The Music Of The Marx Brothers

One hundred years ago this month, the vaudeville performers Julius, Leonard, and Arthur Marx sat down at a poker table. A few hours later, they stood, having been given new names that would stick with them -- and make them famous -- even a century later. Groucho, Chico, and Harpo Marx -- The Marx Brothers -- are now comedy legends, and are being celebrated this month in New York City, the city of their birth. Marx Fest features screenings of their classic films like Duck Soup, walking tours of their haunts, and talks with historians, comedians, and even the Brothers' long-time disciple, Dick Cavett.

And on Friday, May 9, there's even an evening dedicated to The Music of the Marx Brothers. Two of the musicians featured in the lineup, songwriter Bill Zeffiro and singer Tonna Miller, talk with Soundcheck host John Schaefer about the show which highlights both the Marx's comedic and non-comedic material. There's plenty of each, given that the films in particular hewed to the Hollywood fashions of the day, including soaring (and cheesy) romantic numbers, coupled with Groucho's vaudevillian showstoppers like "Lydia The Tattoo'd Lady," and his brothers' dazzling piano and harp interludes.

Groucho Marx sings "Hello, I Must Be Going" from Animal Crackers:

Chico Marx plays piano in A Night At The Opera:

Harpo Marx plays the harp in A Night At The Opera: