Few female jazz singers matched the hard-swinging and equally hard-living Anita O'Day for sheer exuberance and talent in all areas of jazz vocals. Her improvising, wide dynamic tone, and innate sense of rhythm made her more than just another big-band canary. At a time when most female vocals tended to emphasize the sweet timbres of their voice, she chose to emphasize a path blazed by the one major jazz singer who emphasized message over medium - Billie Holiday. Like Holiday, O'Day combined the soaring freedom of jazz instrumentalist with the storytelling lyricism of a poet.
After making her solo debut in the mid-'40s she incorporated bop modernism into her vocals and recorded over a dozen of the best vocal LPs of the era.
During the late Forties, she recorded two dozen sides, mostly for small labels. The quality of these singles varies: O'Day was trying to achieve popular success without sacrificing her identity as a jazz singer. Among the more notable recordings from this period are "Hi Ho Trailus Boot Whip", "Key Largo", "How High the Moon", and "Malaguena". O'Day's drug problems began to surface late in 1947, when she and husband Carl Hoff were arrested for possession of marijuana and sentenced to 90 days in jail. Her career was back on the upswing in September of 1948, when she sang with Count Basie at the Royal Roost in New York City, resulting in five airchecks. What secured O'Day's place in the jazz pantheon, however, are the seventeen albums she recorded for Verve between 1956 and 1962.
Her first album, Anita O'Day Sings Jazz (reissued as The Lady Is a Tramp), was recorded in 1956 for the newly established Verve Records (it was also the label's first LP). The album was a critical success and further boosted her popularity. In October of 1952 O'Day was again arrested for possession of marijuana, but found not guilty. The following March, she was arrested for possession of heroin. The case dragged on for most of 1953; O'Day was finally sentenced to six months in jail. Not long after her release from jail on February 25, 1954, she began work on her second album, Songs by Anita O'Day (reissued as An Evening with Anita O'Day). She recorded steadily throughout the Fifties, accompanied by small combos and big bands. In person, O'Day was generally backed by a trio which included the drummer with whom she would work for the next 40 years, John Poole.
As a live performer O'Day also began performing in festivals and concerts with such musicians as Louis Armstrong, Oscar Peterson, Dinah Washington, George Shearing, Cal Tjader, and Thelonious Monk. She appeared in the documentary Jazz on a Summer's Day, filmed at the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival which increased her popularity. The following year O'Day made a cameo appearance in The Gene Krupa Story , singing "Memories of You". Late in 1959 she toured Europe with Benny Goodman; according to her autobiography, when Goodman's attempts to upstage her failed to diminish the audience's enthusiasm, he cut all but two of her numbers from the show.
After the Goodman fiasco, O'Day went back to touring as a solo artist. She recorded infrequently after the expiration of her Verve contract in 1962 and her career seemed over when she nearly died of a heroin overdose in 1968. After kicking the habit, she made a comeback at the 1970 Berlin Jazz Festival. She also appeared in the films Zig Zag (1970) and The Outfit (1974). She resumed making live and studio albums, many recorded in Japan, and several were released on her own label, Emily Records.
O'Day spoke candidly about her drug addiction in her 1981 memoir, High Times, Hard Times.
Her version of the standard, "Sing, Sing, Sing" was remixed by RSL and was included in the compilation album Verve Remixed 3 in 2005.
2006 saw her first album release in 13 years, entitled Indestructible!.
Every Time I'm with You
Anita O'Day Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
She was just Miss Jones to me
And then I said, "Miss Jones, you're a girl who understands
I'm a man who must be free"
And all at once I lost my breath, and all at once was scared to death
And all at once I owned the earth and sky
And now I've met Miss Jones, and we'll keep on meeting till we die
Miss Jones and I
And all at once I lost my breath, and all at once was scared to death
And all at once I owned the earth and the sky
Now I've met Miss Jones, and we'll keep on meeting till we die
Miss Jones and I, Miss Jones and I, Miss Jones and I
The song "Everytime I'm with You" by Anita O'Day begins with the singer meeting Miss Jones through a mutual acquaintance. While the other person introduces her as "Miss Jones," the singer sees her simply as a person. However, as soon as he speaks to her, he realizes that she understands his need for freedom as a man. This immediately overwhelms him, causing him to lose his breath and feel scared, but also empowered as he feels as though he owns the earth and the sky. The song continues to describe the singer's growing feelings towards Miss Jones, and how they will continue to meet until they die.
The main theme of the song seems to revolve around the idea of falling in love unexpectedly and the rush of emotions that come with it. The singer experiences a sense of vulnerability as well as euphoria, which is conveyed through the repetition of the line "And all at once I lost my breath, and all at once was scared to death." At the same time, there's a sense of conviction that he feels as he declares his desire to be with her. The line "I'm a man who must be free" also exemplifies the idea of wanting to have the freedom to choose who to give one's heart to.
The song was written by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart for their 1937 musical "I'd Rather Be Right." The musical was a political satire that included a scene where President Franklin D. Roosevelt is visited by a ghost. The character Miss Jones was a love interest for the singer in the show. Although the musical was not a commercial success, many of the songs from the show became popular jazz standards.
Line by Line Meaning
Have you met Miss Jones?" someone said as we shook hands
As we shook hands, someone asked me if I've met Miss Jones.
She was just Miss Jones to me
At that point, Miss Jones was just someone I didn't know.
And then I said, "Miss Jones, you're a girl who understands I'm a man who must be free"
After being introduced to Miss Jones, I told her that I need my freedom.
And all at once I lost my breath, and all at once was scared to death
Suddenly, I felt breathless and scared.
And all at once I owned the earth and sky
But at the same time, I felt powerful and in control of everything around me.
And now I've met Miss Jones, and we'll keep on meeting till we die Miss Jones and I
Now that I've met her, Miss Jones and I will continue to see each other until death do us part.
Miss Jones and I, Miss Jones and I, Miss Jones and I
We'll always be together, Miss Jones and I.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Aceiseverywhere
on Who Cares?
Let it rain and thunder
Let a million firms go under
I am not concerned with, stocks and bombs that I've been burned with
I love you and you love me
And that's how it will always be
And nothing else can ever mean a thing
Who cares what the public chatters?
Love's the only thing that matters
Who cares if the sky, cares to fall
in the sea
Who cares how history rates me?
As long as your kiss intoxicates me
Oh why should I care?
Life is one long jubilee
As long as I care for you
And you care for me!
Who cares if the sky, cares to fall
in the sea
Who cares what banks fail in Yonkers?
As long as you've got a kiss that conquers!
Oh why should I care?
Life is one long jubilee
So long as I care for you
and you care for me!
(These lyrics might be wrong, sorry)