Billie Holiday had a difficult childhood. Much information once not considered true was confirmed in the book Billie Holiday by Stuart Nicholson in 1995. Holiday's autobiography, Lady Sings the Blues, which was first published in 1956, is sketchy when it comes to details about her early life, but has been confirmed by the Nicholson research.
Her professional pseudonym was taken from Billie Dove, an actress she admired, and Clarence Holiday, her probable father. At the outset of her career, she spelled her last name Halliday, which was the birth-surname of her father, but eventually changed it to Holiday, his performing name.
Her distinct delivery made Billie Holiday's performances instantly recognizable throughout her career. A master of improvisation, Billie's well-trained ear more than compensated for her lack of music education performance really was.
In 1972, Diana Ross portrayed Holiday in the film Lady Sings the Blues, which is loosely based on the 1956 autobiography of the same name. The film earned Ross a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress. She also has been portrayed by Ernestine Jackson in Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill and by Paula Jai Parker in a Season 7 episode of Touched by an Angel entitled "God Bless the Child," the title deriving from a song that she had written and sung.
In 1987, Billie Holiday was posthumously awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. In 1993, R&B singer Miki Howard released an album dedicated to Holiday titled Miki Sings Billie: A Tribute To Billie Holiday. The United States Postal Service introduced a Billie Holiday postage stamp in 1994, she ranked #6 on VH1's 100 Greatest Women in Rock n' Roll in 1999, and she was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000. Over the years, there have been many tributes to Billie Holiday, including "The Day Lady Died," a 1959 poem by Frank O'Hara, and "Angel of Harlem," a 1988 release by the group U2. A 1953 Holiday concert in New York is a key feature of the 2009 Arthur Phillips novel The Song is You.
On May 31, 1959, Holiday was taken to Metropolitan Hospital in New York suffering from liver and heart disease. Police officers were stationed at the door to her room. She was arrested for drug possession as she lay dying, and her hospital room was raided by authorities. Holiday remained under police guard at the hospital until she died from cirrhosis of the liver (the result of several years of substance abuse) on July 17, 1959. In the final years of her life, she had been progressively swindled out of her earnings, and she died with $0.70 in the bank and $750 (a tabloid fee) on her person. Her funeral mass was held at St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church in New York City.
Critic John Bush wrote that she "changed the art of American pop vocals forever."She co-wrote only a few songs, but several of them have become jazz standards, notably "God Bless the Child," "Don't Explain," "Fine and Mellow," and "Lady Sings the Blues." She also became famous for singing jazz standards including "Easy Living," "Good Morning Heartache," and "Strange Fruit."
Yesterdays
Billie Holiday and Her Orchestra Lyrics
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Stalking 'round my room
All night long you stay
Walk around profound gloom
When the darkness falls
When I've gone to bed
Weirdly come your calls
Mournfully, scornfully dead
Folly of a love I strangled
Pulsing heart I thought was gone
Gives no peace
Will not cease
Prowling 'round till dawn
Ghost of yesterday
Every night you're here
Whispering away
"Might have been, might have been, oh, my dear"
Foolish heart must pay
Ghost of yesterday
Yesterday
The lyrics of Billie Holiday's song "Ghost of Yesterday" depict a haunting presence that pervades the singer's thoughts and actions. The ghost metaphorically represents the singer's past, particularly a failed love that still lingers in her mind. The ghost stalks around her room, causing her profound gloom and haunting her with mournful and scornful calls. The singer is tormented by the memory of a love she once had, but which she strangled with her own folly. Despite her efforts to suppress the memory, the pulsing heart she thought was gone gives her no peace and continues to prowl around until dawn, leaving her haunted every night.
The song is a powerful representation of the human tendency to cling to past mistakes and lost loves, despite the pain and regret that follows. The ghost of yesterday is a reminder that our past is not something that can be easily forgotten or erased, but rather something that continues to influence and affect us long after it has passed. Despite the melancholy tone of the lyrics, there is also a sense of acceptance and resilience, as the singer acknowledges the ghost's presence and learns to live with it.
Line by Line Meaning
Ghost of yesterday
The memories of the past that haunt the singer
Stalking 'round my room
The memories of the past that are all around, tormenting the singer
All night long you stay
The memories of the past linger on throughout the night for the singer
Walk around profound gloom
The memories of the past are full of sadness and darkness
When the darkness falls
When the night creeps in
When I've gone to bed
When the singer is ready to sleep
Weirdly come your calls
The memories of the past come in an eerie way
Mournfully, scornfully dead
The memories of the past are full of sorrow and bitterness
Folly of a love I strangled
The singer regrets not having nurtured a love that is now gone
Pulsing heart I thought was gone
The singer thought that they had moved on from the past love but their heart keeps beating for it
Gives no peace
The heart does not let the singer be at peace
Will not cease
The singer's heart keeps beating for the past love and will not stop doing so
Prowling 'round till dawn
The memory of the past love keeps haunting the singer until the morning comes
Every night you're here
The memories of the past love are present every night for the singer
Whispering away
The memories of the past love keep whispering to the singer
"Might have been, might have been, oh, my dear"
The memories of the past love keep reminding the singer of what could have been
Foolish heart must pay
The singer's heart must suffer the consequences of not having nurtured the past love
Yesterday
The past that the singer is stuck in and cannot let go of
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: IRENE WILSON, ARTHUR JR. HERZOG, IRENE KITCHINGS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
baethoven
This is truly gorgeous. ❤️❤️
La Choriste
Oh how I adore Lady Day! I have all her discs and they all tell my life.
Ilario Schanzer
☸ڿڰۣ-ڰۣ- Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ Very Very Beautiful ☸ڿڰۣ-ڰۣ Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