In the 1960s, McCallum recorded four albums for Capitol Records with music producer David Axelrod: Music...A Part of Me (Capitol ST 2432, 1966), Music...A Bit More of Me (Capitol ST 2498, 1966), Music...It's Happening Now! (Capitol ST 2651, 1967), and McCallum (Capitol ST 2748, 1968). The best known of his pieces today is "The Edge", which was sampled by Dr. Dre as the intro and riff to the track "The Next Episode", "M.I.A" by Missin' Linx, and "No Regrets" by Masta Ace.
McCallum did not sing on these records, as many television stars of the 1960s did when offered recording contracts. As a classically trained musician, he conceived a blend of oboe, English horn, and strings with guitar and drums, and presented instrumental interpretations of hits of the day. The official arranger on the albums was H. B. Barnum. However, McCallum conducted, and contributed several original compositions of his own, over the course of four LPs. The first two, Music...A Part of Me and Music...A Bit More of Me, have been issued together on CD on the Zonophone label. On Open Channel D, McCallum did sing on the first four tracks, "Communication", "House on Breckenridge Lane", "In The Garden, Under The Tree" (the theme song from the movie Three Bites of the Apple), and "My Carousel". The music tracks are the same as the Zonophone CD. This CD was released on the Rev-Ola label. The single release of "Communication" reached No. 32 in the UK Singles Chart in April 1966.
In recent years, McCallum gained renewed international recognition and popularity for his role as NCIS medical examiner Dr. Donald "Ducky" Mallard in the American television series NCIS.
The Shadow Of Your Smile
David McCallum Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
When you have gone
Will color all my dreams
And light the dawn
Look into my eyes my love and see
All the lovely things you are to me
It was far, too high
A teardrop kissed your lips
And so did I
Now when I remember spring
All the joys that love can bring
I will be remembering
The shadow of your smile
The Shadow of Your Smile is a song that reflects fond memories of a past connection that still lingers on. The first line of the song, "The shadow of your smile when you have gone," talks about the after-effects of a person's presence. Even though the person is no longer around, their memory hangs around like a shadow that colors every dream and brings light to the dawn. The lyrics then segue into a plea for the loved one to look into the singer's eyes and see how much they mean to them.
The following lines about the wistful star being too high is a metaphor for love being too distant and difficult to attain. The teardrop that kissed the loved one's lips represents their pain, which the singer shares by also kissing them. The final lines about remembering spring and the joys love brings bring back the memory of the loved one's smile, which is imprinted on the singer's mind forever.
Line by Line Meaning
The shadow of your smile
Even when you are not here, the thought of your smile fills my mind
When you have gone
When you are no longer with me
Will color all my dreams
Your absence will paint my dreams with melancholy
And light the dawn
Your memory will be the light that brings me hope every morning
Look into my eyes my love and see
I want you to really understand how much you mean to me
All the lovely things you are to me
I see so much beauty and goodness in you, my love
Our wistful little star
Our relationship was delicate and tender
It was far, too high
It seemed impossible to reach
A teardrop kissed your lips
We shared a moment of sadness together
And so did I
I cried with you, my love
Now when I remember spring
When I look back on the season of new beginnings
All the joys that love can bring
I remember all the wonderful moments we shared together
I will be remembering
I will never forget
The shadow of your smile
Your smile, which will forever be etched in my memory
Lyrics © Wixen Music Publishing, TuneCore Inc., BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Royalty Network, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Johnny Mandel, Paul Webster
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind