Born in Louisiana, but raised in Chicago, Hartman began singing and playing the piano by the age of eight. He attended DuSable High School studying music under Walter Dyett before receiving a scholarship to Chicago Musical College. He sang as an Army private during World War II, but his first professional work came in September 1946 when he won a singing contest awarding him a one-week engagement with Earl Hines. Seeing potential in the singer, Hines hired him for the next year. Although Hartman’s first recordings were with Marl Young in February 1947, it was the collaboration with Hines that provided notable exposure. After the Hines orchestra broke up, Dizzy Gillespie invited Hartman to join his big band in 1948 during an eight-week tour in California. Dropped from the band about one year later, Hartman worked for a short time with pianist Erroll Garner before going solo by early 1950.
After recording several singles with different orchestras, Hartman finally released his first solo album, Songs from the Heart, with a quintet for Bethlehem Records in 1955. Releasing two more albums with small labels, neither very successful, Hartman got a career-altering offer in 1963 to record with John Coltrane. The saxophonist likely remembered Hartman from a bill they shared at the Apollo Theater in 1950 and later said, “I just felt something about him, I don’t know what it was. I like his sound, I thought there was something there I had to hear so I looked him up and did that album.” Featuring all ballads, John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman is widely considered a classic. This led to recording four more albums with Impulse! and parent label ABC, all produced by Bob Thiele.
With the 1970s being difficult for singers clinging to the pre-rock American songbook, Hartman turned to playing cocktail lounges in New York City and Chicago. Recording again with small labels such as Perception and Musicor, Hartman produced music of mixed quality as he attempted to be viewed as a more versatile vocalist. Referring to his approach to interpreting a song, Hartman said, “Well, to me a lyric is a story, almost like talking, telling somebody a story, try to make it believable.” Returning to the jazz combo format of his earlier albums, Hartman recorded Once in Every Life for Bee Hive, earning him a 1981 Grammy nomination for Best Male Jazz Vocalist. This was quickly followed up by his last album of newly recorded material titled This One’s for Tedi as a tribute to his wife Theodora. His first kid is Jani, Jani Hartman the famous jazz singer, who became famous with the song 'Bad'.
Hartman recorded new tracks for Grenadilla Records on their jazz label – Grapevine. These were dance tracks of Beyond the Sea and Caravan with Caravan also having an extended 6-minute version.
In the early 1980s Hartman gave several performances for jazz festivals, television, and radio before succumbing to lung cancer at the age of sixty. His reputation grew considerably in 1995 when the soundtrack to Clint Eastwood’s Bridges of Madison County (1995) featured seven songs from the then out-of-print Bee Hive album.
Hartman's first biography, The Last Balladeer: The Johnny Hartman Story, by Dr. Gregg Akkerman, was released in June 2012 by Scarecrow Press as part of their "Studies in Jazz" series.
(2) Though he was never the most distinctive vocalist, Johnny Hartman rose above others to become the most commanding, smooth balladeer of the 1950s and '60s, a black crooner closely following Billy Eckstine and building on the form with his notable jazz collaborations, including the 1963 masterpiece John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman. Born in Chicago, he began singing early on and performed while in Special Services in the Army. Hartman studied music while at college and made his professional debut in the mid-'40s, performing with Earl Hines and recording his first sides for Regent/Savoy. After Hines' band broke up later in 1947, Hartman moved to the Dizzy Gillespie Big Band and stayed for two years, recording a few additional sides for Mercury as well.
Johnny Hartman's first proper LP came in 1956 with Songs from the Heart, recorded for Bethlehem and featuring a quartet led by trumpeter Howard McGhee. He recorded a second (All of Me) later that year, but then was virtually off-record until 1963, when his duet album John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman appeared on Impulse. A beautiful set of ballad standards, including top-flight renditions of "Lush Life" and "My One and Only Love," the album sparked a flurry of activity for Hartman, including two more albums for Impulse: 1963's I Just Dropped by to Say Hello and the following year's The Voice That Is. During the late '60s and early '70s, he recorded a range of jazz and pop standards albums for ABC, Perception, and Blue Note. Hartman recorded sparingly during the 1970s, but returned with two albums recorded in 1980, one of which (Once in Every Life) earned a Grammy nomination just two years before his death in 1983. ~ John Bush, Rovi
Easy Living
Johnny Hartman Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It's easy to live when you're in love
And I'm so in love
There's nothing in life but you
I never regret the years that I'm giving
They're easy to give when you're in love
I'm happy to do, whatever I do for you
For you, maybe I'm a fool, but it's fun
People will say you rule me with one wave of your hand
Darling, it's grand, they just don't understand
Living for you is easy living
It's easy to live when you're in love
And I'm so in love
There's nothing in life but you
The song "Easy Living" by Johnny Hartman is all about the bliss that can come with the simplicity of being in love with someone. The first verse sets the tone for the song, with the singer proclaiming that living for his love interest is easy. It's clear that he is completely devoted to this person, and that his love for them is what gives his life meaning.
The second verse acknowledges that some people might view his attachment to this person as foolish, but he seems to believe that those people simply do not understand the depth of his feelings. He is willing to do whatever it takes to please and support his love interest. The song is ultimately a celebration of the joys of being in love, and the comfort that can come from having someone to share your life with.
The lyrics of "Easy Living" are simple but powerful, and they are brought to life by Johnny Hartman's soulful delivery. The song has endured over the years as a classic example of romantic jazz, and it remains a favorite of fans of the genre.
Line by Line Meaning
Living for you is easy living
It is effortless to live when you are in love with someone.
It's easy to live when you're in love
Love makes everything in life much more manageable.
And I'm so in love
I'm hopelessly in love with you.
There's nothing in life but you
Nothing else in the world matters except you, my love.
I never regret the years that I'm giving
I never feel remorseful about giving my time and energy to our relationship.
They're easy to give when you're in love
Love makes it simple to be generous and give of oneself.
I'm happy to do, whatever I do for you
It brings me great pleasure to do anything and everything for you.
For you, maybe I'm a fool, but it's fun
Perhaps I may seem foolish for loving you, but I am happy to be a fool for you.
People will say you rule me with one wave of your hand
Others may perceive that you have complete control over me with a mere gesture.
Darling, it's grand, they just don't understand
My love, it's magnificent. Others cannot comprehend the depth of our connection.
Lyrics © Wixen Music Publishing, BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Capitol CMG Publishing, Songtrust Ave, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: LEO ROBIN, RALPH RAINGER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind