Macavity
Cats: Highlights from the Motion Picture Soundtrack | 2019
Table of Contents
Background and Lyrical Theme
Context
Putting the cats under his hypnotic spell, Macavity has his hench-cats kidnap Old Deuteronomy, before disappearing once more. The other cats either chase after them or go into hiding, in all directions, until only Demeter and Bombalurina remain on-stage. Demeter starts recounting what she knows about Macavity. Bombalurina watches intently before joining in with a more down-to-earth perspective; while Demeter accuses him of grave and fantastical crimes such as jewel thefts, Bombalurina relates more mundane problems like missing milk and broken glass. Eventually, most of the female cats return to the stage and join them in singing about Macavity.
Lyrical Theme
Lyrics
[Verse 1: Taylor Swift]
Macavity’s a mystery cat, he’s called the Hiddenpaw
For he’s the master criminal who can defy the law
He’s the bafflement of Scotland Yard, the Flying Squad’s despair
For when they reach the scene of crime, Macavity’s not there
[Chorus: Taylor Swift]
Macavity, Macavity, there’s no one like Macavity
He’s broken every human law, he breaks the law of gravity
His powers of levitation would make a fakir stare
But when they reach the scene of crime, Macavity’s not there
[Verse 2: Taylor Swift]
Macavity’s a ginger cat, he’s very tall and thin
You would know him if you saw him for his eyes are sunken in
His brow is deeply lined with thought, his head is highly domed
His coat is dusty from neglect, his whiskers are uncombed
He sways his head from side to side, with movements like a snake
And when you think he’s half asleep, he’s always wide awake
[Chorus: Taylor Swift]
Macavity, Macavity, there’s no one like Macavity
For he’s a fiend in feline shape, a monster of depravity
You may meet him in a by-street, you may see him in the square
But when a crime’s discovered, then Macavity’s not there
[Bridge: Taylor Swift]
He’s outwardly respectable, I know, he cheats at cards
And his footprints are not found in any files of Scotland Yard’s
And when the larder’s looted and the jewel case is rifled
Or when the milk is missing or another peke’s been stifled
Or the greenhouse glass is broken and the trellis past repair
There’s the wonder of the thing, Macavity’s not there
[Chorus: Taylor Swift, Idris Elba & Both]
Macavity, Macavity, there’s no one like Macavity
There never was a cat of such deceitfulness and suavity
He always has an alibi, and one or two to spare
What ever time the deed took place, Macavity wasn’t there
And they say that all the cats whose wicked deeds are widely known
I might mention Mungojerrie, Rumpleteazer, Griddlebone
Are nothing more than agents for the cat who all the time
Just controls the operations, the Napoleon of Crime
Macavity, Macavity, there’s no one like Macavity
He’s a fiend in feline shape, a monster of depravity
You may meet him in a by-street, you may see him in the square
But when a crime’s discovered, then Macavity, Macavity
Macavity, Macavity
[Outro: Idris Elba, Taylor Swift]
When a crime’s discovered, then
Macavity’s not there
| Artist | Various Artists |
|---|---|
| Features | Taylor Swift Idris Elba |
| Released | Decmber 20, 2019 |
| Genre | Soundtrack Show Tune |
| Length | 5:11 |
| Label | Polydor Republic Records |
| Songwriters | T.S. Eliot Andrew Lloyd Webber |
| Producers | Tom Hooper Nile Rodgers David Wilson |
