McRae was born in Harlem, New York, on the 8th April 1920, and studied piano as a child. As a teenager she came to the attention of Teddy Wilson and his wife, the composer Irene Kitchings Wilson. Through their influence, one of McRae’s early songs, "Dream of Life", was recorded by Wilson’s longtime collaborator Billie Holiday.
By the late 1940s she was well known among the modern jazz musicians who gathered at Minton's Playhouse, Harlem’s most famous jazz club, where she was the intermission pianist. But it was while working in Brooklyn that she came to the attention of Decca’s Milt Gabler. Her five year association with Decca yielded twelve LPs.
The musicians she sang with include Benny Carter, Mercer Ellington, Count Basie, Sammy Davis Jr, Dave Brubeck, and Louis Armstrong. She was married once (and briefly), to drummer Kenny Clarke.
McRae died on the 10th November 1994.
The Thrill Is Gone
Carmen McRae Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The thrill is gone
I can see it in your eyes
I can hear it in your sighs
Feel your touch and realize
The thrill is gone.
The nights are cold,
For love is old,
Birds were singin', skies were blue,
Now it gonna appeal to you
The thrill is gone.
This is the end,
So why pretend
And let it linger on?
The thrill is gone.
Now it gonna appeal to you,
The thrill is gone([Repeat x5].
Carmen McRae's song "The Thrill Is Gone" is a bluesy ballad that speaks about the end of a relationship that has lost its spark. Through the use of repetition, McRae stresses the point that the thrill of the relationship is gone. The lyrics "I can see it in your eyes, I can hear it in your sighs" indicate that the singer can sense her partner's lack of interest in the relationship. The line "Feel your touch and realize, the thrill is gone" suggests that even physical intimacy is no longer satisfying or stimulating.
The second stanza of the song describes how love was once grand, but now it is old and the nights are cold. McRae uses the imagery of birds singing and blue skies to convey how happy the relationship once was. However, now that the relationship has lost its excitement, it no longer appeals to her partner, and the thrill is gone. The final stanza is a plea for the relationship to end instead of pretending that it still has any vitality.
Overall, Carmen McRae's "The Thrill Is Gone" is a poignant reflection on a relationship that has lost its passion and excitement. Through her heartfelt singing and simple yet effective lyrics, McRae captures the sadness and frustration of a love gone cold.
Line by Line Meaning
The thrill is gone
The excitement and passion in our relationship has faded away.
I can see it in your eyes
Your eyes reflect the lack of enthusiasm in our relationship.
I can hear it in your sighs
Your heavy sighs express your dissatisfaction with our relationship.
Feel your touch and realize
When I touch you, I realize that the spark in our relationship is gone.
The nights are cold
Without the warmth of our love, the nights feel cold and lonely.
For love is old
Our love has lost its freshness and spontaneity.
Love was grand when love was new
Our love was exciting and exhilarating in the beginning.
Birds were singin', skies were blue
The world was full of wonder and joy when our love was fresh and new.
Now it gonna appeal to you
The thrill of our relationship no longer appeals to you.
This is the end
Our relationship has come to an end.
So why pretend
There's no point in pretending that our love is still alive.
And let it linger on?
Why prolong the inevitable end of our relationship?
The thrill is gone
The excitement, passion, and thrill in our relationship has completely disappeared.
Now it gonna appeal to you
The thrill of our relationship no longer appeals to you.
The thrill is gone
The spark, excitement, and passion in our relationship has vanished completely.
The thrill is gone
Our relationship has lost its charm, and there's no turning back.
The thrill is gone
The absence of excitement, passion, and wonder has brought our relationship to an end.
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: LEW BROWN, RAY HENDERSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind