Tonight’s song has only a double bass, finger clicks and a voice. And yet it is one of the most famous recordings in the world.
Learn from Songs · Unit 9: Conditionals · B1
Fever
One of the coolest songs ever recorded, about a love so hot it gives you a fever: the zero conditional for things that always happen (When you kiss me, I get a fever; if you heat water, it boils), if or when, and the imperative in conditionals (If you feel ill, stay in bed), with Philo, Sophia, Marcos and Demetria.
SOPHIA
DEMETRIA
Only finger clicks?
SOPHIA
And it’s about a fever: not an illness, but love. Every time he holds her, she gets a fever. Listen for “when” and “if”.
PHILO
When it always happens: the zero conditional.
Before you listen: the song
Los Angeles, 1958
“Fever” was first recorded in 1956 by the young R&B singer Little Willie John, and it was a hit. It was written by Eddie Cooley and “John Davenport”, a false name used by the songwriter Otis Blackwell.
In 1958, the jazz singer Peggy Lee recorded it with almost nothing: a double bass, drums played very softly, and finger clicks. She also wrote new verses herself, about famous couples in history: Romeo and Juliet, and Captain Smith and Pocahontas. Her version became the most famous one.
In the song, every time the singer is with the one she loves, she gets a fever. When he holds her, she burns. It happens every time: it is a law of nature, like fire.
If you heat water, it boils.
Listen: the fever
PHILO
Listen once. What happens when he holds her? Which famous couples does she sing about?
SOPHIA
Then answer Section A. Count the finger clicks!
🔥 Listen to the song: “Fever” (Eddie Cooley and John Davenport, 1956), sung by Peggy Lee.Find the recording →
📜 Read the words while you listen: “Fever”, Peggy Lee.Read the lyrics →
The zero conditional
MARCOS
When you kiss me, I get a fever. If you heat water, it boils.
SOPHIA
If / When + present simple, present simple for things that are always true: facts, science, habits, rules. If you mix blue and yellow, you get green.
If or when?
DEMETRIA
When the sun goes down, it gets cold. (always) If it rains, the streets flood. (only sometimes)
SOPHIA
In the zero conditional, if and when are often almost the same. when = it always happens; if = it happens only in that case.
Zero conditional with the imperative
PHILO
If you have a fever, stay in bed. If it gets worse, call the doctor.
SOPHIA
For advice and instructions: If + present simple, imperative. Very common in instructions and medical advice.
Sophia’s comparison: Sappho’s fire
SOPHIA
Sappho wrote that when she sees the one she loves, a thin fire runs under her skin, her eyes can’t see and her ears ring. Love as a fever, six hundred years ago!
PHILO
And in the Song of Songs, love’s flames are flames of fire, a very flame of the Lord.
MARCOS
So poets have always had a temperature.
Sophia’s summary
| Words and forms | Use | Example |
|---|---|---|
| If / When + present simple, present simple | zero conditional: always true | When you kiss me, I get a fever. |
| If you heat water, it boils | facts and science | If you mix blue and yellow, you get green. |
| when = always, if = only in that case | if or when | If it rains, the streets flood. |
| If + present simple, imperative | advice and instructions | If you have a fever, stay in bed. |
| unless = if not | negative condition | Unless you rest, you don’t get better. |
Practice
Listen to the song for Section A, then do the rest. Press “Check my answers” at the end. You can try again as many times as you like.
A · Listen: the song
Listen to the song and choose the best answer.
1. What happens when he holds her?
2. Which famous couple does she sing about?
3. Who sang it first?
4. What instruments can you hear in Peggy Lee’s version?
5. Who wrote the new verses?
6. What was “John Davenport”?
B · Grammar and vocabulary
Write the missing word or words.
7. When you kiss me, I a fever. (get)
8. If you heat water, it . (boil)
9. If you have a fever, in bed. (stay: advice)
10. If it , the streets flood. (rain)
11. If you mix blue and yellow, you green.
12. I tell you, you rest, you don’t get better. (if not)
C · Right or wrong?
Is the sentence correct English?
13. “If you will heat ice, it melts.”
14. “When the sun goes down, it gets cold.”
15. “If you feel ill, you stay in bed!” (advice)
16. “If you don’t water plants, they die.”
Talk and write
Discussion and writing
Rules of life. Write five zero conditionals that are true for you: If I don’t sleep, I get grumpy. When I hear this song, I want to dance.
Discuss. 1. Why do you think such a simple recording became so famous? 2. Which old love stories do you know? 3. Is love like a fever?
Write (100–120 words). Instructions. Write advice for someone with a cold or a fever, or for someone in love, using if, when, unless and the imperative.
Now play the gamebook: a high fever, and a long night.Play the gamebook →