| Composer | Harold Arlen |
| Lyricist | Ira Gershwih |
| Year Written | 1954 |
About This Song
“The Man That Got Away” was written for the 1954 film A Star is Born. Judy Garland introduced it in the film and sang it at her concerts. One could say she owned that song.
View the lyrics
The night is bitter
The stars have lost their glitter
The winds grow colder
And suddenly you’re older
And all because
Of the man
That got away
No more his eager call
The writing’s on the wall
The dreams you dreamed have all
Gone astray
The man that won you
Has run off and undone you
That great beginning
Has seen its final inning
Don’t know what happened
It’s all a crazy game
No more that all time thrill
For you’ve been through the mill
And never a new love will
Be the same
Good riddance, good-bye
Every trick of his you’re on to
But fools will be fools
And where’s he gone to
The road gets rougher
It’s lonelier and tougher
With hope you burn up
Tomorrow he may turn up
There’s just no let up
The live long night and day
Ever since this world began
There is nothing sadder than
A one-man woman
Looking for the man
That got away
The man that got away
Recordings
1959
Tony Bennett and Ralph Sharon recorded “The Man That Got Away” on October 28, 1959.
CO 63851
Release History
| 1961 | Columbia LP 12″: CS 8242 — Tony Sings For Two |
| 1961 | Columbia LP 12″ (Mono): CL 1446 — Tony Sings For Two |
| 1961 | Philips LP 12″ (Mono): BBL 7479 — Tony Sings For Two |
| 1991 | Columbia CD: C4K 46843 — Forty Years – The Artistry Of Tony Bennett |
| 1993 | CBS/Sony CD: SRCS-6641 — Forty Years: The Artistry Of Tony Bennett (1993) |
| 1995 | Sony Music CD: SMSP A 8242 — Tony Sings For Two |
| 2004 | Columbia/Legacy CD: C5K 92784 — Fifty Years: The Artistry of Tony Bennett |
| 2006 | RPM/Columbia/Legacy CD: 82876 87234 — Tony Sings For Two |
| 2011 | Columbia: The Complete Collection — Disc 19 — Tony Sings For Two |
| 2013 | Columbia: Sixty Years — The Artistry of Tony Bennett |