Free and Easy

• World Premiere (1959)
• Paris Production (1960)

Click on the title for info on the song.

Cut prior to opening

• Sweeten' Water

Original score

• Conjure Man
• Cake Song
• Live Hard, Work Hard, Love Hard
• Blind Man
• Li'l Augie Is a Natural Man
• I Ain't Afraid
• Della's Entrance
  • aka Watcha Sayin', Della [no note]
• Wheel 'Em and Deal 'Em
• Least That's My Opinion
• Ladies 'n' Gentlemen
• Bees 'n' Flowers
• Second Wind
• Any Place I Hang My Hat Is Home
• I Gotta Right to Sing the Blues
• Blues in the Night
• Streak o' Lightnin'
• Like Clouds Up in the Sky
• Ridin' on the Moon
• Lookin' fo' Somebody
• Rainbow
• That Old Black Magic
  • aka Black Magic [no note]
• Toastin' Sequence
• Lumpin'
• Woman's Prerogative, A
• First March
• Second March
• Third March
• Cakewalk Your Lady
• Soft Shoe
• Sword Dance
• Tambourine
• Genteel Bastard
• Boogie
• Tangissimo
• Blues
• Waltz
• Dixieland
• Pandemonium
• Minuet
• Ya Pushin' Ya Luck
• Watcha Sayin'?
• Higher Den De Moon
• Dis Is De Day
• Legalize My Name
• Lullaby
• Killing Sequence
• Curse
• Sleep Peaceful
• Elegy
• Fix Yo'self Up
• Dissolves
• True Love
• Sow the Seed and Reap the Harvest
• Ill Wind
• Racin' Form
• Bettin' Calls
• Look What a Hole You're In
• Easy Street
• Race
• Champagne fo' de Lady
• High, Low, Jack and the Game
• Dis Little While
• I Wonder What Became of Me?
• Somethin' You Gotta Find Out Yourself
• One for My Baby (and One More for the Road)
  • aka One for My Baby [no note]
  • aka One for the Road [no note]
• Leavin' Time
• Leavin' Time
• Come Rain or Come Shine

Also used during run

• Ac-cent-tchu-ate the Positive
  • aka Ac-cen-tu-ate the Positive [no note]
  • aka Accentuate the Positive [no note]

Cut, unused or not listed

• Many Kinds of Love
• Then Suddenly
• Flower Vendor
• De Right Answer
• Won't Dat Be de Blessed Day
• News Chant
• Blow de Whistle
• Snake Eyes

Cut or unused [titles guessed]

• With the Feelin' in My Heart
• I'm Gonna Shoot You Joe Bailey
• Another Game of Cards
• Show Me the Way Back Home
  • aka Where Is Dis Road Leadin' Me To? [no note]
• No Late Race Horses
• Little Ace of Spades
• Where Ya Lookin', Della
• Oh, Della Green
  • aka So Long and Goodbye [no note]
• Shame, A
• Reach Your Helpin' Hand Out to Me
• It Was Written in the Sky

Based on Arna Bontemps' novel 'God Sends Sunday'.

This show was an outgrowth of ST. LOUIS WOMAN which was a failure due mainly to problems with the book (Cullen died during the pre-Broadway tryout). The score was very strong, however.

Arlen rewrote the show using the songs from the original score but tried to make another PORGY AND BESS out of it. At this point it was titled BLUES OPERA and, upon hearing it, Andre Kostelanetz was so impressed he talked Arlen into working with him on a suite based on the material in the new opera. Together they picked the material to be included and it was orchestrated by Samuel Matlowsky. The suite was presented in New York in November of 1957 with Andre Kostelanetz conducting the New York Philharmonic.

Arlen kept working on the show and it was scheduled to open in Europe in 1958, prior to Broadway. Rewriting and production problems delayed the show and it finally opened (as above) with the new title of FREE AND EASY. Since most of the work and rewriting centered around the music and little was done to improve the book the show was still unsuccessful.