Day 4 – A Song That Makes You Sad
“Inchworm” – John Lithgow
I could have picked almost any Randy Newman song and most people would understand if not outright agree there is a strong emotional reaction. It’s easy to be brought down by “When She Loved Me” or “Simon Smith And His Amazing Dancing Bear”. Rather than going the easy route, I decided to bring to the forefront an unlikely song by an even unlikelier performer.
John Lithgow is a fine actor, capable of both comedic and dramatic roles. In 1999 he released an album of children’s songs… well, not exactly children’s songs, but songs that would be enjoyed by children of all ages. It was an unlikely project, but one that was in a line of releases meant to better contemporize the musical scene for children (this was before Danny Zane and They Might Be Giants jumped on the bandwagon).
It would be easy to dismiss the album, along with most children’s oriented albums, but that would be a mistake. Certainly, John Lithgow is now great musician, and by his own admission, but he doesn’t hit a sour note, the dongs are arranged well, and he does a pretty good job delivering the goods. Songs on the album include “The Gnu Song”, “The Hippopotamus Song” and “Swinging On A Star”. Many of the songs are from older films, including “Inchworm” (originally performed by Danny Kaye in the film Hans Christen Andersen).
So why does this song make me sad? I don’t know. Something about the way John Lithgow conveys the determined but lonely existence of the titular character is beautifully haunting. Maybe I have too much empathy welling up in me. Maybe I am just a sucker for these things (I have been known to tear up at movies). Whatever the reason, John Lithgow’s rendition of “Inchworm” leaves me in a very melancholy mood.