As a youth, Carter lived in Harlem around the corner from Bubber Miley who was Duke Ellington's star trumpeter. Carter was inspired by Miley and bought a trumpet, but when he found he couldn't play like Miley he traded the trumpet in for a saxophone.
Carter began playing professionally at 15. He first recorded in 1928 and formed his first big band the following year. He played with Fletcher Henderson in 1930 and 1931, then briefly led McKinney's Cotton Pickers before returning to lead his own band in 1932. The few recordings his band made between 1933 and 1934 are considered by most jazz scholars to be milestones in early swing arranging. They were sophisticated and very complex arrangements, and a number of them became swing standards which were performed by other bands ("Blue Lou" is a great example of this.) He also arranged for Henderson and Duke Ellington during these years and wrote two hits, "Blues in My Heart" and "When Lights are Low." By the early 1930s he and Johnny Hodges were considered the leading alto players of the day. Carter also quickly became a leading trumpet soloist, having rediscovered the instrument. He recorded extensively on trumpet in the 1930s. Also, in 1933, Carter took part in an amazing series of sessions that featured the British band leader Spike Hughes, who came to New York specifically to organize a series of recordings featuring the best Black musicians available. These 14 sides were only issued in England at that time, though they are available on CD and worthwhile looking for. (The musicians were mainly made up from member of Carter's band and from Luis Russell's.)
In 1935 he moved to Europe, where he became staff arranger for the British Broadcasting Corporation dance orchestra and made several records. He returned to the United States in 1938 and led a big band and sextet before moving to Los Angeles in 1943 to write for movie studios. Carter continued writing and performing into his 90s. He arranged for Louis Armstrong, Ray Charles, Ella Fitzgerald, Peggy Lee, and Sarah Vaughan, among many others.
His biggest hit was "Cow Cow Boogie", a song he co-wrote with Don Raye and Gene DePaul, which was a hit for Ella Mae Morse in 1942.
In the 1940s and 1950s, Carter was one of the first black men to compose music for films. He was an inspiration and a mentor for Quincy Jones when Jones began writing for television and films in the 1960s. Also in the 1940s, Carter's successful legal battles in order to obtain housing in then-exclusive neighborhoods in the Los Angeles area made him a pioneer in an entirely different area.
He also appears uncredited in the 1952 film, The Snows of Kilimanjaro, as a sax player.
Carter was admired for his ability to write saxophone solis, which are sections of music that the entire section plays as one unit in the manner of a solo.
Carter was a member of the music advisory panel of the National Endowment for the Arts. He was also a member of the Black Film Makers' Hall of Fame and in 1980 received the Golden Score award of the American Society of Music Arrangers. Carter was also a Kennedy Center Honoree in 1996 and received honorary doctorates from Princeton, Harvard, Rutgers, and the New England Conservatory.
He died, aged 95, at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles of what is thought to have been bronchitis.
Bye Bye Blues
Benny Carter Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I never dreamed that it could be
But now I realize since I saw you smile
There's only happiness for me
So
Bye bye blues
Bye bye blues
Birds sing
Sun is shining
No more pining
Just we two
Smiling thru
Don't sigh
Don't cry
Bye bye blues
Blues
The lyrics of Benny Carter's song Bye Bye Blues tell the story of a person who finds unexpected happiness after seeing someone they never thought they would. The opening lines express surprise at the power of a single smile, indicating this person had an incomplete view of the world before encountering this other person. This encounter leads to newfound happiness so significant that it is emphasized in the repetition of the chorus. The verses which follow describe the world being transformed into one of beauty and joy, with bells ringing, birds singing, and the sun shining. It is a world where there is no more pining and only the two people involved are smiling through. The command not to sigh or cry (presumably from joy) is a further indication of the power of this newfound love.
Line by Line Meaning
I got a big surprise when I saw you smile
Your smile caught me off guard and surprised me
I never dreamed that it could be
I never imagined that a smile could affect me so much
But now I realize since I saw you smile
After seeing your smile, I understand that happiness is possible
There's only happiness for me
I now feel that only happiness awaits me
So
Therefore,
Bye bye blues
Goodbye to my sad and gloomy thoughts
Bells ring
The sound of bells reminds us of the beauty in the world
Birds sing
The sound of singing birds is a symbol of joy and life
Sun is shining
The sun shines bright, bringing light and warmth
No more pining
I'm no longer yearning or longing for something unattainable
Just we two
We're all that matters
Smiling thru
We're smiling and getting through anything together
Don't sigh
Don't let out a deep breath of sadness or disappointment
Don't cry
Don't shed any tears of sadness
Bye bye blues
We're saying goodbye to our blues once and for all
Blues
Sadness and despair that we're leaving behind
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: BERT LOWN, FREDERICK L HAMM, DAVID BENNETT, CHAUNCEY GRAY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind