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.
Where Have You Been
Billy Eckstine Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You must fall in love again with nobody but me
For now that I see you
I know that we should have met long ago
Where have you been?
I wanna know where have you been?
My life was a loosing fight till the lucky night
From what I had heard about love
I thought it was all sorrow and sin
But now that we meet at last, I forget what's past
Baby, where have you been?
I was a fool un-befriended
In the debts of despair
When out of the blue you descended
And somehow ended every care
So if you will give me a break
And all of the love seem to begin
So close to your side I'll stay, you will never say
"Baby, where have you been?"
I was a fool un-befriended
In the debts of despair
When out of the blue you descended
And somehow ended every care
So if you will give me a break
And all of the love seem to begin
So close to your side I'll stay, you will never say
"Baby, where have you been?"
The singer is talking to a love interest that has entered their life and brought love into it. They express the wish that if their love ever leaves them and finds love again, it must be with them. This may be because they feel a deep connection with this person, and they express regret at not meeting them earlier. The singer then asks where the love interest has been all this time, and how they came into their life at such a perfect moment. Their life was previously full of sadness and suffering, but with the arrival of the love interest, all those negative emotions have vanished. The singer then asks the love interest to stay close so they can continue to be together and never have to ask where they have been again.
Overall, the singer is expressing gratitude and love for their significant other, and a desire to never let them go. The lyrics are nostalgic and heartfelt, with a touch of vulnerability.
Line by Line Meaning
If ever you love again, if such luck could be
If you ever fall in love again, if that possibility arises
You must fall in love again with nobody but me
You should only fall in love with me
For now that I see you
Now that I've met you
I know that we should have met long ago
I feel like we should have met a long time ago
Where have you been?
Where have you been all this time?
I wanna know where have you been?
I really want to know where you've been all this time
My life was a loosing fight till the lucky night
My life was a constant struggle until the lucky night when I met you
Baby, you happened in
You came into my life, baby
From what I had heard about love
Based on what I thought I knew about love
I thought it was all sorrow and sin
I believed love was only associated with sadness and sinful things
But now that we meet at last, I forget what's past
But now that we've finally met, I forget about everything in the past
Baby, where have you been?
Baby, why did it take so long for us to meet?
I was a fool un-befriended
I was foolish and had no friends
In the debts of despair
In a state of extreme hopelessness
When out of the blue you descended
When you suddenly appeared, seemingly out of nowhere
And somehow ended every care
And somehow, you made all my worries disappear
So if you will give me a break
If you'll give me a chance
And all of the love seem to begin
And if we start falling in love
So close to your side I'll stay, you will never say
I'll stay close to you, and you'll never have to ask me where I've been
"Baby, where have you been?"
"Baby, where have you been?" won't be something you need to ask me
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: COLE PORTER
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.
Da'chocolate conductor nelfoster u'dig from the chocolate cle city ohio
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...