Ross is one of the early practitioners of a singing style known as vocalese, which involves the setting of original lyrics to an instrumental jazz solo. Her 1952 treatment of saxophonist Wardell Gray's "Twisted" is a classic example of vocalese. "Twisted" is perhaps her most famous song.
She recorded seven albums with Lambert, Hendricks & Ross between 1957 and 1962. Annie left the group in 1962 and in 1964 opened her own nightclub in London. Annie's Room featured performances by such jazz luminaries as Joe Williams, Stuff Smith, Blossom Dearie, Anita O'Day, Jon Hendricks, and Erroll Garner as well as Annie herself.
Ross is also an accomplished actress and has appeared in a number of films: Superman III (1983), Throw Mama From The Train (1987), Pump Up the Volume (1990), Blue Sky (1994), Short Cuts (1993).
Twisted
Annie Ross Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The way he described it, he said I'd be better dead than live
I didn't listen to his jive
I knew all along he was all wrong
And I knew that he thought I was crazy but I'm not
Oh no!
My analyst told me that I was right out of my head
He said I was the type that was most inclined
When out of his sight to be out of my mind
And he thought I was nuts, no more ifs or ands or buts
Oh no!
They say as a child I appeared a little bit wild
With all my crazy ideas
But I knew what was happenin', I knew I was a genius
What's so strange when you know that you're a wizard at three?
I knew that this was meant to be
Well I heard little children were supposed to sleep tight
That's why I drank a fifth of vodka one night
My parents got frantic, didn't know what to do
But I saw some crazy scenes before I came to
Now do you think I was crazy?
I may have been only three but I was swingin'
They all laughed at Al Graham Bell
They all laughed at Edison and also at Einstein
So why should I feel sorry if they just couldn't understand
The litany and the logic that went on in my head?
I had a brain, it was insane
Don't you let them laugh at me
When I refused to ride on all those double decker buses
All because there was no driver on the top
My analyst told me that I was right out of my head
The way he described it, he said I'd be better dead than live
I didn't listen to his jive
I knew all along he was all wrong
And I knew that he thought I was crazy but I'm not
Oh no!
My analyst told me that I was right out of my head
But I said "Dear doctor, I think that it's you instead
'Cause I have got a thing that's unique and new
It proves that I'll have the last laugh on you
'Cause instead of one head... I got two
And you know two heads are better than one"
In “Twisted” by Annie Ross, the lyrics follow the monologue of a person who has visited an analyst. The analyst told the individual that they were out of their head and that they required treatment. However, the person knows that they are not crazy, but rather just misunderstood. They recall being a genius at the age of three and abandoned conventional societal norms such as double decker buses because they refused to ride something without a driver on the top. In a strange turn of events, the person ironically ends up with two heads as opposed to one, proving their uniqueness and ability to have the last laugh.
This song explores the theme of feeling misunderstood and being labelled as “crazy.” The person in the song knows that their ideas are different from the norm but believes that it does not make them wrong or insane. They find strength in historical examples of those who were once ridiculed, such as Edison and Einstein.
Line by Line Meaning
My analyst told me that I was right out of my head
My therapist said I was crazy
The way he described it, he said I'd be better dead than live
He said I needed serious help and could end up hurting myself
I didn't listen to his jive
I didn't believe him
I knew all along he was all wrong
I knew he was mistaken
And I knew that he thought I was crazy but I'm not
I knew he labeled me crazy but I never believed it
Oh no!
I'm not crazy
They say as a child I appeared a little bit wild
People thought I was a little crazy as a child
With all my crazy ideas
Because of my unique ideas that seemed crazy to others
But I knew what was happenin', I knew I was a genius
But I was aware of my intelligence, I'm a genius
What's so strange when you know that you're a wizard at three?
It's not strange when you have extraordinary abilities at a young age
I knew that this was meant to be
I knew that my uniqueness was my destiny
Well I heard little children were supposed to sleep tight
I heard that young children are supposed to sleep well at night
That's why I drank a fifth of vodka one night
That's why I drank a lot of vodka one night
My parents got frantic, didn't know what to do
My parents were worried and confused
But I saw some crazy scenes before I came to
But I had some interesting visions before I passed out
Now do you think I was crazy?
Do you believe I was really crazy?
