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"Glad to Be Unhappy"
Song
Published	1936
Songwriter(s)	Lorenz Hart
Composer(s)	Richard Rodgers

"Glad to Be Unhappy" is a popular song composed by Richard Rodgers, with lyrics by Lorenz Hart.^[1] It was introduced in their 1936 musical On Your Toes, sung by Doris Carson and David Morris,^[2]^[3] although it was not popular at the time, as there was only one recording of the song. In the 1937 London production, it was sung by Gina Malo and Eddie Pola. The song was performed in the 1954 Broadway revival by Kay Coulter and Joshua Shelley.^[4]

The Mamas & the Papas

Originally recorded for an appearance on "Rodgers and Hart Today", an episode of ABC Stage 67, the Mamas and the Papas' version of the song was released as a single at the end of 1967, reaching #26 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.^[5] It was issued to keep the group in the charts while awaiting the completion of the group's fourth album, The Papas & The Mamas. However, the song does not appear on that album; it was instead used to promote the group's second greatest-hits package, entitled Golden Era Vol. 2. It is the last of the Mamas & the Papas' singles produced in a professional studio; subsequent singles were recorded in John and Michelle Phillips' home studio. The mono single differs slightly from the stereo album mix, as was common for the group's singles, in that a few additional words are sung during the first chorus in the stereo mix.

The B-side of the single is "Hey Girl",^[6] a track from the group's first album.

"Glad to Be Unhappy"

West German picture sleeve

Single by the Mamas & the Papas

from the album Golden Era Vol. 2

B-side

"Hey Girl"

Released

1967

Recorded

1967

Genre

Pop rock, folk rock, psychedelic pop

Length

1:40

Label

Dunhill

Songwriter(s)

Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart

Producer(s)

Lou Adler

The Mamas & the Papas singles chronology

"Twelve Thirty"
(1967)

"Glad to Be Unhappy"
(1967)

"Dancing Bear"
(1967)

Other notable recordings

Bea Wain (1939)
Lee Wiley (February 1940)
Lena Horne (October 1946)
Helen Merrill (February 1954)
Sammy Davis Jr., on Starring Sammy Davis Jr. (1955)
Frank Sinatra, on In the Wee Small Hours (recorded February 8, 1955)
Billie Holiday, on Lady in Satin (recorded February 21, 1958)
Chris Connor on Sings Ballads of the Sad Cafe (recorded January 29, 1959)
Eric Dolphy, on Outward Bound (1960)
Clare Fischer, on Easy Livin' (recorded August 8, 1963; released in limited edition 1966; reissued 1968)
Paul Desmond, on Glad to Be Unhappy (1965)
Nancy Wilson, on But Beautiful (1969)
Barbra Streisand, on Barbra Streisand...And Other Musical Instruments (1973)
The Great Jazz Trio, on Love For Sale (1976)
Carmen McRae, on The Carmen McRae-Betty Carter Duets (1987)
Wynton Marsalis, on Standard Time, Vol. 5: the Midnight Blues (1998)
Etienne Daho (2007)
Todd Gordon, on Ballads from the Midnight Hotel (2007)
Chris Botti (featuring John Mayer on lead vocals), on Chris Botti in Boston (2008)
Nels Cline, on Lovers (2016)

References

^ Jacobs, Dick & Harriet Jacobs – ‘’Who Wrote That Song?’’ published by Writer's Digest Books, 1993,
^ "Internet Broadway Database". ibdb.com. Retrieved February 20, 2019.
^ Atkinson, Brooks (1936-04-13). "'On Your Toes', Being a Musical Show with a Book and Tunes and a Sense of Humor". The New York Times. p. 14.
^ "Internet Broadway Database". ibdb.com. Retrieved February 20, 2019.
^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits (8th ed.). New York: Billboard Books. p. 392. ISBN 0-8230-7499-4.
^ "45cat.com". 45cat.com. Retrieved February 20, 2019.

v t e Rodgers and Hart
Richard Rodgers Lorenz Hart
Musicals	Fly with Me Poor Little Ritz Girl The Garrick Gaieties Dearest Enemy The Girl Friend Peggy-Ann A Connecticut Yankee Present Arms Chee-Chee Ever Green Simple Simon America's Sweetheart Jumbo On Your Toes Babes in Arms I'd Rather Be Right The Boys from Syracuse I Married an Angel Too Many Girls Higher and Higher Pal Joey By Jupiter
Songs	"Manhattan" "Mountain Greenery" "Here in My Arms" "Blue Room" "My Heart Stood Still" "Thou Swell" "To Keep My Love Alive" "You Took Advantage of Me" "With a Song in My Heart" "A Ship Without a Sail" "Dancing on the Ceiling" "Ten Cents a Dance" "He Was Too Good to Me" "I've Got Five Dollars" "Isn't It Romantic?" "Lover" "Mimi" "You Are Too Beautiful" "Blue Moon" "It's Easy to Remember (And So Hard to Forget)" "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World" "My Romance" "Little Girl Blue" "There's a Small Hotel" "Glad to Be Unhappy" "Slaughter on Tenth Avenue" "Where or When" "I Wish I Were in Love Again" "My Funny Valentine" "Johnny One Note" "The Lady Is a Tramp" "Have You Met Miss Jones?" "I'll Tell the Man in the Street" "Spring Is Here" "Falling in Love with Love" "This Can't Be Love" "Sing for Your Supper" "I Like to Recognize the Tune" "I Didn't Know What Time It Was" "Give It Back to the Indians" "You're Nearer" "It Never Entered My Mind" "I Could Write a Book" "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered" "Ev'rything I've Got" "Wait till You See Her"