"Mack the Knife" or "The Ballad of Mack the Knife" (german: "Die Moritat von Mackie Messer", italic=no, link=no) is a song composed by

Kurt Weill Kurt Julian Weill (March 2, 1900April 3, 1950) was a German-born American composer active from the 1920s in his native country, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for his fru ...

with lyrics by

Bertolt Brecht Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht (10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956), known professionally as Bertolt Brecht, was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. Coming of age during the Weimar Republic, he had his first successes as a pl ...

for their 1928 music drama '' The Threepenny Opera'' (german: Die Dreigroschenoper, link=no). The song sings about a knife-wielding criminal of the London underworld from the musical named Macheath, the "Mack the Knife" of the title. The song has become a popular standard recorded by many artists after it was recorded by

Louis Armstrong Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and several era ...

in 1955. The most popular version of the song was by Bobby Darin in 1959, whose recording became a number one hit in the US and UK and earned him two Grammys. Ella Fitzgerald also received a Grammy for her performance of the song in 1961.

''The Threepenny Opera''

A ''

Moritat (; also spelled , or ) comes from Italian for "story-singer" and is known by many other names around the world. It is a theatrical form where a performer tells or sings a story while gesturing to a series of images. These images can be painted ...

'' is a medieval version of the murder ballad performed by strolling minstrels. In ''The Threepenny Opera'', the singer with his

street organ A street organ (french: orgue de rue or ''orgue de barbarie''; german: Straßenorgel) played by an organ grinder is a French-German automatic mechanical pneumatic organ designed to be mobile enough to play its music in the street. The two most co ...

introduces and closes the drama with the tale of the deadly ''Mackie Messer'', or ''Mack the Knife'', a character based on the dashing highwayman

Macheath Captain Macheath is a fictional character who appears both in John Gay's ''The Beggar's Opera'' (1728), its sequel ''Polly'' (1777), and roughly 150 years later in Bertolt Brecht's ''The Threepenny Opera'' (1928). Origins Macheath made his fir ...

John Gay John Gay (30 June 1685 – 4 December 1732) was an English poet and dramatist and member of the Scriblerus Club. He is best remembered for ''The Beggar's Opera'' (1728), a ballad opera. The characters, including Captain Macheath and Polly Peac ...

's '' The Beggar's Opera'' (who was in turn based on the historical thief Jack Sheppard). The Brecht-Weill version of the character was far more cruel and sinister whose crimes included rape and murder, and transforming him into a modern antihero. The song was a last-minute addition that was inserted before its premiere in 1928 because Harald Paulsen, the actor who played Macheath, demanded that Brecht and Weill add another number that would more effectively introduce his character. However, Weill and Brecht decided the song should not be sung by Macheath himself, opting instead to write the song for a street singer in keeping with the tradition. At the premiere, the song was sung by Kurt Gerron, who played Police Chief Brown. Weill intended the Moritat to be accompanied by a barrel organ, which was to be played by the singer. At the premiere, though, the barrel organ failed, and the pit orchestra (a jazz band) had to quickly provide the accompaniment for the street singer. The singer performs the song at the start of the play. The song begins by comparing Macheath to a shark, followed by tales of his crimes, including a murder on the Strand, the disappearance of a wealthy man and theft of his money, a fatal stabbing of woman, an arson that killed seven children in Soho, and the rape of a young widow. The first stanza reads: The final stanza – not included in the original play, but added by Brecht for the 1931 film – expresses the theme and compares the glittering world of the rich and powerful with the dark world of the poor:

French translation

The song was translated into French as "" by André Mauprey and Ninon Steinhoff and popularized by Catherine Sauvage.

1954 Blitzstein translation

The song was introduced to American audiences in 1933 in the first English-language production of ''The Threepenny Opera''. The English lyrics were by Gifford Cochran and Jerrold Krimsky. That production, however, was not successful, closing after a run of only ten days. In the best-known English translation, from the

Marc Blitzstein Marcus Samuel Blitzstein (March 2, 1905January 22, 1964), was an American composer, lyricist, and librettist. He won national attention in 1937 when his pro-union musical ''The Cradle Will Rock'', directed by Orson Welles, was shut down by the Wo ...

1954 version of ''The Threepenny Opera'', which played

Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

for over six years, the opening stanza reads: Oh, the shark has pretty teeth, dear, And he shows them pearly white Just a jack-knife has Macheath, dear And he keeps it out of sight Blitzstein's version is a loose translation of the German lyrics; some lines on the crimes of Macheath have been omitted, and he included a verse not in the original, giving a list of female characters in the drama. The lyrics were further sanitized in the original Broadway cast recording (with Gerald Price as the ballad singer) with two stanzas on Macheath's assaults on women replaced. Blitzstein's translation provides the basis for most of the popular versions heard today, including those by

(1955) and Bobby Darin (1959; Darin's lyrics differ slightly), and most subsequent

swing Swing or swinging may refer to: Apparatus * Swing (seat), a hanging seat that swings back and forth * Pendulum, an object that swings * Russian swing, a swing-like circus apparatus * Sex swing, a type of harness for sexual intercourse * Swing rid ...

versions. In Armstrong's recording, the name of Weill's widow, Lotte Lenya, who was the star of both the original 1928 German production and the 1954 Blitzstein Broadway version, was added to the lyrics ("Look out, Miss Lotte Lenya"). The Armstrong version was later used by Bobby Darin.

1976 Manheim–Willett extension ("")

In 1976, a brand-new interpretation of "Mack the Knife" by Ralph Manheim and

John Willett John William Mills Willett, MBE (24 June 1917 – 20 August 2002) was a British translator and a scholar who is remembered for translating the work of Bertolt Brecht into English. Early life Willett was born in Hampstead and was educated ...

was used in the New York Shakespeare Festival's production of ''The Threepenny Opera'', starring Raul Julia as Macheath. This version, simply known as "", is an extension of the story with completely new lyrics that expound upon the tales of Macheath's trail of activity. Here is an excerpt: See the shark with teeth like razors. All can read his open face. And Macheath has got a knife, but Not in such an obvious place. This version was performed by

Lyle Lovett Lyle Pearce Lovett (born November 1, 1957) Lyle Lovett Pageat Allmusic – Lovett's Genre and Styles. Retrieved February 2, 2007 is an American singer, songwriter, actor and record producer. Active since 1980, he has recorded 13 albums and relea ...

on the soundtrack of the 1994 film ''

Quiz Show A game show is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment (radio, television, internet, stage or other) where contestants compete for a reward. These programs can either be participatory or demonstrative and are typically directed by a host, sh ...

''. Darin's version plays over the opening credits and Lovett's over the closing credits. This interpretation was performed by

Sting Sting may refer to: * Stinger or sting, a structure of an animal to inject venom, or the injury produced by a stinger * Irritating hairs or prickles of a stinging plant, or the plant itself Fictional characters and entities * Sting (Middle-eart ...

on Hal Willner's 1985 Weill tribute album ''Lost in the Stars'' and also recorded by

Nick Cave Nicholas Edward Cave (born 22 September 1957) is an Australian singer, songwriter, poet, lyricist, author, screenwriter, composer and occasional actor. Known for his baritone voice and for fronting the rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Ca ...

in the late 1990s.

1994 translation

A much darker translation by Robert David MacDonald and Jeremy Sams into English was used for the 1994 Donmar Warehouse theatrical production in London. The new translation attempted to recapture the original tone of the song: Though the shark's teeth may be lethal Still you see them white and red But you won't see Mackie's flick knife Cause he slashed you and you're dead.

