I really can't stay, baby, it's cold outside
I've got to go away, oh darlin' it's cold outside
This evening has been, just hoping that you'd drop in
So very nice, I'll hold your hands they're just like ice
My mother will start to worry, beautiful, what's your hurry
My father will be pacing the floor, listen to that fireplace roar
So really I'd better scurry, oh beautiful, please don't hurry
Well, maybe just a half a drink more
Why don't you put some music on while I pour
The neighbors will think, baby, it's bad out there
Say, what's in this drink, there's no cabs to be had out there
I wish I knew how, your eyes are like starlight now
To break this spell, I'll take your hat, your hair looks swell
I ought to say no, sir, mind if I move in a little closer
At least I'm gonna say that I tried
Oh, what's the sense in hurting my pride
I really can't stay, baby don't hold out, ah, but it's cold outside
What are you doing with your coat
You don't need your coat
Why are you putting your coat on for
It's warm out here, you don't understand
I simply must go, baby, it's cold outside
Oh, the answer is no, oh darlin', it's cold outside
This welcome has been, lucky that you dropped in
So nice and warm, look out that window at that storm
My sister will be suspicious, please but your lips look so delicious
My brother will be there at the door, waves upon a tropical shore
My maiden aunt's mind is vicious, oh but your lips look delicious
Well, maybe just a half a drink more
They was never such a blizzard before
Ooh, I got to go home, baby, you'll freeze out there
Say, lend me your coat, it's up to your knees out there
You've really been grand, I trill when you touch my hand
But don't you see, how can you do this thing to me
There's bound to be talk tomorrow, think of my lifelong sorrow
At least there will be plenty implied, if you caught pneumonia and died
I really can't stay, get over that old out
Ah, but it's cold outside, ah, but it's cold outside
Baby, it's cold outside, baby, it's cold outside
It's cold outside, it's cold, baby, it's cold outside
You know that it's, you know that it's cold outside
Ah, it's cold outside
Darlin' as a friend, sure James
As a friend you, you must stay and, and warm up by this fire little bit
Let me get you, let me get you a hot toddy or something
Well, I really can't my mother will worry about me
People are so suspicious, it's just an innocent suggesting
You stay warm and keep yourself healthy that's all
It's nippy out there, it's cold
Oh, you know that drink does look kinda nice
It is a perfectly nice drink
Baby, it's cold out, baby, it's cold, it's warm
Baby, it's cold out, baby, it's cold outside
I've got to go away, oh darlin' it's cold outside
This evening has been, just hoping that you'd drop in
So very nice, I'll hold your hands they're just like ice
My mother will start to worry, beautiful, what's your hurry
My father will be pacing the floor, listen to that fireplace roar
So really I'd better scurry, oh beautiful, please don't hurry
Well, maybe just a half a drink more
Why don't you put some music on while I pour
The neighbors will think, baby, it's bad out there
Say, what's in this drink, there's no cabs to be had out there
I wish I knew how, your eyes are like starlight now
To break this spell, I'll take your hat, your hair looks swell
I ought to say no, sir, mind if I move in a little closer
At least I'm gonna say that I tried
Oh, what's the sense in hurting my pride
I really can't stay, baby don't hold out, ah, but it's cold outside
What are you doing with your coat
You don't need your coat
Why are you putting your coat on for
It's warm out here, you don't understand
I simply must go, baby, it's cold outside
Oh, the answer is no, oh darlin', it's cold outside
This welcome has been, lucky that you dropped in
So nice and warm, look out that window at that storm
My sister will be suspicious, please but your lips look so delicious
My brother will be there at the door, waves upon a tropical shore
My maiden aunt's mind is vicious, oh but your lips look delicious
Well, maybe just a half a drink more
They was never such a blizzard before
Ooh, I got to go home, baby, you'll freeze out there
Say, lend me your coat, it's up to your knees out there
You've really been grand, I trill when you touch my hand
But don't you see, how can you do this thing to me
There's bound to be talk tomorrow, think of my lifelong sorrow
At least there will be plenty implied, if you caught pneumonia and died
I really can't stay, get over that old out
Ah, but it's cold outside, ah, but it's cold outside
Baby, it's cold outside, baby, it's cold outside
It's cold outside, it's cold, baby, it's cold outside
You know that it's, you know that it's cold outside
Ah, it's cold outside
Darlin' as a friend, sure James
As a friend you, you must stay and, and warm up by this fire little bit
Let me get you, let me get you a hot toddy or something
Well, I really can't my mother will worry about me
People are so suspicious, it's just an innocent suggesting
You stay warm and keep yourself healthy that's all
It's nippy out there, it's cold
Oh, you know that drink does look kinda nice
It is a perfectly nice drink
Baby, it's cold out, baby, it's cold, it's warm
Baby, it's cold out, baby, it's cold outside
song info:
Verified yes
LanguageEnglish
Genre−
Rank−
Duration00:04:17
Charts
Copyright ©
Writer
Lyrics licensed byLyricFind
AddedJuly 16th, 2012
Last updatedMarch 5th, 2022
About"Baby, It's Cold Outside" is a song written by Frank Loesser in 1944.[1] It is a call and response duet in which one of the singers (usually performed by a male voice) attempts to convince a guest (usually performed by a female voice) that they should stay together for a romantic evening because the weather is cold and the trip home would be difficult.
