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!.
I Apologize
Anita O'Day Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
When I said goodbye, I'm sorry
From the bottom of my heart, dear
I apologize
If I caused you pain, I know I'm to blame
Must have been insane, believe me
From the bottom of my heart, dear
I realize I've been unfair to you
Please let me make amends
Don't say that you forgot the love we knew
After all, we were more than friends
If I made you blue, I've had heartaches too
Now I beg of you, forgive me
From the bottom of my heart, dear
I apologize
Give me back your glance, give me back romance
Give me one more chance, forgive me
From the bottom of my heart, dear
I apologize
Anita O'Day's song "I Apologize" is a heartfelt apology to someone who had been hurt by the singer's actions. The first verse talks about the possibility of having told a lie or caused the person to cry when saying goodbye, and the singer is asking for forgiveness in the chorus. She acknowledges her responsibility for causing pain and begs for the chance to make amends.
In the second verse, the singer admits to having been unfair to the person and hopes to reignite the love they once had. She asks for forgiveness again and pleads for another chance to be with the person. The song is a very honest and vulnerable expression of regret and the desire to make things right.
The melody and arrangement of the song are simple and sweet, allowing the deeply emotional lyrics to shine through. O'Day's vocal delivery is understated but expressive, perfectly capturing the sincerity and urgency of the song.
Line by Line Meaning
If I told a lie, if I made you cry
I'm apologizing for any hurt or pain I caused you, whether it was through deceit or making you upset.
When I said goodbye, I'm sorry
I'm sorry for leaving you and any pain that my departure may have caused you.
From the bottom of my heart, dear
These apologies come from a place of genuine remorse and regret, and are not just empty words.
I apologize
I express my remorse and ask for forgiveness.
If I caused you pain, I know I'm to blame
I take responsibility for the pain and hurt I caused, and recognize that my actions led to this outcome.
Must have been insane, believe me
I recognize that my behavior was irrational, and I ask you to believe me when I say I'm sincerely apologetic.
I realize I've been unfair to you
I understand that my actions were not fair to you, and I regret how I treated you.
Please let me make amends
I want to try to fix what I did wrong, and make things right between us if possible.
Don't say that you forgot the love we knew
I hope you still remember the love we shared, and that this gives us a chance to mend our relationship.
After all, we were more than friends
We had a special relationship that meant a lot to me, and I hope we can move past what happened and build on that foundation.
If I made you blue, I've had heartaches too
I empathize with your pain and understand how it feels to be hurt, as I have been hurt before as well.
Now I beg of you, forgive me
I'm asking you to forgive me for how I hurt you, and I'm begging for a chance to make things right and repair the relationship.
Give me back your glance, give me back romance
I hope you will look at me with love again, and that we can have a romantic relationship once more.
Give me one more chance, forgive me
I'm asking for another chance to show you that I've changed, and that I'm sincere in my apology and desire to make things right between us.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Al Goodhart, Al Hoffman, Edward G. Nelson
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)