In 1909 Shelton Brooks wrote the words and music of a song which was truly a landmark in popular music, perhaps the landmark of the transition era. It was completely unlike most songs of its time. It derived from none of the popular song elements then current. It is a straightforward, well-written rhythm ballad, melodically and harmonically.
lts title is Some Of These Days. And it has the unusual form of A-B-C-D. Like Berlin’s The Girl On The Magazine Cover of a few years later, it never repeats its initial idea. It was a big hit and deserved to have been. As well, sixty years later, it is still a Standard song. Throughout her long career Sophie Tucker used it as her theme song.
Considering that the melody is in G major, it is highly unexpected that after the three “ held” pick-up notes, the harmony of the first measure is a B-dominant-seventh chord. This resolves in the third measure to E minor, returns to B dominant and then, after once more resolving to E minor, proceeds through E-dominant seventh and A dominant seventh to a D-dominant cadence.
Then, instead of repeating the original idea, it continues through G dominant to C major. Indeed, it never ceases to move harmonically, far more so than most other pop songs of that time. It should be remembered that Mr. Brooks was a successful vaudeville pianist. Yet so provocative is the melody that it became an immense success, and though the harmony may have mightily pleased the players of that time, the success of the song was due surely to the melody. And I’m certain that the tantalizing suspension of the rhythm in the opening pick-up notes also had to do with the song’s popularity.
This particular version of her theme song was released for the first time some 30 years after it was recorded in 1927 on Columbia’s LP archive series “The Original Sound of the 20s.” Sophie narrates the first part of the verse and tells how this trademark song describes the story of her life. She then finishes off this demonstration of sheer power with a full-voice chorus in the typical Tucker tradition.
“Some of These Days” was Sophie Tucker‘s biggest hit, but she almost missed it. One day in Chicago, Tucker’s maid took her to task: “See here, young lady,” the servant said, “since when are you so important that you can’t hear a song by a colored writer? Here’s this boy, Shelton Brooks, hanging around, waiting, like a dog with his tongue hanging out, for you to hear his song.” Tucker listened, and liked what she heard—as did audiences who kept demanding this song from her for the next half century. [Ted Gioia]
