Hirt was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, the son of a police officer. At the age of six, he was given his first trumpet, which had been purchased at a local pawnshop. He would play in the Junior Police Band with the children of Alcide Nunez, and by the age of 16, Hirt was playing professionally, often with his friend Pete Fountain. During this time, he was hired to play at the local horse racing track, beginning a six-decade connection to the sport.
In 1940, Hirt went to Cincinnati, Ohio, to study at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music with Dr. Frank Simon (a former soloist with the John Philip Sousa Orchestra). After a stint as a bugler in the United States Army during World War II, Hirt performed with various swing big bands, including those of Tommy Dorsey, Jimmy Dorsey, Benny Goodman, and Ina Ray Hutton.
In 1950, Hirt became first trumpet and featured soloist with Horace Heidt's Orchestra. After spending several years on the road with Heidt, Hirt returned to New Orleans working with various Dixieland groups and leading his own bands. Despite Hirt's statement years later "I'm not a jazz trumpeter and never was a jazz trumpeter", he made a few recordings where he demonstrated his ability to play in that style, during the 1950s with bandleader Monk Hazel, and a few other recordings on the local Southland Records label.
Hirt's virtuoso dexterity and fine tone on his instrument soon attracted the attention of major record labels and he signed with RCA Victor. Hirt posted twenty-two albums on the Billboard charts in the 1950s and 1960s. The albums Honey in the Horn and Cotton Candy were both in the Top 10 best sellers for 1964, the same year Hirt scored a hit single with his cover of Allen Toussaint's tune "Java" (Billboard No. 4), and later won a Grammy Award for the same recording. Both Honey in the Horn and "Java" sold over one million copies, and were awarded gold discs.
Hirt's Top 40 charted hit "Sugar Lips" in 1964 would be later used as the theme song for the NBC daytime game show Eye Guess, hosted by Bill Cullen and originally airing from January 1966 to September 1969.
Hirt was chosen to record the frenetic theme for the 1960s TV show The Green Hornet, by famed arranger and composer Billy May. Thematically reminiscent of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's Flight of the Bumblebee, it showcased Hirt's technical prowess. The recording again gained public attention in 2003 when it was used in the film Kill Bill.
From the mid-1950s to early 1960s, Hirt and his band played nightly at Dan's Pier 600 at the corner of St. Louis and Bourbon Street. The club was owned by his business manager, Dan Levy, Sr.
Al Hirt club on the corner of Bourbon Street and St Louis in the French Quarter, 1977
In 1962 Hirt opened his own club on Bourbon Street in the French Quarter, which he ran until 1983. He also became a minority owner in the NFL expansion New Orleans Saints in 1967.
In 1962, in an effort to showcase him in a different musical setting, Hirt was teamed with arranger and composer Billy May and producer Steve Sholes to record an album titled Horn A Plenty that was a departure from the Dixieland material that he was generally associated with. Covering an eclectic variety of popular, standard and show tunes, it featured a big-band supplemented by timpani, French horns and harp. He also appeared opposite Troy Donahue and Suzanne Phlesette in the 1962 motion picture, "Rome Adventure."
In 1965, he hosted the hour-long television variety series Fanfare, which aired on CBS as a summer replacement for Jackie Gleason and the American Scene Magazine.
Hirt starred along with the University of Arizona marching band at the first Super Bowl halftime show in 1967.
On February 8, 1970, while performing in a Mardi Gras parade in New Orleans, Hirt was injured while riding on a float. It is popularly believed that he was struck in the mouth by a thrown piece of concrete or brick. Factual documentation of the details of the incident is sparse, consisting primarily of claims made by Hirt after the incident. Whatever the actual cause of his injuries, Hirt underwent surgery and made a return to the club scene. This incident was parodied in a Saturday Night Live skit from their second season Mardi Gras special, the "Let's Hit Al Hirt in the Mouth with a Brick Contest".
In 1987, Hirt played a solo rendition of "Ave Maria" for Pope John Paul II's visit to New Orleans. He is referred to in the 1987 film Good Morning, Vietnam, in a broadcast made by Lieutenant Hauk (Bruno Kirby).
Hirt died of liver failure at the age of 76, after having spent the previous year in a wheelchair due to edema in his leg. He was survived by his wife, Beverly Essel Hirt, and six children from a previous marriage.
My Baby Just Cares For Me
Al Hirt Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
My baby don't care for clothes
My baby just cares for me
My baby don't care for cars and races
My baby don't care for high tone places
Elizabeth Taylor is not his style
Is something he can't see
My baby don't care who knows it
My baby just cares for me
I wonder what's wrong with baby
My baby just cares for
He just says his prayers for
My baby just cares
For me
The lyrics to "My Baby Just Cares for Me" by Al Hirt and Ann-Margret seem to express a sentiment of pure love and devotion. The verses describe how the singer's lover doesn't care about superficial things like fancy cars or high-class events, but only cares for the singer themselves. They don't care about famous people like Elizabeth Taylor or even a pretty smile if it's not connected to the singer. In the chorus, it's reiterated that the lover doesn't care who knows about their devotion; they simply care for the singer alone. The final verse portrays the singer's bewilderment with the intensity of their lover's feelings.
Overall, the song portrays a simple but beautiful ideal of love - that someone can love another person for who they are and not the things that surround them. This ideal of pure love is reflected in the upbeat and buoyant melody, keeping with the theme of an unshakable love that can withstand anything.
Line by Line Meaning
My baby don't care for shows
My significant other is not interested in going to see theatrical performances or spectacles
My baby don't care for clothes
My significant other is not particular about fashionable garments or apparel
My baby just cares for me
My significant other values and prioritizes our relationship above all else
My baby don't care for cars and races
My significant other holds no fascination towards automobiles or competitions involving speed
My baby don't care for high tone places
My significant other does not enjoy attending social gatherings or events that cater to elitism
Elizabeth Taylor is not his style
My significant other is uninterested in the iconic actress Elizabeth Taylor because her image doesn't appeal to them
And even ??? smile
People who may be deemed as attractive or have pleasant smiles don't affect my significant other's feelings or opinions
Is something he can't see
My significant other is not swayed by external factors like physical appearance and focuses solely on our connection
My baby don't care who knows it
My significant other is not keeping their love for me a secret and openly displays it to others without hesitation
My baby just cares for me
My significant other's primary and only concern is our bond together
I wonder what's wrong with baby
I am curious as to why my significant other is not interested in many common interests or popular figures
My baby just cares for
My significant other has a simple set of values and priorities
He just says his prayers for
My significant other expresses gratitude and acknowledgement for our relationship in their own unique way
My baby just cares
My significant other is truly genuine and sincere in their devotion towards our relationship
For me
My significant other devotes themselves to me above all else and is not swayed by materialistic possessions or societal standards
Lyrics © DONALDSON PUBLISHING CO, TOBAGO MUSIC COMPANY, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Gus Kahn, Walter Donaldson
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@arthurworkman4399
That wouldn't be the same Ann Margret the movie actress?????
@theCoverHeaven
She is actress, singer, and dancer.