His first recording was in Oakland on February 7, 1925, but it was not issued.
He formed his first band in 1924 and had key hotel jobs in Oakland and Sacramento. By the late 1920s he was a popular regional orchestra and started recording for Columbia in 1928. In 1932, he signed with Brunswick and recorded prolifically for them through 1935, during this time, his was one of their premier and nationally popular bands. He later did a session for Decca in 1937. He garnerered favorable attention in late 1931 on the "Lucky Strike Magic Carpet" radio program. His vocalists included Art Wilson, Harriet Lee, Donald Novis, Bob Crosby, Carl Ravazza, Kay St. Germaine, and Bob Gage.
Weeks was involved in an auto accident in 1941 and was out of the band business for several years, starting up again in the late 1940s. He signed to the local Fantasy label in the early 1950s and did a series of dance albums ("Dancin' With Anson"), which were quite regionally popular.[citation needed]
His songs include: "I'm Writing You This Little Melody" (theme song), "I'm Sorry Dear", "Senorita", "That Same Old Dream", and "We'll Get A Bang Out Of Life".[citation needed]
Death
He died in Sacramento, California in 1969, one week before his 73rd birthday.
References
Please
Anson Weeks & His Orchestra Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It brings back the sound of music so tender,
It brings back a night of tropical splendor,
It brings back a memory ever green.
I'm with you once more under the stars,
And down by the shore an orchestra's playing
And even the palms seem to be swaying
To live it again is past all endeavor,
Except when that tune clutches my heart,
And there we are, swearing to love forever,
And promising never, never to part.
What moments divine, what rapture serene,
Till clouds came along to disperse the joys we had tasted,
And now when I hear people curse the chance that was wasted,
I know but too well what they mean;
So don't let them begin the beguine
Let the love that was once a fire remain an ember;
Let it sleep like the dead desire I only remember
When they begin the beguine.
Oh yes, let them begin the beguine, make them play
Till the stars that were there before return above you,
Till you whisper to me once more,
"Darling, I love you!"
And we suddenly know, what heaven we're in,
When they begin the beguine
The song "Please" by Anson Weeks & His Orchestra talks about a person who remembers a past love whenever they hear the song "Begin the Beguine" being played. It brings back a rush of emotions and memories, making the person dream of being back in the past with their lover, under the stars by the shore, listening to the orchestra. The song portrays the idea that even though time has passed, some memories remain eternal and can never be recreated. The lyrics also highlight the fleeting nature of love and relationships, as they can quickly disappear just as the clouds that "disperse the joys we had tasted".
The singer goes from reminiscing about the good times, to pleading with the band not to play the song again, as it only serves to bring back the pain of what is lost. However, in the end, they abandon their resistance and surrender to the memories brought by the music. The use of the word "beguine" in the title refers to a Caribbean dance style, which adds to the tropical theme of the song.
Line by Line Meaning
When they begin the beguine
The start of the beguine brings back memories of tender music, tropical nights and green memories.
I'm with you once more under the stars
The memory of being with you under the stars has returned along with the beguine.
And down by the shore an orchestra's playing
An orchestra is playing music near the shore where we were together.
And even the palms seem to be swaying
The palms are swaying in response to the music of the beguine.
To live it again is past all endeavor
Going back to those past moments and reliving them is impossible.
Except when that tune clutches my heart
The only time those memories come back is when I hear that tune again and it brings me pain.
And there we are, swearing to love forever,
Those memories remind us of the promises we made to each other.
And promising never, never to part.
We promised to stay together always and never to part.
What moments divine, what rapture serene,
Those moments were divine and brought us such peaceful joy.
Till clouds came along to disperse the joys we had tasted,
Those joys were short-lived as clouds brought an end to them.
And now when I hear people curse the chance that was wasted,
I understand when people regret lost opportunities.
I know but too well what they mean;
I personally know that feeling too well.
So don't let them begin the beguine
Let's not hear that tune again and avoid the pain it brings.
Let the love that was once a fire remain an ember;
Let the love we had simmer down to a small ember.
Let it sleep like the dead desire I only remember
Let that love rest and become only a distant memory.
Oh yes, let them begin the beguine, make them play
But on second thought, let's hear the beguine and make them play it.
Till the stars that were there before return above you,
Until the stars from that night return above us again.
Till you whisper to me once more, "Darling, I love you!"
Until you whisper those sweet words to me again.
And we suddenly know, what heaven we're in,
In that moment, we realize that we're in heaven.
When they begin the beguine.
When the beguine starts again.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: COLE PORTER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind