If I Only Had a Brain by Harold Arlen - Improvised by pianist Charles Manning

“If I Only Had a Brain” is a song from the 1939 film “The Wizard of Oz.” According to the Library of Congress, “The Wizard of Oz” is the most viewed film in all of movie history. In the film, the Scarecrow character, played by Ray Bolger, sings “If I Only Had a Brain” to Dorothy, played by Judy Garland. The song was composed by Harold Arlen, with lyrics by Yip Harburg. Originally written for the 1937 musical “Hooray for What!” and titled “I’m Hanging On To You,” the song was never used for the Broadway show. Arlen kept the same music from “I’m Hanging On to You” and Harburg wrote new lyrics, creating the new song “If I Only Had a Brain.”

After an initial recording of the song, the producers of “The Wizard of Oz” decided on another version and re-recorded the song for the film. Thought to be lost for over seven decades, a copy of this recording was discovered in 2009. In 2011, “If I Only Had a Brain” was sung in the Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice musical adaptation of “The Wizard of Oz.” In this rendition, pianist Charles Manning improvises the song “If I Only Had a Brain.”