"Tomorrow" is a

show tune A show tune is a song originally written as part of the score of a work of musical theatre or musical film, especially if the piece in question has become a standard, more or less detached in most people's minds from the original context. ...

from the musical ''

Annie Annie may refer to: People and fictional characters * Annie (given name), a given name and a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Annie (actress) (born 1975), Indian actress * Annie (singer) (born 1977), Norwegian singer The ...

'', with music by

Charles Strouse Charles Strouse (born June 7, 1928) is an American composer and lyricist best known for writing the music to such Broadway musicals as ''Bye Bye Birdie (musical), Bye Bye Birdie'', ''Applause (musical), Applause'', and ''Annie (musical), Annie''. ...

and lyrics by

Martin Charnin Martin Charnin (November 24, 1934 – July 6, 2019) was an American lyricist, writer, and theatre director. Charnin's best-known work is as conceiver, director, and lyricist of the musical ''Annie.'' Life and career Charnin was born in New York C ...

, published in 1977. The number was originally written as "Replay" (The Way We Live Now) for the 1970 short film Replay, with both music and lyrics by Strouse.

Composition and lyrics

In 1972 Strouse, Charnin and Thomas Meehan began working on a musical based on the Little Orphan Annie comic strips, ''

''. Strouse contributed a reworked version of "Replay" as "Tomorrow". "Annie" took until 1976 to reach Broadway and during that time Strouse reworked "Replay" again for possible use in what became "

Charlie and Algernon ''Charlie and Algernon'' is a musical with a book and lyrics by David Rogers and music by Charles Strouse. It is based on the 1966 novel ''Flowers for Algernon'' by Daniel Keyes. It received its premiere on December 21, 1978, at The Citadel Theat ...

", a musical version of Daniel Keyes's ''

Flowers for Algernon ''Flowers for Algernon'' is a short story by American author Daniel Keyes, later expanded by him into a novel and subsequently adapted for film and other media. The short story, written in 1958 and first published in the April 1959 issue of ''T ...

'' with book by playwright David Rogers although it was not ultimately used. " The song has always been prominently featured in productions of the musical throughout its history: several variations of the song were performed in the original 1977 Broadway production, including being the show's finale. Its lyrics are repeated as a personal motto by the character of Annie in Thomas Meehan's 1980 novelisation. It was the entry and concluding credits score for the 1982 film adaptation; an a capella version of the song was performed by

Aileen Quinn Aileen Marie Quinn (born June 28, 1971) is an American actress, singer and dancer. She is best known for her role as the title character in the 1982 film ''Annie''. Early life Quinn was born on June 28, 1971, and raised in Yardley, Pennsylvani ...

as Annie during the scene at the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...

where Annie and Warbucks meet

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

. The song pronounces an optimistic view of life through its main themes and the phrases 'hang on until tomorrow' and 'when I'm stuck with a day that's gray and lonely, I just stick out my chin and grin nd say. It appears to be in unison with another song in the score, "

You're Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile "You're Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile" is a song from the Broadway musical ''Annie'', written by Charles Strouse and Martin Charnin. Sia cover Sia covered the song for the soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying an ...

", which again pronounces the importance of smiling, though in a much lighter and cheerful tone. The lyrics were likely influenced by the song " There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow", written by the

Sherman Brothers The Sherman Brothers were an American songwriting duo that specialized in musical films, made up of Robert B. Sherman (December 19, 1925 – March 6, 2012) and Richard M. Sherman (born June 12, 1928). Together they received various accolades in ...

for

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

Carousel of Progress Walt Disney's Carousel of Progress is a rotating theater audio-animatronic stage show attraction in Tomorrowland at the Magic Kingdom theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Bay Lake, Florida just outside of Orlando, Florida. Created ...

attraction for the

1964 New York World's Fair The 1964–1965 New York World's Fair was a world's fair that held over 140 pavilions and 110 restaurants, representing 80 nations (hosted by 37), 24 US states, and over 45 corporations with the goal and the final result of building exhibits or ...

. They have very similar themes, stressing the importance of looking forward optimistically to a shining future, and in some places use almost identical lyrical phrases (compare "just a dream away" and "only a day away," for example).

Cover versions

The song was covered by

Alvin and the Chipmunks Alvin and the Chipmunks, originally David Seville and the Chipmunks or simply The Chipmunks, are an American animated virtual band and media franchise first created by Ross Bagdasarian for novelty records in 1958. The group consists of three s ...

in 1982 for their album “The Chipmunks Go Hollywood” and later in 1985 when the backing track would be used for an Alvin and the Chipmunks TV Series episode “The Chipette Story”.

Kevin Kline Kevin Delaney Kline (born October 24, 1947) is an American actor. He is the recipient of an Academy Award and three Tony Awards. In addition, he has received nominations for two British Academy Film Awards, two Primetime Emmy Awards, and five ...

and

Sigourney Weaver Susan Alexandra "Sigourney" Weaver (; born October 8, 1949) is an American actress. A figure in science fiction and popular culture, she has received various accolades, including a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and a Gram ...

sing an a cappella version in the 1993 film ''

Dave Dave may refer to: Film, television, and theater * ''Dave'' (film), a 1993 film starring Kevin Kline and Sigourney Weaver * ''Dave'' (musical), a 2018 stage musical adaptation of the film * Dave (TV channel), a digital television channel in the ...

''. Former

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...

organist Nancy Bea Hefley would play the song following a Dodgers loss as an inspirational message.

Anaheim Ducks The Anaheim Ducks are a professional ice hockey team based in Anaheim, California. The Ducks compete in the Western Conference of the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division, and play their home games at Honda Center. ...

organist Gil Imber has continued the tradition. The song appears in the 2008 film ''

Igor Igor may refer to: People * Igor (given name), an East Slavic given name and a list of people with the name * Mighty Igor (1931–2002), former American professional wrestler * Igor Volkoff, a professional wrestler from NWA All-Star Wrestling * ...

'' in the climax of the movie involving a giant robot portraying Annie. In 2015, the song was performed by

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

pop singer

Gin Wigmore Virginia Claire Wigmore (born 6 June 1986) is a New Zealand singer and songwriter. Featured on the Smashproof single "Brother" in 2009, Wigmore went on to release four albums '' Holy Smoke'' (2009), ''Gravel & Wine'' (2011), '' Blood to Bone'' ...

for a series of television commercials advertising

Air New Zealand Air New Zealand Limited () is the flag carrier airline of New Zealand. Based in Auckland, the airline operates scheduled passenger flights to 20 domestic and 30 international destinations in 18 countries, primarily around and within the Pacific ...

Ryan Reynolds Ryan Rodney Reynolds (born October 23, 1976) is a Canadian-American actor. He is one of the highest-grossing film actors of all time, with a worldwide box-office gross of over billion. He began his career starring in the Canadian teen ...

performed a live version of the song on the South Korean series ''

King of Mask Singer ''The King of Mask Singer'' () is a South Korean singing competition program presented by Kim Sung-joo, with introductions by voice actor . It airs on MBC on Sunday, starting from April 5, 2015 as a part of MBC's '' Sunday Night'' programming ...

''. The song was also used in ''

Deadpool 2 ''Deadpool 2'' is a 2018 American superhero comedy film based on the Marvel Comics character Deadpool. Distributed by 20th Century Fox, it is the sequel to ''Deadpool'' (2016) and the eleventh installment overall in the ''X-Men'' film series. T ...

'', Reynolds' film which had released the same month. His performance was included as an extra on the film's home media releases. On ''

The Muppet Show ''The Muppet Show'' is a sketch comedy television series created by Jim Henson and featuring the Muppets. The series originated as two pilot episodes produced by Henson for ABC in 1974 and 1975. While neither episode was moved forward as a ser ...

'',

Petula Clark Petula Sally Olwen Clark, CBE (born 15 November 1932) is an English singer, actress, and composer. She has one of the longest serving careers of a British singer, spanning more than seven decades. Clark's professional career began during the ...

covered the song with the Muppets.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Songs with music by Charles Strouse 1977 songs Songs from musicals Barbra Streisand songs Songs with lyrics by Martin Charnin Grace Jones songs Little Orphan Annie

Composition and lyrics

Cover versions

See also

References

External links