Richard M. Sherman
A British Bank (The Life I Lead)
[MR. BANKS]
A British bank is run with precision
A British home requires nothing less!
Tradition, discipline, and rules
Must be the tools
Without them... Disorder! Chaos! Moral disintegration!
In short, you have a ghastly mess!
[MARY, spoken]
I quite agree!
[MR. BANKS]
The children must be molded, shaped, and taught
That life's a looming battle to be faced and fought
[spoken]
In short, I am disturbed to hear my children talking about popping in and out of chalk pavement pictures, consorting with racehorse persons, foxhunting! Yes, well, I don't mind that quite so much. At any rate, it's tradition! But tea parties on the ceiling? I ask you: having tea parties on the ceiling? And highly questionable outings of every other kind!
[sung]
If they must go on outings
These outings ought to be
Fraught with purpose
Yes, and practicality
These silly words like superca... superca.. .superca...
[MARY, spoken]
Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious
[MR. BANKS, spoken]
Yes, well done, you've said it
[sung]
...And popping through pictures
Have little use, fulfill no basic need!
They've got to learn the honest truth
Despite their youth
They must learn...
[MARY (MR. BANKS, spoken)]
...About the life you lead (Exactly!)
They must feel the thrill of totting up a balanced book
A thousand ciphers neatly in a row
When gazing at a graph that shows the profits up
Their little cup of joy should overflow! (Precisely!)
It's time they learned to walk in your footsteps (My footsteps...)
To tread your straight and narrow path with pride (With pride!)
Tomorrow, just as you suggest
Pressed and dressed
Jane and Michael will be at your side