All's Fair In Love And War

Written for: Gold Diggers Of 1937 (1936)
Performer: Dick Powell, Joan Blondell, Lee Dixon, Rosalind Marquis & Studio Chorus
Lyric: Al Dubin
Music: Harry Warren
Year: 1936
Original publisher: Harms, Inc.

Verse:

The soldiers of the world can conquer you with powder and with steel,
The women of the world can do the same with charm and sex appeal.
A soldier must be patriotic,
A woman's got to be exotic.
A kiss is deadly as the cannon's roar,
In fact I fear it more than warfare;

Chorus 1:

The battlefield's a rocking chair,
Look out, look out, for all is fair in love and war.
Just like a bombshell from the air,
A kiss can blow you up beware of love and war.
Two arms can squeeze you senseless,
You're defenseless in the dark.
Two eyes, two brown or blue eyes,
If they invite you,
They'll dynamite you.
And with your back against the wall,
She marches you to City Hall
And leads you through the door;
And then the deed is done,
Her victory is won,
For love is just like war.

Chorus 2 (from movie):

There's danger in a baby stare,
Look out, look out, for all is fair in love and war.
A smile may be the camouflage
That comes before the big barrage in love and war.
Drilling can be so thrilling
If you're willing to obey.
'Round you, her arms surround you,
Though you may maneuver,
You'll never move her.
If you escape a rocking-chair
Then you deserve a Croix de Guerre
Or two or three or four.
And after you've been kissed,
I know that you'll enlist,
For love is just like war.

Chorus 3 (from movie):

(Blondell, half spoken:) If I could snare some millionaire,
I'd have a lovely love affair,
For he's the kind of man I could adore (Perhaps.)
I wouldn't care if he's a wreck
As long as he could sign a check,
And keep the wolf away from my front door (Or am I too brutal? Maybe.)
I'd be willing to take my chances,
If his finances are okay (I'd make him pay!)
I'd encourage his bold advances,
And if he got reckless,
I'd get a necklace (Diamonds and things!)
A nice old man with lots of wealth
Who isn't in the best of health,
And who could ask for more? (See what I mean?)
A sudden love attack
And I'd have all his jack,
For love is just like war.