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.
People Will Say We
Andy Williams Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Don't please my folks too much
Don't laugh at my jokes too much
People will say we're in love
Don't sigh and gaze at me
Your sighs are so like mine
And your eyes mustn't glow like mine
Don't start collecting things
Give me my rose and my glove
Well, sweetheart, they're suspecting things
People will say we're in love
The song "People Will Say We're in Love" by Andy Williams is a classic composition that delves into the topic of societal judgment regarding personal relationships. The lyrics are based on the two characters, Curly and Laurey, from the 1943 Broadway musical "Oklahoma!" by composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II.
The song's lyrics advise against showing too much affection in public, avoiding laughing and sighing too much, and not displaying overly loving eyes. These warnings are rooted in the fear of society's judgments and criticisms. The lyrics explain that even slight behavior changes might spark suspicions about the two individuals' relationship. The song’s underlying message is not to allow others' opinions to influence their personal connections.
The song is delivered with a playful tone that contrasts with the serious nature of the lyrics. Williams's rendition of the song showcases his exceptional vocal range, and his melancholic tone perfectly captures the essence of the song. This song has become a memorable classic within the Great American Songbook and has been covered by numerous artists, including Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, and Ella Fitzgerald.
Line by Line Meaning
Don't throw bouquets at me
Please don't make a big show of affection towards me in public.
Don't please my folks too much
Please don't try too hard to impress my family or win them over.
Don't laugh at my jokes too much
Please don't force a laugh or try to show excessive enthusiasm over my jokes or comments.
People will say we're in love
Others may interpret your actions as evidence that we're in love, even if we're not.
Don't sigh and gaze at me
Please don't show too much emotion, especially through body language, towards me.
Your sighs are so like mine
We may have similar feelings, but it's not appropriate to express them openly.
And your eyes mustn't glow like mine
Don't give away too much emotion with your eyes or any other aspect of your demeanor toward me.
People will say we're in love
Others may make assumptions about our relationship based on what they're observing.
Don't start collecting things
Don't start building a relationship with me in such an intense way that it could be interpreted as us being in love.
Give me my rose and my glove
Please just stick to simple gestures of friendship or niceties.
Well, sweetheart, they're suspecting things
Even despite our efforts to keep things friendly and polite, others are starting to assume we have deeper feelings for each other.
People will say we're in love
Despite our best efforts, we are unable to fully control others' perceptions of us and how they classify our dynamic.
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC
Written by: OSCAR HAMMERSTEIN II, RICHARD RODGERS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Ray Manbert
Beautiful song.and Andy Williams gives us a beautiful.rendition!!
Jymster46
She is very Beautiful indeed and I love her feisty little attitude throughout this wonderful film! Just a great song no matter if it is done by Mr. Williams or as is so wonderfully done in the movie by Mr. MacRae and Ms. Jones. I hope folks will enjoy it for what it is. Thanks so much for watching it! Jim
LoveTheOConnor
"BRAVO" isn't enough for this, Jim!! This is exquisite! Can it get any better than this?? Andy's beautiful version, paired with clips of handsome Gordon!! And you used some of my very favorite clips! Seeing Gordon in that orange shirt, riding past the corn makes me weak in the knees, then with his hat tipped back...swoon. Thanks SO MUCH, my friend, you made my week with this! :)
Jymster46
Oh, Thank You, Heather! I kinda thought you might like the video time I gave to Curly. Ha! I watched the film again recently and it is just a Treasure! The music is wonderful and the fantastic actors and lovely actresses make it truly something special! I am so happy you enjoyed the video and this version of the song by Mr. Williams! Thank You for your wonderful comments! Jim
Jymster46
Thank you so much for watching and listening! Jim
Jymster46
Thanks so much for listening! Jim