Popular recordings

Louis Armstrong version

A number of early artists recorded the song, including the cast recording and a jazz version by Sidney Bechet, but it was

who first introduced the vocal version of "Mack the Knife" to the United States hit parade. George Avakian, a producer at

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

, whose wife

Anahid Ajemian Anahid Marguerite Ajemian (January 26, 1924 – June 13, 2016) was an American violinist of Armenian descent. Her career in contemporary music began from her desire to help young composers of her generation get their compositions performed. A ...

gave a recital of Weill's Violin Concerto in 1954, became interested in Weill's music, in particular the song from the off-Broadway production of ''Three Penny Opera'' that he had seen. He spent a few months trying to interest various jazz artists from his label to record "Mack the Knife". eventually persuading Turk Murphy to record. Murphy also suggested Armstrong to Avakian for the recording, and made an arrangement of the song for him. Armstrong recorded an instrumental together with a vocal version on September 28, 1955, while Murphy also recorded both instrumental version and vocal versions himself as well as one in German with Lotte Lenya on September 22, 1955. The lyrics of Armstrong's version were based on the Broadway cast recording, but Avakian suggested changing Blitzstein's lyrics by using the word "drooping" instead of "dropping", as well as including the name of Lotte Lenya in the recording. Armstrong gave a shout-out in the song to Lenya who was invited to the recording session by Avakian. Lenya also joined Armstrong to record a duet version which was not released commercially. Armstrong's released version was spliced together from the instrumental recording and the vocal version. The song titled "A Theme from The Threepenny Opera (Mack the Knife)" was released in late 1955 together with an instrumental version by Murphy, both by Columbia. The song, however, faced an initial ban on the song by radio stations for lyrics perceived as glorification of a criminal, although it sold well. Armstrong's recording reached ''Billboard''s Top 100 chart in February 1956, peaking at No 20 on March 17, 1956. An instrumental version released by

Dick Hyman Richard Hyman (born March 8, 1927) is an American jazz pianist and composer. Over a 70-year career, he has worked as a pianist, organist, arranger, music director, electronic musician, and composer. He was named a National Endowment for the Art ...

charted higher. Armstrong's version also reached No. 8 in the UK. Armstrong's recording was inducted by the Library of Congress in the National Recording Registry in 2016.

Charts

Bobby Darin version

The song, however, is most closely associated with Bobby Darin, who recorded his version on December 19, 1958 for his album ''That's All''. Darin had performed the song in his act for before, and wanted to include the song in an album of standards. The song was arranged by Richard Wess. Musicians on the song included Don Lamond on drums, Milt Hinton on bass, and

Doc Severinsen Carl Hilding "Doc" Severinsen (born July 7, 1927) is an American retired jazz trumpeter who led the NBC Orchestra on ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson''. Early life Severinsen was born in Arlington, Oregon, to Minnie Mae (1897–1998) a ...

on trumpet. with Tom Dowd engineering the recording. Darin performed with the song lyrics similar to Armstrong's version with small changes, such as using the word "babe" instead of "dear', and he ended the song with a reprise of the sixth verse instead of the first. Darin recorded the song in around three takes, performing the song with an up-tempo bouncy beat, and modulating up a semitone every verse starting with the third verse, from B flat to B to C to D flat to E flat. The song was released as a single in August 1959, even though Darin was reluctant to release the song as a single. The song reached number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and number six on the Black Singles chart. It was listed as a ''Cash Box'' Top 100 number one single in 1959 for eight weeks. Dick Clark had advised Darin not to record the song because of the perception that, having come from an opera, it would not appeal to the rock and roll audience; he subsequently acknowledged his error.

Reception

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular ...

, who recorded the song with Quincy Jones on his ''

L.A. Is My Lady ''L.A. Is My Lady'' is the 57th and final solo studio album by Frank Sinatra, released in 1984 and produced by Quincy Jones. While the album was Sinatra's last (excluding the ''Duets'' albums), he recorded five further songs, only four of which ...

