Gather around
I've got a story to tell
About a Manhattan lady
that I know very well
she lives at 5 Riverside
Her name is Shirley
Devore
And she travelled
'round the world to meet
the guy next door
Well there was trouble
inside apartment 29 E
'Cause Shirley's mother
and dad were as upset
as could be
They said we hate to
complain dear and we
don't like to grouse
But you're nearly 32
you should get out
of the house
You gotta ring them bells
you gotta ring them bells
you gotta make 'em sing
and really ring them bells
It's such a happy thing
to hear 'em ting-a-ling
you gotta ring them bells
Well Shirley was 31
which she was loathe
to admit
And she had never been
loved which didn't
thrill her a bit
And so she sat and she
thought she thought
for hours on end
And said I'll go to
Chase Manhattan
where I got me a friend
And so she borrowed a
thou' and called TWA
And told her mother
and dad that she was
up and away
I'm gonna travel the
continent a month
maybe two
And haul me home
a hus' if it's the
last thing I do
You gotta ring them bells
you gotta ring them bells
you gotta make 'em sing
and really ring them bells
It's such a happy thing
to hear 'em ting-a-ling
you gotta ring them bells
She met a Londoner first
but they did not hit it off
'Cause every time she
approached he got a
bronchial cough
And so she went to
Madrid and met a
handsome Senior
But he liked to throw
the bull and he was
no matador
She also bombed out
in Brussells
in Mallorca and Rome
'Til someone said
try Dubrovnik dear
before you go home
'Cause it's the kind of a
town where you'll be
likely to fall
And all the Toni
Cognoscenti find
the Balkans a ball
Darling you really
must I mean if you
have it you have
got to
Ring them bells you
gotta ring them bells
you gotta make 'em sing
and really ring them bells
It's such a happy thing
to hear 'em ting-a-ling
you gotta ring them bells
And so she went to
Dubruvnik and the
very first day
She met a guy on
the beach who
took her reason away
Yes it was love at first
sight and quite a
beautiful scene
She said my name
is Shirl Devore he said
I'm Norm Saperstein
She said are you from
New York he said well
that can't be denied
I've got a swell junior
three at number 5
Riverside
As if that wasn't enough
for Shirley thought
she'd gone deaf
When he told her his
apartment there
was 29 F
Yes she was 'E'
he was 'F' and they
had not even met
Until she travelled the
world to Yugoslavia yet
He'd always been right
next door and she would
never have known
If she hadn't tried
Dubrovnik she might
still be alone
Well there's a moral
to learn from little
Shirley Devore
Who had to borrow
a thou' to find a
lover next door
You girls who live in
apartments don't just
stare at the wall
Open up the door
and hurry out
in the hall
And
ring them bells
come on come on
ring them bells
Make 'em sing
you'd better ring
those bells
It's such a happy thing
to hear 'em ting-a-ling
you gotta swing them
Ring them
swing them
ring them bells