I may have been only three but I was swingin'
I might have been very young but I was already cool
They all laughed at Al Graham Bell
People made fun of Alexander Graham Bell
They all laughed at Edison and also at Einstein
People laughed at Thomas Edison and Albert Einstein too
So why should I feel sorry if they just couldn't understand
So why should I apologize for being misunderstood like them?
The litany and the logic that went on in my head?
The detailed reasoning and thought process I had?
I had a brain, it was insane
I had an exceptional mind, an insane one
Don't you let them laugh at me
Don't let others mock me
When I refused to ride on all those double-decker buses
When I skipped the double-decker buses
All because there was no driver on the top
Because there wasn't a driver at the top of the bus
But I said 'Dear doctor, I think that it's you instead
But I told my therapist that he was the one with issues
'Cause I have got a thing that's unique and new
Because I have something that is one of its kind and unusual
It proves that I'll have the last laugh on you
It is proof that I will be victorious in the end
'Cause instead of one head... I got two
Because I have two heads instead of one
And you know two heads are better than one
And as they say, two heads are better than one
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Heidi Range, Brian Thomas Higgins, Timo Maas, Keisha Kerreece Fayeanne Buchanan, Mutya Buena
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@ludo2821
My analyst told me that I was right out of my head
The way he described it, he said I'd be better dead than live
I didn't listen to his jive
I knew all along he was all wrong
And I knew that he thought I was crazy but I'm not
Oh no!
My analyst told me that I was right out of my head
He said I'd need treatment but I'm not that easily led
He said I was the type that was most inclined
When out of his sight to be out of my mind
And he thought I was nuts, no more ifs or ands or buts
Oh no!
They say as a child I appeared a little bit wild
With all my crazy ideas
But I knew what was happenin', I knew I was a genius
What's so strange when you know that you're a wizard at three?
I knew that this was meant to be
Well I heard little children were supposed to sleep tight
That's why I drank a fifth of vodka one night
My parents got frantic, didn't know what to do
But I saw some crazy scenes before I came to
Now do you think I was crazy?
I may have been only three but I was swingin'
They all laughed at Al Graham Bell
They all laughed at Edison and also at Einstein
So why should I feel sorry if they just couldn't understand
The litany and the logic that went on in my head?
I had a brain, it was insane
Don't you let them laugh at me
When I refused to ride on all those double decker buses
All because there was no driver on the top
My analyst told me that I was right out of my head
The way he described it, he said I'd be better dead than live
I didn't listen to his jive
I knew all along he was all wrong
And I knew that he thought I was crazy but I'm not
Oh no!
My analyst told me that I was right out of my head
But I said "Dear doctor, I think that it's you instead
'Cause I have got a thing that's unique and new
It proves that I'll have the last laugh on you
'Cause instead of one head... I got two
And you know two heads are better than one&
@marinagarrido4899
My analyst told me
That I was right out of my head
The way he described it
He said, "I'd be better dead than alive"
I didn't listen to his jive
I knew all along that he was all wrong
And I knew that he thought
I was crazy, but I'm not
Don't know
My analyst told me
That I was right out of my head
He said I need treatment
But I'm not that easily led
He said "I was the type that was most inclined"
When out of his sight to be out of my mind
And he thought I was nuts
No more ifs or ands or buts
They say as a child I appeared a little bit wild
With all my crazy ideas
But I knew what was happening, I knew I was a genius
What's so strange when you know
That you're a wizard at three?
I knew that this was meant to be
Now I heard little children were supposed to sleep tight
That's why I got into the vodka one night
My parents got frantic, didn't know what to do
But I saw some crazy scenes before I came to
Now do you think I was crazy?
I may have been only three, but I was swinging
They all laugh at angry young men
They all laughed at Edison
And also at Einstein
So why should I feel sorry if they just couldn't understand
The idiomatic logic that went on in my head
I had a brain, it was insane
Oh, they used to laugh at me when I refused to ride
On all those double-decker buses
All because there was no driver on the top
Wait, no driver on the top?
Men, the chick is twisted, crazy! It should be
He flips cities
My analyst told me
That I was right out of my head
But I said, "Dear doctor I think that it's you instead
Because I, I got a thing that's unique and new
To prove it, I'll have the last laugh on you
'Cause instead of one head
I got two
And you know, two heads are better than one"
@emilyaponte9562
My analyst told me that I was right out of my head
The way he described it, he said I'd be better dead than live
I didn't listen to his jive
I knew all along he was all wrong
And I knew that he thought I was crazy but I'm not
Oh no!
