He first performed in a children's choir at his local Presbyterian church. Williams and his three older brothers Bob, Dick, and Don, formed a quartet, the Williams Brothers, in the late 1930s. The brothers performed on radio in the Midwest, first at WHO in Des Moines, Iowa, and later at WLS in Chicago and WLW in Cincinnati. Williams graduated from Western Hills High School in Cincinnati. They appeared with Bing Crosby on the hit record "Swinging on a Star" (1944). This led to a nightclub act with entertainer Kay Thompson from 1947 to 1951.
Williams's solo career began in 1952 after his brothers left the act. He recorded six sides for RCA's label "X," but none of them were popular hits. After landing a spot as a regular on Steve Allen's Tonight Show in 1955, he was signed to a recording contract with Cadence Records, a small label in New York run by conductor Archie Bleyer. His third single, "Canadian Sunset" (1956) hit the Top Ten, and was soon followed his only Billboard #1 hit, "Butterfly" (a cover of a Charlie Gracie record on which Williams imitated Elvis Presley). More hits followed, including "The Hawaiian Wedding Song," "Are You Sincere," "The Village of St. Bernadette," and "Lonely Street," before Williams moved to Columbia Records in 1961, having moved from New York to Los Angeles. In terms of chart popularity, the Cadence era was Williams's peak although songs he introduced on Columbia became much bigger standards. Two top ten hits from the Cadence era, "Butterfly" and "I Like Your Kind of Love" were apparently believed to not suit Williams's later style; they were not included on a Columbia reissue of his Cadence greatest hits in the 1960s.
During the 1960s, Williams became one of the most popular vocalists in the country and signed what was to that time the biggest recording contract in history. He was primarily an album artist, and at one time he had earned more gold albums than any solo performer except Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley. By 1973 he had earned as many as 17 gold album awards. Among his hit albums from this period were Moon River, Days of Wine and Roses (number one for 16 weeks in mid-1963), The Andy Williams Christmas Album, Dear Heart, The Shadow of Your Smile, Love, Andy, Get Together with Andy Williams, and Love Story. In these recordings Williams displays an incredible vocal technique along with an uncanny ability to make each song his very own, often rivaling or surpassing the version by the original artist. These attributes, along with his natural affinity for the music of the 1960s and early 1970s, combined to make him one of the premier easy listening singers of that era.
Williams forged an indirect collaborative relationship with Henry Mancini, although they never recorded together. Williams was asked to sing Mancini and Johnny Mercer's song "Moon River" at the 1962 Oscar Awards (where it won), and it quickly became Williams's theme song. This was repeated the next year with the pair's "Days of Wine and Roses" (which also won), Mancini's "Dear Heart" at the 1965 awards and "The Sweetheart Tree" (also written with Mercer) at the 1966 awards.
Williams also competed in the teenage-oriented singles market as well and had several charting hits including "Can't Get Used to Losing You," "Happy Heart," and "Where Do I Begin", the theme song from the 1970 blockbuster film, Love Story. Building on his experience with Allen and some short-term variety shows in the 1950s, he became the star of his own weekly television variety show in 1962. This series, The Andy Williams Show, won three Emmy Awards for outstanding variety program. Among his series regulars were the Osmond Brothers. He gave up the variety show in 1971 while it was still popular and retrenched to three specials per year. His Christmas specials, which appeared regularly until 1974 and intermittently from 1982 into the 1990s, were among the most popular of the genre. Williams has recorded eight Christmas albums over the years. He hosted the Grammy Awards for three consecutive years in the 1970s. He returned to television to do a syndicated half-hour series in 1976-77.
In the early 1990s, Williams gave up most of his touring schedule in order to open his own theatre in Branson, Missouri, the Andy Williams Moon River Theater. He continues to do 8 to 12 shows a week from September to December and occasionally makes tours of Europe earlier in the year.
His 1967 recording of "Music to Watch Girls By" was a surprise UK hit in 1999, when it reached number 9 after featuring in an advert (beating the original peak of number 33 in 1967). In 2002 he took part in a new duet of "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" with British actress and singer Denise van Outen. Nearly everything Williams ever recorded has now been made available on CD through a series of compilations from 1997 to 2004.
