Shaw first gained critical acclaim with his "Interlude in B-flat" at a swing concert at the Imperial Theater in New York in 1935. During the Swing Era, Shaw's big band was popular with hits like "Begin the Beguine" (1938), "Stardust" (with a legendary trumpet solo by Billy Butterfield), "Back Bay Shuffle", "Moonglow", "Rosalie" and "Frenesi." He was an innovator in the big band idiom, using unusual instrumentation; "Interlude in B-flat", where he was backed with only a rhythm section and a string quartet, was one of the earliest examples of what would be later dubbed third stream.
In addition to hiring Buddy Rich, he signed Billie Holiday as his band's vocalist in 1938, becoming the first white bandleader to hire a full-time black female singer. However, after recording "Any Old Time" she left the band due to hostility from audiences in the South, as well as from music company executives who wanted a more mainstream singer. His band became enormously successful, and his playing was eventually recognized as equal to that of Benny Goodman: Longtime Duke Ellington clarinetist Barney Bigard cited Shaw as his favorite clarinet player. In response to Goodman's nickname, the "King of Swing", Shaw's fans dubbed him the "King of the Clarinet." Shaw, however, felt the titles were reversed. "Benny Goodman played clarinet. I played music," he said.
Artie Shaw and his band playing "Everything's Jumping" from Second Chorus (1940)Shaw did in fact prize innovation and exploration in music more highly than popular success and formulaic dance music, despite a string of hits which sold more than 100 million records. He fused jazz with classical music by adding strings to his arrangements, experimented with bebop, and formed "chamber jazz" groups that utilized such novel sounds as harpsichords or Afro-Cuban music.
The long series of musical groups Shaw formed included such talents as vocalists Billie Holiday, Helen Forrest and, Mel Tormé; drummers Buddy Rich and Dave Tough, guitarists Barney Kessel, Jimmy Raney, and Tal Farlow and trombonist-arranger Ray Conniff, among countless others. He composed the morose "Nightmare", with its Hassidic nuances, for his personal theme, rather than more approachable songs. In a televised interview of the 1970s, Shaw derided the often "asinine" songs that bands were compelled to play night after night even though he did write the anthem for Rav Meir Kahane's' JDL . In 1994, he told Frank Prial (The New York Times), "I thought that because I was Artie Shaw I could do what I wanted, but all they wanted was 'Begin the Beguine.'
April in Paris
Artie Shaw and His Orchestra Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I never met it face to face
I never knew my heart could sing
I never missed a warm embrace
Till April in Paris, chestnuts in blossom
Holiday tables under the trees
April in Paris, this is a feeling
I never knew the charm of spring
I never met it face to face
I never knew my heart could sing
I never missed a warm embrace
Till April in Paris
Whom can I run to
What have you done to my heart
Artie Shaw and His Orchestra's song "April in Paris" is about the beauty and charm of spring in the city of Paris. The lyrics express the singer's surprise at the newfound joy and happiness that he experiences during springtime in Paris. They explain how he has never experienced such a delightful season before, and how the city of Paris, with the chestnut trees in full bloom, feels like a holiday.
The lyrics also talk about how the singer's heart sings and how he experiences a warmth that he had never felt before. The song finishes with a question to whom the singer can turn to for comfort, as his heart has been captured by the beauty and charm of Paris in the springtime.
"April in Paris" was written by Vernon Duke in 1932 for the Broadway musical "Walk A Little Faster" but didn't become popular until years later. As a jazz standard, it has been famously recorded by various artists, including Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong, Frank Sinatra, and Count Basie.
Line by Line Meaning
I never knew the charm of spring
I had never experienced the delightful essence of spring
I never met it face to face
I had never really encountered spring in person
I never knew my heart could sing
I didn't realize my heart was capable of singing with joy
I never missed a warm embrace
I hadn't realized the significance of a comforting hug until now
Till April in Paris, chestnuts in blossom
It wasn't until experiencing the blooming chestnut trees of Paris in April
Holiday tables under the trees
Celebratory tables placed under the trees
April in Paris, this is a feeling
April in Paris instills an emotion
That no one can ever reprise
An unparalleled sensation that cannot be replicated or imitated
Till April in Paris
Only after experiencing April in Paris
Whom can I run to
Who can I turn to for help
What have you done to my heart
What did you do to make me feel this way
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: E. Y. Harburg, Vernon Duke
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind