FAUX PAS IN BLUE

A long time ago my fortune found me
Playing piano in a nightclub or two,

Working part-time in the middle thirties --
One night I attempted Rhapsody in Blue,

A youngish-looking fellow had his eye on me,
Then I sensed his presence at my side,

He listened intently to my studied rendition,
Then he softly whispered an aside,

"Aren't you doing it a little slowly?"
Was the critique -- I guess it was my first one,

"I really wouldn't have mentioned it
Except that I am George Gershwin."

by D. Edgar Murray 07/02/2000.