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!.
That Old Feeling
Anita O'Day Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Last night my heart was so gay
Last night I found myself dancing
In my favorite cabaret
You were completely forgotten
Just an affair of the past
Then suddenly something happened to me
And I found my heart beating, oh, so fast
I saw you last night and got that old feeling
When you came in sight I got that old feeling
The moment that you danced by I felt a thrill
And when you caught my eye my heart stood still
Once again I seemed to feel that old yearning
And I knew the spark of love was still burning
There'll be no new romance for me, it's foolish to start
For that old feeling, is still in my heart
I saw you last night and got that old feeling
When you came in sight I got that old feeling
The moment that you danced by I felt a thrill
And when you caught my eye my heart stood still
Once again I seemed to feel that old yearning
And I knew the spark of love was still burning
There'll be no new romance for me, it's foolish to start
For that old feeling, is still in my heart
Anita O'Day's "That Old Feeling" is a song about the lingering effects of old love. The first stanza of the song describes the singer's mood before encountering the object of her old feelings. She is in a state of joy and happiness and is dancing in her favorite cabaret. The second stanza of the song describes the moment she sees her past lover again. The sight of him brings back a flood of old feelings that she thought she had left behind. The singer describes feeling a thrill and her heart standing still as she watches him dance. She feels a sense of yearning that she thought she had moved past.
The final stanza of the song describes the singer's realization that although the spark of love is still burning within her, there will be no new romance for her. She has learned from her past experiences with this lover that starting a new romance would be foolish. Instead, she chooses to hold onto that old feeling and the memories that come with it.
Overall, the song is a testament to the power of past love and the emotions that linger long after the love affair has ended. It demonstrates that, no matter how hard we may try to move on, the old feelings can come rushing back when we least expect them.
Line by Line Meaning
Last night I started out happy
At the beginning of the night, I was in a good mood
Last night my heart was so gay
I was feeling very happy and carefree
Last night I found myself dancing
I was enjoying the music and started dancing
In my favorite cabaret
This was happening in my preferred entertainment spot
You were completely forgotten
I had put you behind me and didn't think of you
Just an affair of the past
Our relationship had ended and I had moved on
Then suddenly something happened to me
Unexpectedly, something changed within me
And I found my heart beating, oh, so fast
My heart was racing with emotion
I saw you last night and got that old feeling
When I saw you again last night, I was flooded with old emotions
When you came in sight I got that old feeling
Just seeing you again brought back those same feelings
The moment that you danced by I felt a thrill
Watching you dance brought excitement and pleasure
And when you caught my eye my heart stood still
When you looked directly at me, everything else faded away
Once again I seemed to feel that old yearning
The longing I used to feel for you came back again
And I knew the spark of love was still burning
I realized that I still had feelings for you
There'll be no new romance for me, it's foolish to start
I know better than to begin a new relationship when I still have these unresolved feelings
For that old feeling, is still in my heart
I am still holding onto my love for you from the past
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: PD TRADITIONAL, SANFORD SCHMIDT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@jamesmaseobrown
She just portrays that 1950's style glamor so well. I love to watch her sing, you can tell she gets so much joy out of it. That's one of the things that made her a great singer !
@feuip
She feels so much pleasure singing it that there's no way she could ever sound bad.. i mean. Just look at her!!!
@Bootrosgali
Yay! Allow me to take the first shout out for this one , and what an honour! I predict from her perfection, all the sublime subtle tonal pitches, slides and slurs, done with fetching sassiness the bubbling creative musicality that she brings to each and every phrase she makes as total master of her vocal instrument assures will get all the praise from all subsequent comments on this footage.
@SuperTonman
I've been a big fan of Anita's for a long time, this is one of my favorite songs of hers thanks for posting. Also her new documentary just became available on dvd, entitled..Life of a jazz singer. If you are a fan of hers you'll enjoy it
@Aqualash
i just got this DVD..it was for TV so its recorded beautifully. I've heard lots of jazz,but this version is just phenomenal...the nuance and expression is beyond words
@1edu1
Anita é fantástica! Tem estilo próprio e transmite felicidade em tudo que canta. Sua técnica vocal é excepcional e seu senço de ritmo e fraseado são maravilhosos. Misturado a algo muito sexy num olhar, num gesto. That Old Feeling ficou perfeita na voz dessa grande dama do jazz!
@AlexRadulescuClaudiu
Everybody should hear this song, it's great!
@hep2jive
helped me though my teen years! which im still in. what a voice! wow that band sounds so modern! what a true modern sound.
@funwithjamess
great lady they dont make them like her anymore, I noticed in the paper in 84 she was singing in this small bar I drove 130 miles to sit there and listen to her
@matosanz
grande anita o day!!! maravillosa cantante, todo lo que hace lo hace con gracia!!