I Enjoy Being A Girl

Album: Flower Drum Song (1958)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • "I Enjoy Being A Girl" is the one outstanding song from an otherwise forgettable musical, Flower Drum song. As might be expected with such a title, it was not written by a woman but by a man, two of them in fact: composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II.

    The original Broadway production of the musical was December 1, 1958 - after tryouts in Boston. There has also been a film and a stage revival, but the song has fared considerably better. Written in 2/4 time, one of the most popular covers is the downtempo recording by Doris Day on Columbia.
  • This has also been used in the 1990 film Look Who's Talking Too (by Jodi Benson); the 1993 film The Joy Luck Club; and the 2001 film My First Mister. It is also a favorite of drag artists. >>
    Suggestion credit:
    Alexander Baron - London, England, for above 2
  • Flower Drum Song, where this first appeared, is the story of a Chinese family in San Francisco. In the production, the song is performed by the character Linda Low, a showgirl romantically involved with the club's owner, whose family has ordered him a bride from China.

    Pat Suzuki played Linda Low in the original production; that same year Doris Day's version was released as a single. In the 1961 film version, the character was played by Nancy Kwan, but her singing voice was performed by B.J. Baker (kind of a train wreck, as it was pretty obvious it was not Kwan singing).
  • The singer here is clearly not a feminist: She's happy to use her beauty to entice men, and her dream is to find a man who enjoys a girl like her.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Kelly Keagy of Night Ranger

Kelly Keagy of Night RangerSongwriter Interviews

Kelly Keagy of Night Ranger tells the "Sister Christian" story and explains why he started sweating when he saw it in Boogie Nights.

Adam Duritz of Counting Crows

Adam Duritz of Counting CrowsSongwriter Interviews

"Mr. Jones" took on new meaning when the song about a misguided view of fame made Adam famous.

Psychedelic Lyrics

Psychedelic LyricsMusic Quiz

Whoa man! Do you know which band came up with these cosmic lyrics?

Which Restaurants Are Most Mentioned In Song Lyrics?

Which Restaurants Are Most Mentioned In Song Lyrics?Song Writing

Katy Perry mentions McDonald's, Beyoncé calls out Red Lobster, and Supertramp shouts out Taco Bell - we found the 10 restaurants most often mentioned in songs.

Yacht Rock Quiz

Yacht Rock QuizFact or Fiction

Christopher Cross with Deep Purple? Kenny Loggins in Caddyshack? A Fact or Fiction all about yacht rock and those who made it.

Kevin Godley

Kevin GodleySongwriter Interviews

Kevin Godley talks about directing classic videos for The Police, U2 and Duran Duran, and discusses song and videos he made with 10cc and Godley & Creme.