You're the Top (from "Anything Goes"): Piano/Vocal/Chords

This collection pairs essential Porter standards with musical context and historical documentation that transforms it from a songbook into a resource for understanding American musical theatre at its peak. The inclusion of rare images and analysis deepens musicians' connection to these songs beyond the notes on the page.

Porter's music sparkles with urbane charm and rhythmic sophistication. Each song feels like it was written for an intimate nightclub or a glamorous Broadway stage, balancing intellectual wit in the lyrics with melodies that feel both composed and conversational.

Pianists and singers preparing for jazz standards repertoire, college-level vocal performance, or auditions will find essential material here. This collection serves music theatre programs, jazz ensembles, and solo recital performers working across classical and popular traditions.

• Voice the chord symbols with attention to contemporary jazz harmony. Porter wrote for singers comfortable with chromatic inner voices and suspended chords, so let accompaniment voicings breathe rather than stack everything in closed position.
• Anchor the lyrical phrasing to the natural speech rhythm of Porter's witty, conversational lyrics. The melody follows the contours of clever wordplay, so treat the text as your guide to where to place emphasis and where to relax.
• Balance the sophistication of the harmony with clarity of the vocal line. These songs work best when every harmonic gesture supports rather than obscures the singer's melodic shape.

Feature individual Porter standards in jazz or American Songbook concerts, or build a full evening around his catalogue using this book as your primary resource. The historical materials make these songs compelling opening acts for discussions of twentieth-century musical theatre, and they pair naturally with other standards repertoire in mixed recital programming.

• Reading and performing jazz chord symbols with contemporary voicing standards
• Handling chromatic voice leading and unexpected harmonic movement
• Connecting lyrical content and phrasing to melodic shape
• Performing syncopated rhythms and swing feels in a standards context
• Understanding harmonic substitution and jazz-influenced reharmonization