"The Lady Is a Tramp" is a show tune from the 1937 Rodgers and Hart musical Babes In Arms in which it was introduced by former child star Mitzi Green. This song is a spoof of New York high society and its strict etiquette (the first line of the verse is significant: "I get too hungry for dinner at eight...").
In 2011, Lady Gaga was featured on a cover of the song with Tony Bennett, which appeared on Bennett's album, Duets II. The song was released as a single on October 3, 2011.
The song was also available as a bonus track on the HSN edition and International physical deluxe editions of Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga's first collaborative jazz album, Cheek to Cheek.
Recording
Their cover of "The Lady is a Tramp" was the last song recorded for the album, coming after lengthy contractual wrangling and only a few days before the cutoff date for the album’s completion.
The recording took place at Studio 1 of Avatar Studios on July 31 in New York. They had two hours with Gaga and in that time period, they did six takes. The New Yorker who was on location reported that Gaga was so nervous, she downed whiskey throughout the day. "Did all the girls used to have to get drunk to hang out with you?" Gaga asked Tony Bennett. "You're such a dreamboat!" A TV crew was also on location to shoot the music video for the song.
Performances
 Dates
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 Location
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 City
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| 2013 | |||
| Jan 22 | White House | Washington D.C. | 
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| 2018 | |||
| Jun 23 | Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts | Vienna, VA |
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Channel
| Tour | Dates | Performances |
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| Cheek to Cheek Tour | 2014-2015 (All Dates) | 36 |
| Jazz & Piano Engagement | 2018-2019 | 10 |
| Total: | 36 |
Lyrics
[Tony Bennett]
She gets too hungry, for dinner at eight
[Lady Gaga]
I'm starving
[Tony Bennett]
She loves the theater but she never comes late
[Lady Gaga]
I never bother with people that I hate
That's why this chick is a tramp
[Tony Bennett]
Hahaha
She doesn't like crap games, with barons and earls
[Lady Gaga]
Won't go to Harlem in ermines and pearl
[Tony Bennett]
Hahaha
[Lady Gaga]
And I definitely won't dish our dirt with the rest of those girls
[Tony Bennett]
Thank you
That's why the lady is a tramp
[Lady Gaga]
I love the free, fresh wind in my hair
[Tony Bennett]
Life without care
[Lady Gaga]
Oh, I'm so broke
[Tony Bennett]
It's oak
[Lady Gaga]
I hate California, it's crowded and damp
[Tony Bennett]
That's why the lady is a tramp
[Lady Gaga]
I'm a tramp!
Sometimes I go to Coney Island
[Tony Bennett]
Oh, the beach is divine.
[Lady Gaga]
And I love the Yankees
[Tony Bennett]
And Jeter's just fine.
[Lady Gaga]
I follow Rodgers & Hart
[Tony Bennett]
She sings every line.
[Both]
That's why the lady is a tramp.
[Lady Gaga]
I love a prizefight
[Tony Bennett]
That isn't a fake
[Lady Gaga]
No fakes
And I love to rowboat with you and your wife in Central Park lake.
[Tony Bennett]
Hahaha
She goes to the opera, and stays wide awake.
[Lady Gaga]
Yes I do.
That's why this lady is a tramp.
[Tony Bennett]
She likes the green
[Lady Gaga]
Green
[Tony Bennett]
Grass
[Lady Gaga]
Grass
[Tony Bennett]
Under her shoes.
[Lady Gaga]
What can I lose?
Cause I got no dough
[Tony Bennett]
Oh no?
[Lady Gaga]
I'm all alone
When I'm doing my hair
[Tony Bennett]
That's why the lady is a tramp
Go
[Lady Gaga]
Beep beep beep beep beep beep beep beep beep beep beep beep beep
[Tony Bennett]
Arubu dubu dubu dubu bop bop ba ba ba ba du rabidaday
[Lady Gaga]
I love your free, fresh
I love your handkerchief in my hair
[Tony Bennett]
Life without care
[Lady Gaga]
Oh my god
But I'm so broke
[Tony Bennett]
It's oak
Hates California, it's so cold, and it's damp
[Both]
That's why the lady is a tramp
That's the/this lady is a tramp
[Lady Gaga]
That's why the lady is a tramp
Music video
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The video shows Bennett and Gaga singing "The Lady Is a Tramp" together in a studio in front of music stands. Both wear black tie attire, with Bennett sporting a suit and Gaga donning an evening dress made up by black-colored semi-transparent lace. Despite their black clothes, each artist contrasts these with some color, as Bennett rests a red handkerchief in his breast pocket while Gaga wears a turquoise bob wig. In the beginning of the video and during occasional other scenes, Gaga holds a whiskey glass. The mood of the video is light and cheerful, as both singers smile constantly and use hand gestures and swing their arms to express happiness.
Like the lyrical content, the video features a back-and-forth style, showing the two singers while their lines switch. Adding to the animation, the two make gestures and point to each other during their lines. Additional animations include Gaga pulling Bennett's red handkerchief out of his pocket in the middle of the video, holding up the tail of her dress on multiple occasions, and moving to Bennett's microphone during her "I'm so broke" line as well as for the concluding line of "that's why this lady is a tramp." Bennett meanwhile makes his own gestures, including a-ok during his line of "Jeter's just fine." At the end of the video, Gaga kisses Bennett on the cheek and he thanks her.
Images
- On set photography by Kelsey Bennett.
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- Album and Single artworks
- Magazines
.jpg "Vimagazino Magazine Greece (Dec 4, 2011).jpg (114 KB)")
(Dec 4, 2011).jpg "Icon Mag - PH (Jul, 2013).jpg (225 KB)")
(Jul, 2013)Credits
Song
| Credit | Artist |
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| Band recording | Dae Bennett at Bennett Studios in July of 2011 (Englewood, NJ )
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| Arrangement, conductor | Marion Evans |
| Piano | Lee Musket |
| Bass | Marshall Wood |
| Drums | Harold James |
| Guitar | Gray Sargent |
| Alto saxophone | Lawrence Feldman and Dave Mann |
| Tenor saxophone | Andy Snitzer and Mark Phaneuf |
| Baritone saxophone | Ron Janelli |
| Trumpets | Tony Kadleck, Bob Millikan, John Owens and Budd Burridge |
| Tenor trombone | Mike Davis, Larry Farrell and Keith O'Quinn |
| Bass trombone | George Flynn |
| Vocals recording | Studio 1 at Avatar Studios on July 31 and September of 2011 (New York )
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| Producers | Phil Ramone with Dae Bennett |
| Engineer | Dae Bennett |
| Assistants engineer | Fernando Lodeiro and Tim Marchiafava |
| Mixing and editing | Dae Bennett at Bennett Studios (Englewood, NJ )
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| Mastering | Bob Ludwig at Gateway Mastering (Portland, ME )
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Music video
- Director — Unjoo Moon
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