"Anything Goes" is a song by Cole Porter, who wrote its music and lyrics for his Broadway musical of the same name. The show, with a book by Guy Bolton and P. G. Wodehouse, revised by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse, opened at the Alvin Theatre on November 21, 1934. Producer Vinton Freedley chose Ethel Merman as its star, and she gave the song's original performance. The first draft of the show was called Crazy Week, then Hard to Get.
The lyrics contain humorous references to figures of scandal and gossip from American high society during the Great Depression, including Mae West, Evalyn Walsh McLean, John D. Rockefeller, the Vanderbilts and Whitneys, and Lady Mendl. The opening stanza begins with a joke about the landing at Plymouth Rock. Early recordings include one by Paul Whiteman and his Orchestra, with a vocal by Ramona Davies, made in November 1934 and reaching number five on the US charts in early 1935. Later recordings include versions by Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Chris Connor, Tony Bennett with Count Basie, and the Dave Brubeck Quartet. The musical was filmed in 1936 and 1956, and its 1987 and 2011 Broadway revivals both won Tony Awards for Best Revival.
