At This Point in Rhyme

E.Y. (Yip) Harburg Made a name for himself in several ways. He wrote All the song lyrics to the Wizard of Oz" (Yes, Dorothy, including the lyric to "Somewhere Over the Rainbow,") as well as the Lyrics to "Finian's Rainbow," "Brother can you Spare a Dime" and many others. His poetry is unjustly ignored. It is a treasure waiting to be discovered. This book is one of several gems that most have never seen. Doing a Google search for Yip Harburg results not only in lyrics, but also the problems he had with the Joe McCarthy mindset. Yip Harburg was his own man, and always spoke his mind. It got him into trouble more than once. "At This Point in Rhyme" speaks eloquently to that way of thinking. If you feel that the military industrial complex is the way to go, prepare to be made fun of mercilessly by Yip Harburg: Build Pentagons and armories From Boston to Lajolla There is no fortress strong enough To placate Paranoia. If you believe in the "Free Market," Harburg shares this with you: Sing a song of politics With bottles full of Rye Fourteen hundred delegates That anyone can buy When the voting opens The price begins to rise And this, my little citizens, Is called Free Enterprise Harburg's rebelliousness is matched only by his craft as a wordsmith and his sense of humor. Harburg will show you rhymes you didn't even know existed, and also make you walk around grinning for hours after reading them. Harburg never took himself seriously, but perhaps we should. The names may change, but the ideas do not.