HELLO, songs!
At long last, I’ve gotten around to adding some HELLO GIRLS sheet music to the store! Typically the songs I sell sheet music for are the solos — and as it happens, The Hello Girls really does not have a lot of solos. I guess that may be due to the kind of story the show tells — a story about a squad, a team, an ensemble. There are a lot of songs for the full company, or for all five girls; but there are only a few solos. If I get enough people asking about a particular song, I might be persuaded to add some of the group numbers — we’ll see… In the meantime, enjoy these!
click on the music to go to the store
“Connected”
This is the “I Want” song that introduces Grace Banker, the main character of The Hello Girls. Grace is a Chief Operator, working for Bell Telephone in New York City. America has just entered the First World War, and Grace wishes she could do more — and unexpectedly gets a chance to do just that. In the show, the two parts of the song are separated by a scene in which her friend, Suzanne, tells her that the Army is seeking operators to serve in the Signal Corps. For this arrangement, the scene is omitted, as are the operator backup vocals. And I have to say: part 2 of the song is a pretty excellent cut for auditions, where you get to do all kinds of acting and hit some big notes… give it a try!
click on the music to go to the store
“Marching Orders”
Unlike his counterpart, Grace Banker, Lieutenant Riser is not based on real historical figure. Nevertheless, there were many men in the Army whose attitude toward the Hello Girls was along the lines of what Riser expresses here, in his comic rant. Riser is, perhaps, the antagonist of the story — in the sense that Grace and the other women have to fight to earn his respect. But he is also a sympathetic figure, because he is ultimately fighting on the same side as the women, and because his discomfort as their leader is understandable.
click on the music to go to the store
“Twenty”
Grace’s 11-o-clock tour-de-force comes after her superior officer, Riser, has thwarted her ambition of being sent along with her squad to serve on the front lines. Riser cannot imagine women coping with the harsh conditions they would face on the front lines, and insists that the army can find men who will be able to do the work. Grace knows that her team are the best for the job, and that the front is where they are most needed. In this song, she passionately and fiercely lays out her case.
