He was born in New York City (but grew up in New Haven, Connecticut) and began learning the saxophone when he was 15 and by age 16, had begun to tour with a band. He reached Hollywood the first time, as a sideman with Irving Aaronson's band in 1931, performing at the famous Orange Blossom Room (site of the first Academy Awards ceremony in 1929). Returning to New York City in1932, he became a highly in-demand session musician, working for example as one of just a handful of accompanists to Bing Crosby's first signature radio show for William S. Paley's already powerful and influential CBS radio network. Ultimately, Artie (who was known strictly as "Art" Shaw until his fortuitous Summer, 1938 contract with RCA Victor records' Bluebird label commenced) organized and led five, full-time touring orchestras that were all extremely popular -save the last, from 1949, with its be-bop oriented book. Ironically, that final Shaw-led big band (populated with players like Al Cohn), is considered by most jazz critics to have been Artie's best. With time out to lead a Navy service band (in the Pacific combat theater) during WWII, Shaw's actual big band- leading career lasted less than a decade overall -yet, it was a remarkably productive one, populated with some fourteen "Gold" records. These included such mega-hits as "Begin the Beguine", "Stardust", "Frenesi", "Moonglow", "Temptation", "Dancing In The Dark" and "Summit Ridge Drive" -the latter by his famous quintet billed as the Gramercy 5.
Shaw was known for being an innovator in the big band idiom, pioneering strings with jazz and using unusual instrumentations. His Summer, 1935 piece "Interlude in B-flat" was one of the earliest examples of what would be later dubbed "third stream". In 1938 he convinced Billie Holiday to be his band's vocalist, becoming the first white bandleader to hire a full-time black female singer. This 1938-1939 orchestra became phenomenonally successful and appeared in the movie "Dancing Co-ed" which also featured one of his future wives, Lana Turner, in the cast. Artie's clarinet playing, had by now reached a level that was arguably the greatest in jazz, easily rivaling that of Benny Goodman. Longtime Duke Ellington clarinetist Barney Bigard, himself a highly talented musician -cited Shaw (in 1940) as his "favorite" clarinet player. Literally abandoning his famous 1938-1939 band at the absolute peak of its' fame and earning power (Artie, just himself alone pulling down more than $10K per week) in late November, 1939, Shaw "abdicated" to Acapulco, Mexico. Returning to the U.S. he organized an entirely new orchestra, with full string section in the Summer of 1940. A truly stellar aggregation, it lasted until mid-1941, featuring stars Billy Butterfield, Johnny Guarneiri, Nick Fatool and Ray Conniff as principal arranger. This outfit can be prominently seen in the RKO film "Second Chorus" starring Fred Astaire and Paulette Goddard. The final pre-war Shaw band, started in late, 1941, had Davey Tough and Hot Lips Page and big hits on St. James Infirmary Blues and Blues In The NIght. Artie broke this outstanding unit up shortly after Pearl Harbor so he could "enlist" in the Navy -refusing an offered commission. Back from the Navy, Shaw put together a new band that featured Roy Eldridge and an ambitious library stocked with arrangements by Eddie Sauter, Buster Harding, Ray Conniff and others. Hit records for this band included "Little Jazz" and "S'Wonderful" and by now Artie was married to Ava Gardner. His final public performances (as a clarinetist) took place in 1954, including with a sublime quartet in an extended Las Vegas booking. Apparently, he last picked up and played his fabled clarinet in about 1960 at his beach house in Spain (as recounted in final wife actress Evelyn Keyes' autobiography) and resisted all lucrative offers to return to the stage until finally fielding a "ghost" band under the highly capable aegis of outstanding clarinetist Dick Johnson in 1985. For about the first year, Artie often appeared on stage with this very fine orchestra at certain, prestigious bookings, but soon tired of the "grind" -and not to Dick Johnson's dismay. This now true "ghost" band is still appearing during Summer seasons (with much of the original Shaw "books"), principally in the New England area (Johnson lives in Boston) and is well worth seeing. Although he had more wives (8) than bands, Artie fell one wife short of Charlie Barnet's record (for a famous bandleadrer) of nine.
How Deep Is the Ocean
Artie Shaw Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'll tell you no lie
How deep is the ocean?
How high is the sky?
How many times a day do I think of you?
How many roses are sprinkled with dew?
To be where you are?
How far is the journey
From here to a star?
And if I ever lost you, how much would I cry?
How deep is the ocean?
How high is the sky?
How far would I travel
To be where you are?
How far is the journey
From here to a star?
And if I ever lost you, how much would I cry?
How deep is the ocean?
How high is the sky?
How high is the sky?
At the core of Artie Shaw's How Deep Is the Ocean is the question of love’s infinite depth, and this is conveyed through the repetition of two questions - how deep is the ocean? how high is the sky? These questions not only point to the infinite vastness of the natural world but also to the depth of human emotion. As the vocalist asks these questions, they also admit to the intensity and depth of their love for their partner. The repetition highlights the idea that the love they share is eternal and boundless.
The lyrics also explore the idea of distance and how it can be overcome by love. The lyricist uses metaphors such as "how far is the journey from here to a star?" to express the unending distance that separates two lovers. However, through the questions asked in the lyrics, it is clear that distance is not a deterrent for the singer, who would travel any distance to be with the one they love. Finally, the lyrics pledge an unwavering commitment to their partner and reinforce the idea that their love is so strong that the thought of losing them brings tears to their eyes.
Line by Line Meaning
How much do I love you?
The singer wishes to express the immense amount of love they feel for their beloved.
I'll tell you no lie
The singer is being truthful and sincere about their emotions.
How deep is the ocean?
The singer is using the vastness of the ocean to symbolize the depth of their love.
How high is the sky?
The singer is using the expanse of the sky to symbolize the enormity of their love.
How many times a day do I think of you?
The singer is expressing the frequency with which thoughts of their beloved occupy their mind.
How many roses are sprinkled with dew?
The singer is comparing the number of roses with dew to the number of thoughts they have of their beloved, emphasizing the abundance of both.
How far would I travel
The singer suggests that they would travel great distances to be with their beloved.
To be where you are?
The singer desires to be physically with their beloved, suggesting the importance of their presence.
How far is the journey
The singer alludes to the distance that must be traversed to be with their beloved, asking about the distance of the journey.
From here to a star?
The singer uses the distance to a star to emphasize the vastness of the journey required to be with their beloved.
And if I ever lost you, how much would I cry?
The singer expresses the devastating effect that losing their beloved would have on them emotionally.
How high is the sky?
The singer returns to the metaphor of the vastness of the sky to indicate the depth of their emotional pain if they were to lose their beloved.
Lyrics © IMAGEM U.S. LLC, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: IRVING BERLIN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind