Eckstine was an American jazz singer and bandleader who also played trumpet, valve trombone, and guitar. He also performed briefly as Billy X. Stine. His nickname was Mr. B. Although best known as a singer, his openness to new music made him a strong influence on modern jazz, particularly bebop, as he gave employment to many of the musicians who founded the style.
After singing with the Earl Hines band from 1939 to 1943 he led his own band from 1944 to 1947. The band featured at various times a large number of rising jazz stars, including:
Saxophones: Gene Ammons, Dexter Gordon, Sonny Stitt, Lucky Thompson, Charlie Parker, Wardell Gray, Budd Johnson, Leo Parker
Trumpets: Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis, Kenny Dorham, Fats Navarro
Drums: Art Blakey
Singers: Lena Horne, Sarah Vaughan
Eckstine later formed an octet, then went solo, becoming a popular ballad singer while remaining an important figure in jazz. His huge, distinctive baritone made him one of the first African American singers to have mainstream success. He was the composer of the blues classic "Jelly, Jelly" and also recorded the R&B top hit "Stormy Monday Blues" in 1942 (not to be confused with T-Bone Walker's 1947 "Call It Stormy Monday (But Tuesday Is Just As Bad)"). Most of his success as a singer came with ballads, including "Everything I have is Yours", "Blue Moon", "Caravan," "Prisoner of Love," "You Go to My Head," and "That Old Black Magic". His last hit was "Passing Strangers", a duet with Sarah Vaughan released in 1957.
Eckstine was a style leader and noted sharp dresser. He designed and patented a high roll collar that formed a B over a Windsor-knotted tie, which became known as a Mr. B. Collar. In addition to looking cool, the collar expanded and contracted without popping open, which allowed his neck to swell while playing his horns. The collars were worn by many a hipster in the late 1940s and early 1950s.
In 1984, Eckstine recorded his final album, I Am A Singer, featuring beautiful ballads arranged and conducted by Angelo DiPippo.
Lush Life
Billy Eckstine Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Those come what may places
Where one relaxes on the axis of the wheel of life
To get a feel of life
From jazz and cocktails
The girls I knew had sad and sullen grey faces
With distant gay traces
You could see where they've been washed away
By too many through the day
Twelve o'clock tales
Then suddenly you came along
With a siren song
It tempts me to madness
I thought for a while that your poignant smile
Was tinged with the sadness...
Of a great love for me
But, I was wrong
I was wrong
Life is lonely again,
And only last week, everything seemed so sure.
Now life is awful again,
A trough full of hearts will probably be a bore, a bore
A week I might go to Paris
At least a bite of it
All, all I want to do is laugh in spite of it
I'll forget you, I will
And yet you are still
Burning inside my brain
Romance is mush
And it stifles those who strive
Well I'll live a lush life in some small dive
And I, I'll be alright with the rest
All those whose lives are lonely too
The song "Lush Life" by Billy Eckstine is about a person reminiscing of times when they used to visit all the gay and happening places- where people come and go, relax, and feel alive with the help of jazz and cocktails. The person characterizes the girls in the clubs he visited as having sad and sullen faces with only a few hints of past happiness. It is as if their youth and vitality had been washed away by excessive drinking and partying. However, the singer changes his mournful tone when he notes the arrival of his lover, whom he thought loved him back in the same way but was mistaken. After the breakup, the singer believes that he will have to face long lonely evenings again. He then decides to forget the past and have a good time by living a lush life in some small dive with other people who are also lonely.
Throughout the song, the use of the word "lush" has multiple interpretations. At first, it is used to define the singer's previous lifestyle, related to how he used to frequent the "lush" nightclubs. Later, he seeks to live a "lush life" in some small dive, indicating that he will continue to live the way he used to but in a less glamorous location. Additionally, "lush" can also imply luxury, as the singer seems to want to live luxuriously like before, even in his current situation.
Line by Line Meaning
I, I used to visit all these very gay places
I used to go to lively, carefree locations
Those come what may places
No matter what happened, I could always go there
Where one relaxes on the axis of the wheel of life
Where someone can temporarily escape the ups and downs of life
To get a feel of life
To experience what life has to offer
From jazz and cocktails
Through music and drinks
The girls I knew had sad and sullen grey faces
The women I knew were unhappy and looked melancholy
With distant gay traces
With faint signs of happiness in the past
That used to be there
That were no longer present
You could see where they've been washed away
You could tell that their joy had been taken away
By too many through the day
From being worn down by the stress of daily life
Twelve o'clock tales
Stories told late at night
Then suddenly you came along
Then unexpectedly you appeared
With a siren song
With an irresistible appeal
It tempts me to madness
It makes me lose my mind
I thought for a while that your poignant smile
I believed for a period of time that your emotional smile
Was tinged with the sadness...
Had a hint of sorrow behind it...
Of a great love for me
Of a powerful affection towards me
But, I was wrong
However, I was mistaken
Life is lonely again,
I am once again feeling isolated,
And only last week, everything seemed so sure.
Just a week ago, I was confident about everything.
Now life is awful again,
But now life is terrible once more,
A trough full of hearts will probably be a bore, a bore
Going through a series of unfulfilling relationships will likely be uninteresting and tedious.
A week I might go to Paris
I might travel to Paris for a week
At least a bite of it
To get a small taste of it
All, all I want to do is laugh in spite of it
Regardless, all I want to do is find joy in life again.
I'll forget you, I will
I will try to forget you
And yet you are still
But still, I can't help but think about you
Burning inside my brain
Your memory is still fresh and vivid in my mind
Romance is mush
Love is nothing but sentimental nonsense
And it stifles those who strive
It holds back those who aim to achieve something
Well I'll live a lush life in some small dive
So, I'll live a luxurious life in a cheap place
And I, I'll be alright with the rest
And I will be content with others who are also feeling lonely
Lyrics © K SMITH MUSIC CO., Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Billy Strayhorn
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Nick Zoohowza
on Jelly, Jelly
The “meaning” of Jelly Jelly seems to have been written by ChatGPT. Surely “jelly”, like “jelly roll” was intended in this song to refer to sex/genitalia, and not something to spread on toast.
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on Kiss Of Fire
Absolutely Absolutely Absolutely Amazing Grace his voice was"GOD"gift to us class jazz lovers listeners u'dig now can you dig dat baby,baby from da'conductor nelfoster from chocolate cle city ohio chocolate rocks...