Always Look on the Bright Side of Life Lyrics

[Intro]
Cheer up Brian, you know what they say?
Some things in life are bad
They can really make you mad
Other things just make you swear and curse
When you're chewing on life's gristle
Don't grumble, give a whistle
And this'll help things turn out for the best

And...

[Chorus]
Always look on the bright side of life
(Whistle)
Always look on the light side of life
(Whistle)

[Verse 1]
If life seems jolly rotten
There's something you've forgotten
And that's to laugh and smile and dance and sing

When you're feeling in the dumps
Don't be silly, chumps
Just purse your lips and whistle - that's the thing

And...

[Chorus]
Always look on the bright side of life
(Whistle) (Come on!)
Always look on the right side of life
(Whistle)
[Verse 2]
For life is quite absurd
And death's the final word

You must always face the curtain with a bow
Forget about your sin
Give the audience a grin
Enjoy it - it's your last chance anyhow


[Chorus]
So always look on the bright side of death
(Whistle)
A-Just before you draw your terminal breath
(Whistle)

[Verse 3]
Life's a piece of shit (Oooh)
When you look at it

Life's a laugh and death's the joke, it's true (Oooh)
You'll see it's all a show (Oooh)
Keep 'em laughin' as you go

Just remember that the last laugh is on you (Oooh)
And...

[Chorus]
Always look on the bright side of life
(Whistle)
Always look on the right side of life
(Whistle) (C'mon Brian, cheer up!)
[Outro]
Always look on the bright side of life
(Whistle)
Always look on the bright side of life
(Whistle)
(Worse things happen at sea, you know?)
Always look on the bright side of life
(Whistle) (What have you got to lose?
You know, you come from nothing
You're going back to nothing
What have you lost? Nothing!
)

Always look on the bright side of life
(Whistle)
(Nothing will come from nothing
You know what they say?
)

Always look on the bright side of life
(Cheer up, ya old bugger
C'mon, give us a grin!
There y'are, see?
) (Whistle)
(It's the end of the film)
(Incidentally, this record is available in the foyer)
Always look on the bright side of life
(Some of us got to live as well, you know?) (Whistle)
(All right, that's the lot, let's get this place knocked down
The whole show's dismantled in three weeks
Who do you think pays for all this rubbish?
)
Always look on the bright side of life
(They'll never make their money back, you know
I told 'im, I said to 'im,
"Bernie," I said, "they'll never make their money back.") (Whistle)
Always look on the bright side of life

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About

Genius Annotation

Written by Monty Python member Eric Idle in 1979 for the film Monty Python’s Life of Brian, “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life” is a parody of Disney “feel happy” tunes such as “Give A Little Whistle”, especially given the context of the song in the film: being sung by a crowd being crucified to the protagonist who is also on the verge of dying on the cross.

The song was alternately titled “All Things Dull and Ugly”, though this subtitle was used a year later for an entirely different song.

As laid out in Eric Idle’s autobiography, appropriately titled “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life”, Idle wrote this song when he and the writers of ‘Life of Brian’ realised that they had backed themselves into a corner, with the film ending as the main character is being crucified along with many others. So they decided to end with a ridiculously cheery tune, to conclude the film on a happy note. Idle went home that evening and wrote “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life”, using jazz chords he had learned through the “Micky Baker Jazz Guitar Course” book.

Initially it was recorded in London, with the Fred Tomlinson singers doing the backing vocals, Neil Innes doing the whistling and Idle doing the main vocal part. However it was only when filming the movie in Tunisia that Idle realised the song should be sung by his recurring character “Mr. Cheeky”, a cockney character, parodying the lighting men from the set. And so he re-recorded the main vocal part in the voice of Mr. Cheeky in his hotel room in Tunisia, on a small recording device. And that is the version heard on the record.

It has since become a mainstay of funerals (including the Pythons' own Graham Chapman), sporting events, and was even used on the stage adaptation of Monty Python’s other famous movie, Spamalot (sung by Patsy as he tries to cheer Arthur up after the knights get lost and separated in a “dark and very expensive forest”).

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