Originally recorded for the film Neptune's Daughter, it has been recorded by many artists since its original release, including Ray Charles, Dolly Parton and Michael Bublé.
Loesser wrote the duet in 1944 and premiered the song with his wife, Lynn Garland, at their Navarro Hotel in New York housewarming party, and performed it toward the end of the evening, signifying to guests that it was nearly time to end the party. Loesser would introduce himself as the "Evil of Two Loessers", a play on the theme of the song, trying to keep the girl from leaving, and on the phrase "lesser of two evils". This was a period when the Hollywood elite's chief entertainment was throwing parties and inviting guests who were expected to perform. Garland wrote that after the first performance, "We become instant parlor room stars. We got invited to all the best parties for years on the basis of 'Baby.' It was our ticket to caviar and truffles. Parties were built around our being the closing act." Garland considered it their song and was furious when Loesser told her he was selling the song. Garland wrote, "I felt as betrayed as if I'd caught him in bed with another woman."
The lyrics in this duet are designed to be heard as a conversation between two people, identified as "mouse" (usually female) and "wolf" (usually male) on the printed score; they have returned to the wolf's home after a date, and the mouse decides it is time to go home, but the wolf flirtatiously invites the mouse to stay as it is late and "it's cold outside." The mouse wants to stay and enjoy herself, but feels obligated to return home, worried what family and neighbors will think if she stays. Every line in the song features a statement from the mouse followed by a response from the wolf, which is musically known as a call and response song.
Although some critical analyses of the song have highlighted parts of the lyrics such as "What's in this drink?" and the wolf's unrelenting pressure to stay despite the mouse's repeated suggestions that she should go home, others noted that cultural expectations of the time period were such that women were not socially permitted to spend the night with a boyfriend or fiancé, and that the mouse states that she wants to stay, while "What's in this drink?" was a common idiom of the period used to rebuke social expectations by blaming one's actions on the influence of alcohol.
In 1948, after years of informally performing the song at various parties, Loesser sold the rights to MGM, which inserted the song into its 1949 motion picture, Neptune's Daughter. The film featured two performances of the song: one by Ricardo Montalbán and Esther Williams and the other by Red Skelton and Betty Garrett, the second of which has the roles of wolf and mouse reversed. These performances earned Loesser an Academy Award for Best Original Song.
In at least one published version the tempo of the song is given as "Loesserando", a humorous reference to the composer's name.
Originally recorded for the film Neptune's Daughter, it has been recorded by many artists since its original release, including Ray Charles, Dolly Parton and Michael Bublé.
Loesser wrote the duet in 1944 and premiered the song with his wife, Lynn Garland, at their Navarro Hotel in New York housewarming party, and performed it toward the end of the evening, signifying to guests that it was nearly time to end the party. Loesser would introduce himself as the "Evil of Two Loessers", a play on the theme of the song, trying to keep the girl from leaving, and on the phrase "lesser of two evils". This was a period when the Hollywood elite's chief entertainment was throwing parties and inviting guests who were expected to perform. Garland wrote that after the first performance, "We become instant parlor room stars. We got invited to all the best parties for years on the basis of 'Baby.' It was our ticket to caviar and truffles. Parties were built around our being the closing act." Garland considered it their song and was furious when Loesser told her he was selling the song. Garland wrote, "I felt as betrayed as if I'd caught him in bed with another woman."
The lyrics in this duet are designed to be heard as a conversation between two people, identified as "mouse" (usually female) and "wolf" (usually male) on the printed score; they have returned to the wolf's home after a date, and the mouse decides it is time to go home, but the wolf flirtatiously invites the mouse to stay as it is late and "it's cold outside." The mouse wants to stay and enjoy herself, but feels obligated to return home, worried what family and neighbors will think if she stays. Every line in the song features a statement from the mouse followed by a response from the wolf, which is musically known as a call and response song.
Although some critical analyses of the song have highlighted parts of the lyrics such as "What's in this drink?" and the wolf's unrelenting pressure to stay despite the mouse's repeated suggestions that she should go home, others noted that cultural expectations of the time period were such that women were not socially permitted to spend the night with a boyfriend or fiancé, and that the mouse states that she wants to stay, while "What's in this drink?" was a common idiom of the period used to rebuke social expectations by blaming one's actions on the influence of alcohol.
In 1948, after years of informally performing the song at various parties, Loesser sold the rights to MGM, which inserted the song into its 1949 motion picture, Neptune's Daughter. The film featured two performances of the song: one by Ricardo Montalbán and Esther Williams and the other by Red Skelton and Betty Garrett, the second of which has the roles of wolf and mouse reversed. These performances earned Loesser an Academy Award for Best Original Song.
In at least one published version the tempo of the song is given as "Loesserando", a humorous reference to the composer's name.