My analyst told me that I was right out of my head
He said I'd need treatment but I'm not that easily led
He said I was the type that was most inclined
When out of his sight to be out of my mind
And he thought I was nuts, no more ifs or ands or buts
Oh no!
They say as a child I appeared a little bit wild
With all my crazy ideas
But I knew what was happenin', I knew I was a genius
What's so strange when you know that you're a wizard at three?
I knew that this was meant to be
Well I heard little children were supposed to sleep tight
That's why I drank a fifth of vodka one night
My parents got frantic, didn't know what to do
But I saw some crazy scenes before I came to
Now do you think I was crazy?
I may have been only three but I was swingin'
They all laughed at Al Graham Bell
They all laughed at Edison and also at Einstein
So why should I feel sorry if they just couldn't understand
The litany and the logic that went on in my head?
I had a brain, it was insane
Don't you let them laugh at me
When I refused to ride on all those double decker buses
All because there was no driver on the top
My analyst told me that I was right out of my head
The way he described it, he said I'd be better dead than live
I didn't listen to his jive
I knew all along he was all wrong
And I knew that he thought I was crazy but I'm not
Oh no!
My analyst told me that I was right out of my head
But I said "Dear doctor, I think that it's you instead
'Cause I have got a thing that's unique and new
It proves that I'll have the last laugh on you
'Cause instead of one head... I got two
And you know two heads are better than one"
@seretheweddingguests
My analyst told me that I was right out of my head
The way he described it, he said I'd be better dead than live
I didn't listen to his jive
I knew all along he was all wrong
And I knew that he thought I was crazy but I'm not
Oh no!
My analyst told me that I was right out of my head
He said I'd need treatment but I'm not that easily led
He said I was the type that was most inclined
When out of his sight to be out of my mind
And he thought I was nuts, no more ifs or ands or buts
Oh no!
They say as a child I appeared a little bit wild
With all my crazy ideas
But I knew what was happenin', I knew I was a genius
What's so strange when you know that you're a wizard at three?
I knew that this was meant to be
Well I heard little children were supposed to sleep tight
That's why I drank a fifth of vodka one night
My parents got frantic, didn't know what to do
But I saw some crazy scenes before I came to
Now do you think I was crazy?
I may have been only three but I was swingin'
They all laughed at Al Graham Bell
They all laughed at Edison and also at Einstein
So why should I feel sorry if they just couldn't understand
The litany and the logic that went on in my head?
I had a brain, it was insane
Don't you let them laugh at me
When I refused to ride on all those double decker buses
All because there was no driver on the top
My analyst told me that I was right out of my head
The way he described it, he said I'd be better dead than live
I didn't listen to his jive
I knew all along he was all wrong
And I knew that he thought I was crazy but I'm not
Oh no!
My analyst told me that I was right out of my head
But I said "Dear doctor, I think that it's you instead
'Cause I have got a thing that's unique and new
It proves that I'll have the last laugh on you
'Cause instead of one head... I got two
And you know two heads are better than one"
@FL8mileshigh1
What a great song. Written in 1952. The swing and jazz makes it timeless. RIP Annie. Joni Mitchell also made your song shine brightly.
@benjaminsmith2287
RIP Annie Ross. Forever great.
@georgeb.wolffsohn30
Rip Wardell Gray the tenor player who wrote it.
@terrapingee
Today, I was listening to a jazz station in the background like I often do, and this song came on. My adult daughter was sitting nearby working on her computer. Halfway through this song she weaves in her own “scooby dooby doo,” like she’s scatting in harmony, and we both laughed. 🎶😀
@longterm54
I enjoyed you so much Annie. Thanks for all the wonderful musical memories. Rest easy jazz lady.
@windonthevalley
Sassy, Classy Lady! You were (and ARE!) One in a Million! Thank you ❤😊🙏😎
@davidhampshire8632
I worked with Annie in the 80’s and have fun, happy memories of a nice lady...RIP x
@blackbird1320
Awww geez. Annie Ross was an early influence for my jazz singing in HS and college. A wonderful voice. Definitely on repeat today. May you Rest and sing all those notes you’ve missed with abandon now. RIP!
@DiarmuidJason01
RIP Annie Ross. I was not aware that she passed away last week. God rest her soul. She was a very good singer and a very good actress.
@knickertwistcopperby6066
RIP Annie Ross. She led an incredible life and mixed with the greats.