George Gershwin different musical styles in revolutionary ways. Since the early 1920s, Gershwin frequently worked with the lyricist Buddy DeSylva. Together they created the experimental one-act jazz opera "Blue Monday," set in Harlem. It is widely regarded as a forerunner to the groundbreaking "Porgy and Bess". In 1924, George and Ira Gershwin collaborated on a stage musical comedy "Lady Be Good", which included such future standards as "Fascinating Rhythm" and "Oh, Lady Be Good!". They followed this with "Oh, Kay!" (1926), "Funny Face" (1927) and "Strike Up the Band" (1927 and 1930). Gershwin allowed the song, with a modified title, to UCLA
So Near and yet So Far a Latin beat and an English-language lyric" that was a "U.S. consumer-friendly approximation" of an Afro-Cuban rumba. Theorist Gustavo Perez Firmat discussed "So Near and Yet So Far" in his book "The Havana Habit" and described it as "the most elegant rumba ever captured on film". So Near and yet So Far "So Near and yet So Far" is a song written by Cole Porter, for the 1941 film "You'll Never Get Rich", where it was introduced by Fred Astaire, and accompanied a dance with Astaire and Rita Hayworth, choreographed by Robert Alton. Astaire and Hayworth's performance was significant as