“Have you met Miss Jones?” someone said as we shook hands,
She was just Miss Jones to me.
And then I said, “Miss Jones, you’re a girl who understands
I’m a man who must be free.”
And all at once I lost my breath, and all at once was scared to death,
And all at once I owned the earth and sky.
And now I’ve met Miss Jones, and we’ll keep on meeting till we die,
Miss Jones and I.
Except for this song, I'd
Rather Be Right (1937) is better remembered as a George
M. Cohan show than as a Rodgers and Hart creation. The ol' Yankee
Doodle Dandy didn't get on well with the younger songwriters, and didn't
hesitate to change their lyrics - despite their protests. The show
was essentially a satiric revue with a thin story line about two young lovers
who, in a dream, encounter President Franklin D. Roosevelt (played by Cohan).
Most of the songs had a strictly 30's topical slant that has not helped
their longevity. "Have You Met Miss Jones?" is another matter. The
romantic remembrance of the two lovers' first meeting remains a favorite
to the present day.