America (West Side Story song) America (West Side Story song) “America” is a song from the musical "West Side Story". Stephen Sondheim wrote the lyrics and Leonard Bernstein composed the music. In the original stage version, Anita – the most important female character after Maria and the girlfriend of Bernardo, the leader of the Sharks – praises America while a fellow Puerto Rican immigrant, Rosalia, supports Puerto Rico. This version of the song deprecates the island and highlights the positive qualities of American life ("I’ll drive a Buick through San Juan/If there’s a road you can drive on"). The irony of this supposedly pro-American number,
Somewhere in the Night (song) Somewhere in the Night (song) "Somewhere in the Night" is a ballad written by Richard Kerr and lyricist Will Jennings which was a US Top 20 hit for both Helen Reddy and Barry Manilow. The first song composed by Kerr and Jennings as a team, "Somewhere in the Night" appeared on four 1975 album releases: "You Are a Song" by Batdorf & Rodney, "Rising Sun" by Yvonne Elliman, "No Way to Treat a Lady" by Helen Reddy released July 1975 and Kim Carnes' November 1975 eponymous album release. The Yvonne Elliman version was released as a single in August 1975