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!.
On The Trail
Anita O'Day Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
(Hop-hee-hop, hee-hop)
The stubbornest mule I ever saw
He's tossin' his head, he's raisin' ol' Ned
He's gettin' me all of a twitter
That ornery critter, he goes
He must have been born in Arkansas
Don't want to be led, he wants to be fed
Why he'd make the Statue of Liberty
Flibberty-gibberty
He's hankerin' for a hunk of straw
He can't hear my song, he's joggin' along
His footsteps that are beating, are tellin' him soon
He'll be eatin' his fill
(Clipperty-hopperti, clipperty-clop)
(Clipperty-hopperti, clipperty-clop)
(Clipperty-hopperti)
Over the rim of the hill
We're on the trail
The sun is low, the canyon is wide
Hi-ee, hi-oo
We sing a song as we ride
We're on the trail
My mule and I, we haven't a care
Hi-ee, hi-oo
My heart is free as the air
Out on the ole painted desert
I know a wonderful site
Where we can build us a fire
Where we can spend the night
The sun will rise
And in the skies, the stars grow pale
Hi-ee, hi-oo
And we'll be back on the trail
Be back on the trail, the trail, the trail
The lyrics to Anita O'Day's song "On The Trail" tell the story of a stubborn mule that is difficult to control. O'Day uses a variety of descriptive language to convey the animal's ornery nature, such as "tossin' his head" and "raisin' ol' Ned." The mule's refusal to be led and insistence on being fed is a source of frustration for the singer, who compares the animal to the Statue of Liberty with its flibberty-gibberty ways. Despite the mule's stubbornness, the singer and the animal are on a trail, enjoying the scenery and singing songs as they ride. The song ends with a sense of anticipation for what lies ahead, as they look forward to building a fire and spending the night under the stars.
Overall, the song can be interpreted as a metaphor for life's journey. The mule represents the challenges and obstacles that we encounter along the way, while the trail symbolizes the path that we must take in order to reach our destination. Despite the difficulties, the singer remains optimistic and enjoys the journey, appreciating the beauty of the world around them and the freedom of being on the open road.
Line by Line Meaning
(Hee-hop, hee-hop, mule)
The start of a journey on a mule on a trail.
(Hop-hee-hop, hee-hop)
Continuing the journey, riding the mule.
The stubbornest mule I ever saw
The mule being ridden is very stubborn and difficult to control.
He's tossin' his head, he's raisin' ol' Ned
The mule is showing its frustration by tossing its head and getting more difficult to handle, causing trouble for the rider.
He's gettin' me all of a twitter
The rider is becoming nervous and worried due to the mule's stubborn behavior.
That ornery critter, he goes
The mule being ridden is still acting up and causing problems.
He must have been born in Arkansas
A humorous way of saying that the mule is so stubborn that it must be from a place known for obstinate behavior.
Don't want to be led, he wants to be fed
The mule doesn't want to be controlled by the rider, but rather wants to eat.
Why he'd make the Statue of Liberty
Another humorous way of saying how stubborn the mule is, implying it could even be used to make a national monument.
Flibberty-gibberty
A nonsense phrase used to describe the mule's behavior.
He's hankerin' for a hunk of straw
The mule is hungry and wants to eat some straw.
He can't hear my song, he's joggin' along
The mule is ignoring the rider's attempts to control it and is continuing along the trail.
His footsteps that are beating, are tellin' him soon
The sound of the mule's footsteps is a sign that it will reach its destination soon.
He'll be eatin' his fill
The mule will soon get to eat a large amount of food.
(Clipperty-hopperti, clipperty-clop)
The sound of the mule's footsteps continuing along the trail.
(Clipperty-hopperti, clipperty-clop)
Continuing the sound of the mule's footsteps on the trail.
(Clipperty-hopperti)
The sound of the mule's footsteps becoming distant as it moves further down the trail.
Over the rim of the hill
The mule continues on the trail and eventually disappears over a hill.
We're on the trail
The rider and mule are both on a journey along a trail.
The sun is low, the canyon is wide
Descriptive language to set the scene of the journey on the trail.
Hi-ee, hi-oo
A fun and upbeat expression being sung while journeying on the trail.
We sing a song as we ride
The rider and mule are both enjoying the journey, singing a song as they continue on the trail.
My mule and I, we haven't a care
The rider and mule are both enjoying the journey, free from worry.
Out on the ole painted desert
The journey on the trail continues through a desert landscape.
I know a wonderful site
The rider knows of a good place to stop along the trail to rest and build a fire.
Where we can build us a fire
The rider and mule will stop and rest at this site, building a fire to keep warm.
Where we can spend the night
The rider and mule will rest at this site overnight and continue their journey in the morning.
The sun will rise
The next day on the trail will begin with the sunrise.
And in the skies, the stars grow pale
The night sky will fade away as the sun rises.
And we'll be back on the trail
The rider and mule will continue their journey on the trail after resting for the night.
Be back on the trail, the trail, the trail
Repeating the idea that the journey on the trail will continue.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: FERDE GROFE
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)