'' album, called Darin's the "definitive" version. ''Billboard'' ranked this version as the No. 2 song for 1959. Darin's version was No. 3 on ''Billboard's All Time Top 100.'' In 2003, the Darin version was ranked No. 251 on '' Rolling Stone''s "

500 Greatest Songs of All Time "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" is a recurring survey compiled by the American magazine ''Rolling Stone''. It is based on weighted votes from selected musicians, critics, and industry figures. The first list was published in December 2004 in ...

" list. Darin's version of the song was featured in the films ''

'' and '' What Women Want''. The song earned Darin two Grammy Awards in

1959 Events January * January 1 - Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance. * January 2 - Lunar probe Luna 1 was the first man-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reached the vicinity of E ...

, for Record of the Year and first ever Best New Artist. Darin's version was also inducted by the Library of Congress in the National Recording Registry at the same time as Armstrong's in 2016. It was ranked as No. 15 in the list of Songs of the Century by the

Recording Industry of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and ...

and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Charts

Other versions

Instrumental version of "Mack the Knife" titled "Moritat – A Theme From "The Three Penny Opera"" was recorded by

, and it performed better Louis Armstrong's vocal version which charted around the same time, reaching No. 10 on ''Billboard''s Top 100. It also reached No. 9 on the Cashbox chart, as well as No. 9 on the UK chart in 1956. A number of other instrumental versions also appeared on The Top 100 at the same time: Richard Hayman and Jan August (No. 12), Lawrence Welk (No. 31),

Billy Vaughn Richard Smith "Billy" Vaughn (April 12, 1919 – September 26, 1991) was an American singer, multi-instrumentalist, orchestra leader, and A&R man for Dot Records. Biography Vaughn was born in Glasgow, Kentucky, United States, where his father, ...

(No. 37), and

Les Paul and Mary Ford Les Paul and Mary Ford were a popular 1950s husband-and-wife musical duo who performed and recorded during 1945–1963. They both sang and played guitars. Ford and Paul were music superstars during the first half of the 1950s, putting out 28 hit ...

(No.49). Billy Vaughn also reached No. 12 in the UK. Ella Fitzgerald made a notable live recording in 1960 (released on '' Ella in Berlin: Mack the Knife'') during which, after forgetting the lyrics after the first stanza, she improvised new lyrics, including name-checking Louis Armstrong and Bobby Darin. The performance earned her a Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance at the

3rd Annual Grammy Awards The 3rd Annual Grammy Awards were held on April 13, 1961, at Los Angeles and New York. They recognized musical accomplishments by the performers for the year 1960. Ray Charles won four awards and Bob Newhart and Henry Mancini each won three awards ...

. This version made the US Hot 100, peaking at No. 27.

added the song to his repertoire in 1984 in an arrangement by Frank Foster;"Mack the Knife – Sinatra Song of the Century #95"
by Mark Steyn, 8 December 2015 In the performance included in his album ''

'', Sinatra similarly name-checked Armstrong and Darin, as well as adding members of his backing band. Sinatra and

Jimmy Buffett James William Buffett (born December 25, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, and businessman. He is best known for his music, which often portrays an "island escapism" lifestyle. Together with his Coral Reefer Band, Buffet ...

recorded a duet of the song for Sinatra's final album '' Duets II'' (1994).

and Spanish Fly performed the song for the video '' September Songs – The Music of Kurt Weill'' in 1994, released as an album in 1997. while

and Dominic Muldowney recorded it for the 1985 tribute album '' Lost in the Stars: The Music of Kurt Weill''. Other notable versions include performances by

Mark Lanegan Mark William Lanegan (November 25, 1964 – February 22, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter, and poet. First becoming prominent as the lead singer for the early grunge band Screaming Trees, he was also known as a member of Queens of the St ...

, Dave Van Ronk,

Jimmie Dale Gilmore Jimmie Dale Gilmore (born May 6, 1945) is an American country singer, songwriter, actor, recording artist and producer, currently living in Austin, Texas. Life and career Gilmore is a native of the Texas Panhandle, having been born in Amarillo ...

, Tony Bennett, Anita O'Day (in an arrangement by Jimmy Giuffre),

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, musician and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. He was a ...

