Johnny Mercer's main claim to immortality is his incredible songwriting output, penning the lyrics or music and lyrics to roughly 1,500 songs. Marked by a sophisticated, occasionally whimsical mastery of language and rhymes, many of Mercer's songs have become standards regularly covered by jazz artists. Yet Mercer was also a successful singer, with a relaxed, Southern-accented, jazzy, rhythmically agile delivery that resulted in several major hits in the 1940s. At first, Mercer was torn between acting and songwriting, but having failed to land a part in +Garrick Gaities in 1930, he ended up writing his first hit, "Out of Breath, Scared to Death Of You," for the show.
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