Born in Los Angeles, Blythe lived in San Diego, returning to Los Angeles when he was 19 years old. He took up the alto saxophone at the age of nine, playing R&B until his mid-teens when he discovered jazz. In the mid-1960s, Blythe was part of The Underground Musicians and Artists Association (UGMAA), founded by Horace Tapscott, on whose 1969 The Giant Is Awakened he made his recording debut.
After moving to New York in the mid-70s, Blythe worked as a security guard before being offered a place as sideman for Chico Hamilton (75–77). He subsequently played with Gil Evans' Orchestra (1976–78), Lester Bowie (1978), Jack DeJohnette (1979) and McCoy Tyner (also 1979). Blythe's group – John Hicks, Fred Hopkins and Steve McCall – played Carnegie Hall and the Village Vanguard in 1979.
Blythe began to record as a leader in 1977 for the India Navigation label and then for Columbia records from 1978 to 1987. Albums such as The Grip and Metamorphosis (both on the label) offered capable, highly refined jazz fare with a free angle which seemed "out there". Blythe played on many pivotal albums of the 1980s, among them Jack DeJohnette's Special Edition on ECM. Blythe was a member of the all-star jazz group The Leaders and, after the departure of Julius Hemphill, he joined the World Saxophone Quartet. Beginning in 2000 he made recordings on Savant Records which included Exhale (2003) with John Hicks (piano), Bob Stewart (tuba), and Cecil Brooks III (drums).
Discography
As leader
Year Title Label
1977 The Grip India Navigation
1977 Metamorphosis India Navigation
1977 Bush Baby Adelphi
1978 In the Tradition Columbia
1978 Lenox Avenue Breakdown Columbia
1980 Illusions Columbia
1981 Blythe Spirit Columbia
1982 Elaborations Columbia
1983 Light Blue: Arthur Blythe Plays Thelonious Monk Columbia
1984 Put Sunshine in It Columbia
1986 Da-Da Columbia
1987 Basic Blythe Columbia
1996 Calling Card Enja
1996 Synergy In + Out
1991 Hipmotism Enja
1997 Today's Blues CIMP
1997 Night Song Clarity
2000 Spirits in the Field Savant
2001 Blythe Byte Savant
2002 Focus Savant
2003 Exhale Savant
Collaborations
With Synthesis
Six by Six (Chiaroscuro, 1977), with Olu Dara, a.o.
Segments (Ra, 1979), with Olu Dara, David Murray, a.o.
With The Leaders
Mudfoot (Black Hawk, 1986)
Out Here Like This (Black Saint, 1987)
Unforeseen Blessings (Black Saint, 1988)
Slipping and Sliding (Sound Hills, 1994)
Spirits Alike (Double Moon, 2006)
With Roots
Salutes the Saxophone – Tributes to John Coltrane, Dexter Gordon, Sonny Rollins and Lester Young (In & Out, 1992)
Stablemates (In & Out, 1993)
Say Something (In & Out, 1995)
With Santi Debriano and Billy Hart
3-Ology (Konnex, 1993)
With Jeff Palmer, John Abercrombie, Victor Lewis
Ease On (AudioQuest Music, 1993)
With David Eyges and Bruce Ditmas
Synergy (In & Out, 1997)
With John Abercrombie, Terri Lyne Carrington, Anthony Cox, Mark Feldman, Gust Tsilis
Echoes (Alessa, 2005)
As sideman
With Joey Baron
Down Home (Intuition, 1997) with Ron Carter and Bill Frisell
We'll Soon Find Out (Intuition, 1999) with Ron Carter and Bill Frisell
With Lester Bowie
The 5th Power (Black Saint, 1978)
African Children (Horo, 1978)
With Jack DeJohnette
Special Edition (ECM, 1979)
With Gil Evans
Gil Evans Live at the Royal Festival Hall London 1978 (RCA, 1979)
The Rest of Gil Evans Live at the Royal Festival Hall London 1978 (Mole Jazz, 1981)
Parabola (Horo, 1979)
Live at the Public Theater, Vol. 1 & 2 (Trio (Japan)/Storyville (Sweden), 1980)
Priestess (Antilles, 1983)
Sting and Gil Evans – Strange Fruit (ITM, 1993), three tracks with Blythe rec. 1976 without Sting
With John Fischer
6 × 1 = 10 Duos for a New Decade (Circle, 1980)
With Chico Freeman
Luminous (Jazz House, 1989)
Focus (Contemporary, 1995)
With Chico Hamilton
Peregrinations (Blue Note, 1975)
Chico Hamilton and the Players (Blue Note, 1976)
With Craig Harris
Cold Sweat Plays J. B. (JMT, 1999)
With Julius Hemphill
Coon Bid'ness (Freedom, 1972)
With Azar Lawrence
Bridge into the New Age (Prestige, 1974)
With the Music Revelation Ensemble
In the Name of... (DIW, 1994)
Knights of Power (DIW, 1996)
With Woody Shaw
The Iron Men with Anthony Braxton (Muse, 1977)
With Horace Tapscott
The Giant is Awakened (Flying Dutchman, 1969)
With Gust William Tsilis & Alithea
Pale Fire (Enja, 1988)
With McCoy Tyner
Quartets 4 X 4 (Milestone, 1980)
44th Street Suite (Red Baron,1991)
With the World Saxophone Quartet
Metamorphosis (Elektra Nonesuch, 1990)
Breath of Life (Elektra Nonesuch, 1992)
In A Sentimental Mood
Arthur Blythe Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I can see the stars come thru my room
While your loving attitude
Is like a flame that lights the gloom
On the wings of ev'ry kiss
Drift a melody so strange and sweet
In this sentimental bliss you make my
Paradise complete
It's all like a dream to call you mine
My heart's lighter thing
Since you made me this night a thing divine
In A Sentimental Mood
I'm within a world so heavenly
For I never dreamt
That you'd be loving sentimental me
In A Sentimental Mood
I can see the stars come thru my room
While your loving attitude
Is like a flame that lights the gloom
On the wings of ev'ry kiss
Drift a melody so strange and sweet
In this sentimental bliss you make my
Paradise complete
Rose pearls seem to fall
It's all like a dream to call you mine
My heart's lighter thing
Since you made me this night a thing divine
In A Sentimental Mood
I'm within a world so heavenly
For I never dreamt
That you'd be loving sentimental me
The lyrics of Arthur Blythe's song "In A Sentimental Mood" are an ode to the transformative power of love. The singer describes feeling transported to a world that is "heavenly" by the loving attitude of their partner, which is like a "flame that lights the gloom." The description of the "melody so strange and sweet" that drifts on the wings of each kiss suggests that the singer's experience of love is transcendent and ineffable, beyond the power of words to describe.
The image of the stars coming through the room and the falling rose pearls suggest a romantic atmosphere, while the repetition of the phrase "In a sentimental mood" reinforces the nostalgic and melancholy nature of the song. The final lines, "For I never dreamt that you'd be loving sentimental me," suggest a deep gratitude for the unexpected gift of love, and an awareness of the fragility of such moments of happiness.
Overall, the song expresses a sense of wonder and awe in the face of the transformative power of love, and suggests that even in the midst of life's struggles and sorrows, there are moments of transcendent beauty and joy to be found in human connection.
Line by Line Meaning
In a sentimental mood
The singer is feeling sentimental
I can see the stars come thru my room
The stars are visible from the singer's room
While your loving attitude
The subject has a loving attitude
Is like a flame that lights the gloom
The subject's loving attitude brings light to the artist's darkness
On the wings of ev'ry kiss
Each kiss has a melody attached to it
Drift a melody so strange and sweet
The melody is strange but pleasant
In this sentimental bliss you make my
The singer is experiencing bliss from the subject's presence
Paradise complete
The artist's paradise is complete because of the subject's presence
Rose pearls seem to fall
The atmosphere is serene and beautiful
It's all like a dream to call you mine
The artist finds it surreal to have the subject as their own
My heart's lighter thing
The singer's heart feels light and happy
Since you made me this night a thing divine
The subject has elevated the artist's night to a heavenly state
I'm within a world so heavenly
The singer is in a heaven-like world
For I never dreamt
The singer never imagined
That you'd be loving sentimental me
The singer never thought the subject would be in love with them
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Universal Music Publishing Group, Peermusic Publishing, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., T.R.O. INC.
Written by: DUKE ELLINGTON, MANNY KURTZ, IRVING MILLS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind