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!.
My Heart Belongs To Daddy
Anita O'Day Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
But now I find I'm more inclined to keep my mind on my duties.
While tearing off a game of golf
I may make a play for the caddy
But when I do, I don't follow through
'cause my heart belongs to Daddy.
To dine on my fine finnan haddie
I just adore his asking for more
But my heart belongs to Daddy
Yes my heart belongs to Daddy
So I simply couldn't be bad
Yes, my heart belongs to Daddy
Da-da-da, da-da-da, da-da-da
So I want to warn you, laddie
Though I know you're perfectly swell
But my heart belongs to Daddy
'cause my Daddy he treats it so well
There was a dame that a football game
Made long for the strong undergraddie
I never dream of making the team
'cause my heart belongs to daddy
Yes, my heart belongs to Daddy
So I simply couldn't be bad
Yes, my heart belongs to Daddy
Da-da-da, da-da-da, da-da-da
So I want to warn you, laddie
Though I know you're perfectly swell
That my heart belongs to Daddy
'cause my Daddy, he treats it so well
In the song "My Heart Belongs to Daddy," Anita O'Day sings about her devotion to her father, and how this familial love has changed the way she approaches love and romance. The lyrics begin by describing her former attraction to "boys who maul the young cuties," but she has since turned her attention to her "duties." She then reveals that even though she may flirt with the caddy while playing golf or invite a boy to dine on "fine finnan haddie," she won't pursue these dalliances because her heart belongs to her father. She warns any potential suitors that they may be perfectly "swell," but her loyalty lies solely with her beloved dad.
The lyrics of this song highlight the complex relationship between family and romantic love. O'Day suggests that her devotion to her father prevents her from getting too involved with other men, but this may also suggest her unwillingness or inability to pursue a romantic relationship that doesn't involve her dad. The playful tone of the song belies these more complicated emotions, however, and the catchy melody and upbeat tempo make it a classic of the jazz repertoire.
Line by Line Meaning
I used to fall in love with all those boys who maul the young cuties
I used to be attracted to the boys who mistreat and harass young girls, but now I am more focused on my responsibilities.
But now I find I'm more inclined to keep my mind on my duties.
Currently, I am more interested in focusing on my daily tasks and responsibilities.
While tearing off a game of golf
During a game of golf that is likely taken casually, without much thought or concern.
I may make a play for the caddy
I may flirt or make a suggestive remark towards the caddy, who is usually a young man hired to carry golf clubs for players.
But when I do, I don't follow through
I do not act on my flirtatious behavior and am simply joking or making a passing comment.
'cause my heart belongs to Daddy.
I am loyal and devoted to my father and do not become seriously involved with other men.
If I invite a boy some night
If I were to ask a young man out on a date in the evening.
To dine on my fine finnan haddie
To eat a particular type of smoked haddock fish that is considered to be of high quality.
I just adore his asking for more
I appreciate when the man I am with asks for second helpings of the meal I have prepared.
Yes my heart belongs to Daddy
Again, my loyalties and devotion are with my father.
So I simply couldn't be bad
I am not capable of being unfaithful or disloyal to my father.
Da-da-da, da-da-da, da-da-da
A non-verbal tune or melody played to add to the rhythm of the song and create a laid-back ambiance.
So I want to warn you, laddie
I feel it necessary to inform and remind the young man I may be spending time with.
Though I know you're perfectly swell
Though I think you are attractive, pleasant, and enjoyable to be around.
But my heart belongs to Daddy
Nonetheless, I am committed and dedicated to my father, both emotionally and mentally.
There was a dame that a football game made long for the strong undergraddie
I may have once been interested in young men who demonstrated strength and machismo, but my love is now reserved for my father.
I never dream of making the team
This line means that Anita realizes that she is not a part of the ‘team’ of people who will usually cheat on their partners. She is committed to her father and she would never dream of being unfaithful.
That my heart belongs to Daddy
The last reference to the song's title and theme is repeated to reinforce Anita's loyalty to and devotion for her father above all else.
'cause my Daddy, he treats it so well
Referencing the heart belonging to the Daddy of the song's title, in turn creating a book-end composition where the song's message is emphasized once more before ending. Anita explains that her father has treated her heart well and she does not wish to find it difficult to continue to commit to him wholeheartedly.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: COLE PORTER
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)