so pretty,
Miss America can just resign!

GIRLS:
La la la la . . .

MARIA:
See the pretty girl in that mirror there:

GIRLS:
What mirror where?

MARIA:
Who can that attractive girl be?

GIRLS:
Which? What? Where? Whom?

MARIA:
Such a pretty face,
Such a pretty dress,
Such a pretty smile,
Such a pretty me!

GIRLS:
Such a pretty me!

ALL:
I feel stunning
And entrancing,
Feel like running and dancing for joy,
For I'm loved
By a pretty wonderful boy!

SOMEWHERE

A GIRL:
There's a place for us,
Somewhere a place for us.
Peace and quiet and open air
Wait for us
Somewhere.

There's a time for us,
Some day a time for us,
Time together with time spare,
Time to learn, time to care,
Some day!

Somewhere.
We'll find a new way of living,
We'll find a way of forgiving
Somewhere . . .

There's a place for us,
A time and place for us.
Hold my hand and we're halfway there.
Hold my hand and I'll take you there
Somehow,
Some day,
Somewhere!

PROCESSION AND NIGHTMARE

ALL:
There's a place for us, there's a place for us, there's a . . .

TONY:
Hold my hand and we're halfway there.
Hold my hand and I'll take you there

TONY AND MARIA:
Somehow,
Some day,
Somewhere!

GEE OFFICER KRUPKE

ACTION:
Dear kindly Sergeant Krupke,
You gotta understand,
It's just our bringin' up-ke
That gets us out of hand.
Our mothers all are junkies,
Our fathers all are drunks.
Golly Moses, natcherly we're punks!

ACTION AND JETS:
Gee, Officer Krupke, we're very upset;
We never had the love that ev'ry child oughta get.
We ain't no delinquents,
We're misunderstood.
Deep down inside us there is good!

ACTION:
There is good!

ALL:
There is good, there is good,
There is untapped good!
Like inside, the worst of us is good!

SNOWBOY: (Spoken) That's a touchin' good story.

ACTION: (Spoken) Lemme tell it to the world!

SNOWBOY: Just tell it to the judge.

ACTION:
Dear kindly Judge, your Honor,
My parents treat me rough.
With all their marijuana,
They won't give me a puff.
They didn't wanna have me,
But somehow I was had.
Leapin' lizards! That's why I'm so bad!

DIESEL: (As Judge) Right!

Officer Krupke, you're really a square;
This boy don't need a judge, he needs an analyst's care!
It's just his neurosis that oughta be curbed.
He's psychologic'ly disturbed!

ACTION:
I'm disturbed!

JETS:
We're disturbed, we're disturbed,
We're the most disturbed,
Like we're psychologic'ly disturbed.

DIESEL: (Spoken, as Judge) In the opinion on this court, this child is depraved on account he ain't had a normal home.

ACTION: (Spoken) Hey, I'm depraved on account I'm deprived.

DIESEL: So take him to a headshrinker.

ACTION: (Sings)
My father is a bastard,
My ma's an S.O.B.
My grandpa's always plastered,
My grandma pushes tea.
My sister wears a mustache,
My brother wears a dress.
Goodness gracious, that's why I'm a mess!

A-RAB: (As Psychiatrist) Yes!
Officer Krupke, you're really a slob.
This boy don't need a doctor, just a good honest job.
Society's played him a terrible trick,
And sociologic'ly he's sick!

ACTION:
I am sick!

ALL:
We are sick, we are sick,
We are sick, sick, sick,
Like we're sociologically sick!

A-RAB: In my opinion, this child don't need to have his head shrunk at all. Juvenile delinquency is purely a social disease!

ACTION: Hey, I got a social disease!

A-RAB: So take him to a social worker!

ACTION:
Dear kindly social worker,
They say go earn a buck.
Like be a soda jerker,
Which means like be a schumck.
It's not I'm anti-social,
I'm only anti-work.
Gloryosky! That's why I'm a jerk!

BABY JOHN: (As Female Social Worker)
Eek!
Officer Krupke, you've done it again.
This boy don't need a job, he needs a year in the pen.
It ain't just a question of misunderstood;
Deep down inside him, he's no good!

ACTION:
I'm no good!

ALL:
We're no good, we're no good!
We're no earthly good,
Like the best of us is no damn good!

DIESEL: (As Judge)
The trouble is he's crazy.

A-RAB: (As Psychiatrist)
The trouble is he drinks.

BABY JOHN: (As Female Social Worker)
The trouble is he's lazy.

DIESEL:
The trouble is he stinks.

A-RAB:
The trouble is he's growing.

BABY JOHN:
The trouble is he's grown.

ALL:
Krupke, we got troubles of our own!

Gee, Officer Krupke,
We're down on our knees,
'Cause no one wants a fellow with a social disease.
Gee, Officer Krupke,
What are we to do?
Gee, Officer Krupke,
Krup you!

A BOY LIKE THAT/I HAVE A LOVE

ANITA:
A boy like that who'd kill your brother,
Forget that boy and find another,
One of your own kind,
Stick to your own kind!

A boy like that will give you sorrow,
You'll meet another boy tomorrow,
One of your own kind,
Stick to your own kind!

A boy who kills cannot love,
A boy who kills has no heart.
And he's the boy who gets your love
And gets your heart.
Very smart, Maria, very smart!

A boy like that wants one thing only,
And when he's done, he'll leave you lonely.
He'll murder your love;
He murdered mine.
Just wait and see,
Just wait, Maria,
Just wait and see!

MARIA:
Oh no, Anita, no,
Anita, no!
It isn't true, not for me,
It's true for you, not for me.
I hear your words
And in my head
I know they're smart,
But my heart, Anita,
But my heart
Knows they're wrong
And my heart
Is too strong,
For I belong
To him alone, to him alone.
One thing I know:
I am his,
I don't care what he is.
I don't know why it's so,
I don't want to know.

ANITA:
A boy like that, etc.
Very smart Maria, very smart!

MARIA:
Oh no, Anita, no,
You should know better!
You were in love - or so you said.
You should know better . . .

I have a love, and it's all that I have.
Right or wrong, what else can I do?
I love him; I'm his,
And everything he is
I am, too.
I have a love, and it's all that I need,
Right or wrong, and he needs me, too.
I love him, we're one;
There's nothing to be done,
Not a thing I can do
But hold him, hold him forever,
Be with him now, tomorrow
And all of my life!

BOTH:
When love comes so strong,
There is no right or wrong,
Your love is your life.

FINALE

MARIA
Hold my hand and we're halfway there.

MARIA AND TONY
Hold my hand and I'll take you there,
Somehow . . .

MARIA
Some day! . . .

Acknowledgements

Music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim.
© 1956, 1957 Amberson Holdings LLC and Stephen Sondheim. Copyright renewed.
Leonard Bernstein Music Publishing Company LLC, Publisher.

Related Links

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