, Marianne Faithfull, Brian Setzer, Dr. John, Ute Lemper,

King Kurt King Kurt are a rock-n-roll band from the UK. They formed in 1981 and split up in 1988, although they have reformed sporadically and played a reunion concert in 2010. They are best known for their hit single, "Destination Zululand" (1983). F ...

, Kevin Spacey, The Psychedelic Furs, David Cassidy (in ''At the Copa''), Westlife, and Michael Bublé. Swiss band The Young Gods radically reworked the song in industrial style on their 1991 album '' The Young Gods Play Kurt Weill'', while jazz legend

Sonny Rollins Walter Theodore "Sonny" Rollins (born September 7, 1930) is an American jazz tenor saxophonist who is widely recognized as one of the most important and influential jazz musicians. In a seven-decade career, he has recorded over sixty albums as a ...

recorded an instrumental version entitled simply "" in 1956. A 1959 instrumental performance by

Bill Haley & His Comets Bill Haley & His Comets were an American rock and roll band founded in 1947 that continued until Haley's death in 1981. The band was also known as Bill Haley and the Comets and Bill Haley's Comets. From late 1954 to late 1956, the group record ...

was the final song the group recorded for

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...

Ray Conniff Joseph Raymond Conniff (November 6, 1916 – October 12, 2002) was an American bandleader and arranger best known for his Ray Conniff Singers during the 1960s. Biography Conniff was born November 6, 1916 in Attleboro, Massachusetts, United St ...

recorded a version for orchestra and chorus in 1962 for the album, ''The Happy Beat''.

Deana Martin Deana Martin is an American singer and actress. She is the daughter of singer Dean Martin. Film and television Martin was born in Manhattan to Dean Martin and his first wife, Elizabeth Anne "Betty" McDonald. She moved to Beverly Hills, Californ ...

recorded "Mack the Knife" on her second studio album, '' Volare'', released in 2009 by Big Fish Records. Robbie Williams recorded the song on his 2001 album '' Swing When You're Winning''. Hildegard Knef recorded a German version, "Mackie Messer". Salsa musician Rubén Blades recorded an homage entitled " Pedro Navaja" (Razor Pete). Brazilian composer Chico Buarque, in his loose adaptation of ''Threepenny Opera'' (), made two versions called "" and "", with lyrics in Portuguese. Liberace performed the song in five styles: as originally written, in the style of the "

Blue Danube Waltz "The Blue Danube" is the common English title of "An der schönen blauen Donau", Opus number, Op. 314 (German for "By the Beautiful Blue Danube"), a waltz (music), waltz by the List of Austrian composers, Austrian composer Johann Strauss II ...

", as a music box, in a

bossa nova Bossa nova () is a style of samba developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is mainly characterized by a "different beat" that altered the harmonies with the introduction of unconventional chords and an innovativ ...

rhythm, and in boogie-woogie. (note: this performance omits the music box version).

References

Sources *

External links

* , sung by Lotte Lenya (3:39) * (2:48)
Bobby Darin "Mack the Knife" website

"What's the story behind 'Mack the Knife'?"
The Straight Dope, 1 April 2004 *
Lyrics
{{authority control 1928 songs 1920s jazz standards 1955 singles 1959 singles Songs with music by Kurt Weill Songs with lyrics by Bertolt Brecht Songs with lyrics by Marc Blitzstein Opera excerpts Murder ballads Songs from musicals Louis Armstrong songs Bobby Darin songs Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Cashbox number-one singles UK Singles Chart number-one singles Columbia Records singles Atco Records singles London Records singles Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients Grammy Award for Record of the Year Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance Pop standards United States National Recording Registry recordings Jazz songs

''The Threepenny Opera''

French translation

1954 Blitzstein translation

1976 Manheim–Willett extension ("")

1994 translation

Popular recordings

Louis Armstrong version

Charts

Bobby Darin version

Reception

Charts

Other versions

See also

References

External links