He was born as William Thomas Murray in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the son of immigrants from Ireland. He became fascinated with the theater and joined a traveling vaudeville troupe in 1893. He also performed in minstrel shows early in his career. He made his first recordings for a local phonograph cylinder company in San Francisco, California in 1897. He started recording regularly in the New York City and New Jersey area in 1903, when the nation's major record companies as well as the Tin Pan Alley music industry were concentrated there.
In 1906 he waxed the first of his popular duets with Ada Jones. He also performed with Aileen Stanley, the Haydn Quartet, the Premier Quartet, and the American Quartet (the latter two actually being the same group), in addition to his solo work.
He had a strong tenor voice with excellent enunciation and a more conversational delivery than common with bel canto singers of the era. On comic songs he often deliberately sang slightly flat, which he felt helped the comic effect.
While he often performed romantic numbers and ballads which sold well at the time, his comedy and novelty song recordings continue to be popular with later generations of record collectors.
Murray's popularity faded with changes in public taste and recording technology; the rise of the electric microphone in the mid 1920s coincided with the rise of the crooners. His "hammering" style, as he called it, essentially yelling the song into the recording horn, did not work in the electronic era, and it took him some time to learn how to soften his voice. While he continued to work, his singing style was considered "dated" and less in demand. In the late 1920s and early 1930s he also did voices for animated cartoons, especially the "follow the bouncing ball" type which incorporated songs from his salad days. He also did radio work.
Murray made his last recordings in 1943 and retired to Freeport, Long Island, New York in 1944. He died in nearby Jones Beach.
I Love A Piano
Billy Murray Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I went wild
When a band played
How I ran
To the man
When his hand swayed
And a slide trombone
I thought was simply divine
But today when they play
I could hiss them
Every bar is a jar
To my system
But there's one musical instrument
That I call mine
I love a piano
I love to hear somebody play
On a piano, a grand piano
It simply carries me away
I know a fine way
To treat a Steinway
I love to run my fingers
Over the keys, the ivories
And with the pedal
I love to meddle
When Padarewski comes this way
I'm so delighted
If I'm invited
To hear that long haired genius play
So you can keep your fiddle
And your bow
Give me a P-I-A-N-O, oh, oh
I love to sit right
Beside an upright
Or a high toned Baby Grand
When a green Tetrazine
Starts to warble
I grow cold
As an old
Piece of marble
I allude to the crude
Little party singer who don't know
When to pause
At her best I detest the soprano
But I run
To the one
At the piano
I always love the accomp'niment
And that's because
I love a piano
I love to hear somebody play
On a piano, a grand piano
It simply carries me away
I know a fine way
To treat a Steinway
I love to run my fingers
Over the keys, the ivories
And with the pedal
I love to meddle
When Padarewski comes this way
I'm so delighted
If I'm invited
To hear that long haired genius play
So you can keep your fiddle
And your bow
Give me a P-I-A-N-O, oh, oh
I love to sit right
Beside an upright
Or a high toned Baby Grand
The lyrics of Billy Murray's song I Love A Piano are an ode to the joy and passion that the piano brings to the singer. The song begins by taking the listener back to the singer's childhood, where they would go wild when a band played. The clarinets and slide trombone were the singer's pets, and they thought them to be divine. However, the singer's tastes have changed with time, and now every bar of the clarinets and slide trombone jars their system. In contrast to other instruments, the singer finds solace and ecstasy in the sound of the piano, and it is now the only musical instrument the singer calls their own.
The singer loves to hear somebody play the piano, and it carries them away. They take particular pride in treating a Steinway, running their fingers over the keys, and playing with the pedal. The singer enjoys hearing Padarewski play, and if invited, they are delighted. They prefer sitting beside an upright or Baby Grand and detest crude little party singers who don't know when to pause. Aside from the piano's beautiful sound, the singer loves the accompaniment, which completes the experience.
Line by Line Meaning
As a child
When I was young
I went wild
I got very excited
When a band played
Every time I heard a band playing music
How I ran
I would quickly move with excitement
To the man
To the person who was conducting the music
When his hand swayed
Whenever he moved his hand to keep the beat of the music
Clarinets were my pets
I loved the sound of the clarinet
And a slide trombone
I thought the slide trombone was the best musical instrument
I thought was simply divine
I thought it was amazing
But today when they play
However, now when I hear them play
I could hiss them
I don't like the sound of those instruments anymore
Every bar is a jar
Every note they play is painful to my ears
To my system
It makes me uncomfortable
But there's one musical instrument
Except for one musical instrument
That I call mine
Which I love
I love a piano
I love the sound of a piano
I love to hear somebody play
It brings me joy to listen to someone playing it
On a piano, a grand piano
Especially on a grand piano
It simply carries me away
It moves my soul
I know a fine way
I know how to play it well
To treat a Steinway
I know how to take care of a Steinway piano properly
I love to run my fingers
I enjoy playing it
Over the keys, the ivories
On the keys made of ivory
And with the pedal
Using the foot pedal
I love to meddle
I like to experiment with the sound it creates
When Padarewski comes this way
When Padarewski visits town
I'm so delighted
I am very happy
If I'm invited
If I am invited
To hear that long haired genius play
To listen to him play the piano
So you can keep your fiddle
I don't care about violins
And your bow
Or bows
Give me a P-I-A-N-O, oh, oh
Give me a piano
I love to sit right
I enjoy sitting
Beside an upright
Next to an upright piano
Or a high toned Baby Grand
Or a high-quality baby grand piano
When a green Tetrazine
When a bad singer
Starts to warble
Begins to sing poorly
I grow cold
It makes me uncomfortable
As an old piece of marble
Like a statue
I allude to the crude
I refer to the unskilled
Little party singer who don't know
The singer who isn't good
When to pause
When to stop singing
At her best I detest the soprano
I don't even like the best female singers
But I run
But I get excited
To the one
When I see someone
At the piano
Playing the piano
I always love the accompaniment
I really enjoy the background music
And that's because
The reason for this is because I love the piano
Writer(s): Irving Berlin, Mac Huff
Contributed by Mateo P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Tourneliste
1916? The sound is exceptionally good for this time !
sedonaz
Proof that Bill Murray is ageless.
B Q
Billy Murray is one of the greatest singers, period
Billy
@B Q He is not one of the greaest singers. He is the greatest singer of all of all times
NewYorker1944
@Billy Yes you got it right
Nasty Nate
I prefer Judy Garland's version in Easter Parade, but this one is more complete
Anon Eumouse
My Grandad used to play this on the old Pub upright piano in the 1960's and 70's and all the oldies used to sing-a-long
Billy
Also great recorded by Henry Burr and Albert Campbell.
Philip Anderson
I have a Diamond Disc of this by Walter Van Brunt.. Thanks for this..
Billy
Philip Anderson He did it great too