Robert Waltrip "Bobby" Short (September 15, 1924 – March 21, 2005) was an A… Read Full Bio ↴Robert Waltrip "Bobby" Short (September 15, 1924 – March 21, 2005) was an American cabaret singer and pianist, best known for his interpretations of songs by popular composers of the first half of the 20th century such as Rodgers and Hart, Cole Porter, Jerome Kern, Harold Arlen, Vernon Duke, Noël Coward and George and Ira Gershwin.
He also championed African-American composers of the same period such as Eubie Blake, James P. Johnson, Andy Razaf, Fats Waller, Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn, presenting their work not in a polemical way, but as simply the obvious equal of that of their white contemporaries.
His dedication to his great love – what he called the "Great American Song" – left him equally adept at performing the witty lyrics of Bessie Smith's "Gimme a Pigfoot (And a Bottle of Beer)" or Gershwin and Duke's "I Can't Get Started." Short stated his favorite songwriters were Ellington, Arlen and Kern, and he was instrumental in spearheading the construction of the Ellington Memorial in New York City.

He was born in Danville, Illinois, United States, where one of his school classmates was Dick Van Dyke. He began performing as a busker after leaving home at the age of eleven for Chicago, with his mother's permission.
He started working in clubs in the 1940s. In 1968 he was offered a two-week stint at the Café Carlyle in New York City, to fill in for George Feyer. Short (accompanied by Beverly Peer on bass and Dick Sheridan on drums) became an institution at the Carlyle, as Feyer had been before him, and remained there as a featured performer for over 35 years. There, a combination of traits – his seemingly effortless elegance; his vocal phrasing (perfected, as was that of Frank Sinatra, at the feet of Miss Mabel Mercer, with perhaps also some help from Ethel Waters); his talent for presenting unknown songs worth knowing while keeping well known songs fresh; his infectious good cheer; and his resolute, self-disciplined professionalism – earned him great respect and made him tremendously popular. Bobby Short was generous with his impromptu all-night performances at his various favorite cafes and restaurants. He was a regular patron at Ted Hook's Backstage, located at Eighth Avenue and Forty-Fifth Street.

1972: Short sings theme song in James Ivory's film Savages.
1976: Short sings and appears in a commercial for Revlon's perfume "Charlie."
1985: Short sings and appears in the beginning portion of the Misfits of Science theme song.
1986: Short appears in the Woody Allen film Hannah and Her Sisters. Then Allen used his recording "I Happen To Like New York" for opening title of Manhattan Murder Mystery (1993).
1991: Short stars as blues musician Ches Collins on the TV series In the Heat of the Night in which he sings the title track, Sweet, Sweet Blues.
1994: Short reprises his role as blues musician Ches Collins on the TV series In the Heat of the Night.
1999: Short appears in the Movie "Man of the Century"
2000: The Library of Congress designates Short a Living Legend, a recognition established as part of its bicentennial celebration.
2003: Short sings and plays piano in at least one episode of 7th Heaven on TV.
2004: Short announces he will end his regular appearances at the Café Carlyle by the end of the year, in favor of touring, traveling and spending time with friends.
2005: Short dies of leukemia at New York Presbyterian Hospital on March 21, 2005, aged 80 and is buried in Atherton Cemetery in Danville, Illinois, the city of his birth.

Losing My Mind
Bobby Short Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

The sun comes up
I think about you

The coffee cup
I think about you

I want you so
It's like I'm losing my mind.

The morning ends
I think about you

I talk to friends
I think about you

And do they know? It's like I'm losing my mind.

All afternoon
Doing every little chore

The thought of you stays bright.
Sometimes I stand in the middle of the floor

Not going left
Not going right.

I dim the lights and think about you

Spend sleepless nights to think about you.
You said you loved me
Or were you just being kind?
Or am I losing
Losing my mind?

All afternoon
Doing every little chore

The thought of you stays bright.
Sometimes I stand in the middle of the floor

Not going left
Not going right.

Or am I losing my mind?
You said you loved me
Or were you just being kind?
Or am I losing my mind?
Or were you just being kind?
Or am I losing my mind?
Losing my mind

Losing my mind
Losing my mind.

Overall Meaning

In Bobby Short's song "Losing My Mind," the singer expresses intense longing for someone they love. The opening lines suggest that the person occupies the singer's thoughts first thing in the morning and throughout the day: "The sun comes up, I think about you, the coffee cup, I think about you." The repetition of the phrase "I think about you" emphasizes how consuming the longing for this person has become. The singer admits to wanting the person so much that they feel like they are losing their mind.

Throughout the song, the singer tries to distract themselves with mundane tasks like doing chores, but thoughts of the person they love persist: "All afternoon, doing every little chore, the thought of you stays bright." The song's refrain of "Or am I losing my mind?" suggests that the singer is questioning the reality of the situation. Did the person really love them, or were they just being kind? Is the longing driving the singer to madness?

Overall, "Losing My Mind" portrays the pain and confusion that can come with unrequited love. The singer is unable to escape their thoughts of the person they love, and this preoccupation is causing them emotional distress.

Losing My MindBobby Short Lyrics

Losing My Mind
Bobby Short Lyrics