Williams met Claudine Longet when he pulled over to aid her on a Las Vegas road. She was a dancer at the time at the Folies Bergere. They married on Christmas Day, 1961, and had three children, Noelle, Christian, and Robert. They separated in 1969 and finally divorced 6 years later. In 1976 Longet was charged with fatally shooting her boyfriend, skier Vladimir "Spider" Sabich and Williams supported her. He married a second time in May 1991 to the former Debbie Haas. They make their homes at Branson, Missouri and La Quinta, California. Williams' homes have been featured in Architectural Digest, and he is a noted collector of modern art. Williams is an avid golfer. He hosted a major golf tournament in San Diego for many years, which was known as the Andy Williams San Diego Open during that time.
Williams' birthplace is a tourist attraction open most of the year.
My Cherie Amour
Andy Williams Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
My cherie amour, lovely as a summer day
My cherie amour, distant as the milky way
My cherie amour, pretty little one that I adore
You're the only girl my heart beats for
How I wish that you were mine
In a cafe or sometimes on a crowded street
I've been near you, but you never noticed me
That behind that little smile I wore
How I wish that you were mine
La la la la la la, la la la la la la
La la la la la la, la la la la la la
Maybe someday, you'll see my face amoung the crowd
Maybe someday, I'll share your little distant cloud
Oh, cherie amour, pretty little one that I adore
You're the only girl my heart beats for
How I wish that you were mine
La la la la la la, la la la la la la
La la la la la la, la la la la la la
The song "My Cherie Amour" by Andy Williams was written by the famous trio of Stevie Wonder, Sylvia Moy, and Henry Cosby. The song is a beautiful love ballad that exhibits the pain of unrequited love. The song is about a man who is in love with a beautiful girl, but she is so distant from him that he feels as far away as the Milky Way. The lyrics express his desire to be with her and how she is the only girl in the world that he loves. He wishes he could be with her, but she has not yet noticed him.
The first verse of the song talks about how his cherie amour is lovely as a summer day and pretty. But, even though he has been near her in a cafe or a crowded street, she has never noticed him. The second verse of the song is more hopeful as he says that maybe someday she will notice him and they will have a future together. He repeats the chorus, wishing that she was his.
Line by Line Meaning
La la la la la la, la la la la la la
The repetition of this phrase establishes the rhythm and melody of the song, creating a light and romantic tone.
My cherie amour, lovely as a summer day
The singer is comparing their love interest to a beautiful, warm summer day, expressing their adoration and affection.
My cherie amour, distant as the milky way
Despite their love for this person, the singer feels a sense of distance or separation between them, which they compare to the vast expanse of the milky way galaxy.
My cherie amour, pretty little one that I adore
The artist expresses their fondness and admiration for their love interest, highlighting their affectionate nickname for them: 'cherie amour'.
You're the only girl my heart beats for
The artist emphasizes the intensity and exclusivity of their feelings, conveying that this person is the only one their heart desires.
How I wish that you were mine
The singer expresses their longing and yearning for the love interest to return their affections and become theirs.
In a cafe or sometimes on a crowded street
The singer imagines various scenarios where they might encounter their love interest, emphasizing their frequent thoughts of them and desire to be around them.
I've been near you, but you never noticed me
The artist reveals their proximity to the love interest, suggesting that they may have seen them before but not received any reciprocal attention or notice.
My cherie amour, won't you tell me how could you ignore
The artist addresses their love interest directly, expressing confusion and disappointment at the lack of reciprocal attention and interest.
That behind that little smile I wore
The artist suggests that even though they may have been smiling, they were masking their true feelings of love and longing for the love interest.
How I wish that you were mine
The refrain of this line symbolizes the singer's ongoing desire and unrequited love for the person addressed in the song.
Maybe someday, you'll see my face among the crowd
The artist adopts a hopeful tone, imagining a future where their love interest will finally recognize and reciprocate their feelings.
Maybe someday, I'll share your little distant cloud
The singer suggests that they hope to become closer to their love interest, sharing in their world and overcoming the distance that has kept them apart.
Oh, cherie amour, pretty little one that I adore
The refrain reinforces the singer's affection and love for the person addressed in the song, using their nickname 'cherie amour' to emphasize their adoration.
You're the only girl my heart beats for
The singer reiterates the intensity and exclusivity of their love, emphasizing that this person is the only one who matters.
How I wish that you were mine
The final line of the song restates the core theme of the artist's unrequited love and longing, bringing the song to a poignant and wistful close.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: HENRY COSBY, STEVIE WONDER, SYLVIA MOY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind