Born Denise Eileen Garrett in Memphis, Tennessee, she grew up in Flint, Michigan. Her father, Matthew Garrett, was a jazz trumpeter and teacher at Manassas High School, and through his playing, Denise was exposed to jazz early on. At the age of sixteen, she was a member of a rock and rhythm'n'blues trio, singing in clubs in Michigan. At 18, she studied at Michigan State University before she went to the University of Illinois. With their jazz band, she toured the Soviet Union in 1969. The next year, she met trumpeter Cecil Bridgewater, and after their marriage, they moved to New York City, where Cecil played in Horace Silver's band.
In 1971, Dee Dee Bridgewater joined the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra as the lead vocalist. The next years marked the beginning of her jazz career, and she performed with many of the great jazz musicians of the time, such as Sonny Rollins, Dizzy Gillespie, Dexter Gordon, Max Roach, and others. In 1974, her first own album, entitled Afro Blue, appeared, and she also performed on Broadway in the musical The Wiz. For her role as Glinda the Good Witch she won a Tony Award in 1975 as "best-featured actress", and the musical also won the 1976 Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album.
She subsequently appeared in several other stage productions. After touring France in 1984 with the musical Sophisticated Ladies, she moved to Paris in 1986. The same year saw her in Lady Day as Billie Holliday, for which role she was nominated for the Laurence Olivier Award. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, she returned from the world of musical to jazz. She performed at the Montreux Jazz Festival in 1990, and four years later, she finally collaborated with Horace Silver, whom she had admired for a long time, and released the album Love and Peace: A Tribute to Horace Silver. Her 1997 tribute album Dear Ella won her the 1998 Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album, and the 1998 album Live at Yoshi's was also worth a Grammy nomination. She has also explored on This is New the songs of Kurt Weill, and, on her latest album J'ai Deux Amours, the French Classics.
Dee Dee Bridgewater is the first American to be inducted to the Haut Conseil de la Francophonie. She has received the Award of Arts and Letters in France.
Dee Dee Bridgewater is mother to three children, Tulani Bridgewater (from her marriage to Cecil Bridgewater), China Moses (from her marriage to theater, film and television director Gilbert Moses) and Gabriel Durand (from her current marriage to French concert promoter Jean-Marie Durand).
Autumn Leaves
Dee Dee Bridgewater Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The autumn leaves of red and gold
I see your lips, the summer kisses
The sun-burned hands I used to hold
Since you went away the days grow long
And soon I'll hear old winter's song
But I miss you most of all my darling
C'est une chanson, qui nous ressemble
Toi tu m'aimais et je t'aimais
Nous vivions tous deux ensemble
Toi qui m'aimais moi qui t'aimais
Mais la vie separe ceux qui s'aiment
Tout doucement sans faire de bruit
Et la mer efface sur le sable les pas des amants desunis
Dee Dee Bridgewater's rendition of "Autumn Leaves" is a beautiful interpretation of the classic French song "Les Feuilles Mortes." The song captures the melancholic feeling of autumn, as the leaves fall from the trees and serve as a reminder of love lost. The singer looks out the window and sees the colorful falling leaves, and they reminisce about the summer kisses and sun-burned hands of a past lover. The singer is longing for their lover, who has gone away, and as winter approaches, they feel the loneliness growing stronger.
The French section of the song adds another layer of depth to the story. The two lovers, who were once inseparable, have been separated by life's circumstances. The lines "Mais la vie separe ceux qui s'aiment tout doucement sans faire de bruit" roughly translate to "But life separates those who love each other, slowly and silently." The metaphor of the sea erasing the footprints of separated lovers on the sand adds to the feeling of loss and finality.
Overall, Bridgewater's interpretation of "Autumn Leaves" is a poignant portrayal of the universal experience of love and loss.
Line by Line Meaning
The falling leaves drift by the window
The beautiful autumn leaves gently float by the window, adding a sad and beautiful touch to the surroundings.
The autumn leaves of red and gold
The leaves have a stunning combination of red and gold colors, signifying the passage of time and beauty in inevitable change.
I see your lips, the summer kisses
I can vividly recall your lips and our passionate summer love.
The sun-burned hands I used to hold
As I look at my own sun-burnt hands, I can't believe I used to hold yours and feel the warmth of your skin.
Since you went away the days grow long
Life without you seems to last forever and every day seems to linger on.
And soon I'll hear old winter's song
The longing for you will only grow stronger as the depressing winter approaches.
But I miss you most of all my darling
Of everything that reminds me of you, the autumn leaves are the hardest and bring back the fondest memories.
When autumn leaves start to fall
The leaves mark the transition of seasons and symbolize the bittersweet memories of our love.
Ce'st une chanson qui nous ressemble
This song represents us and is a reflection of our love and the sadness of our parting.
Toi tu m'aimais et je t'aimais
You loved me and I loved you.
Nous vivions tous deux ensemble
We once lived together, sharing every aspect of our lives.
Toi qui m'aimais, moi qui t'aimais
Our love was mutual and intense, but we were unable to overcome life's challenges.
Mais la vie separe ceux qui s'aiment
Life has a way of separating those who deeply love each other, causing intense heartbreak and sorrow.
Tout doucement sans faire de bruit
The separation happens slowly and silently, without warning or sound.
Et la mer efface sur le sable les pas des amants desunis
Just like how the sea waves erase the footsteps of two lovers who have parted ways, our love too has faded away with time.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Valentina Malorgio
Je voudrais tant que tu te souviennes
Des jours heureux où nous étions amis
En ce temps là, la vie était si belle
Et les souvenirs plus brûlants qu'aujourd'hui
Les feuilles mortes se rammassent à la pelle
Tu vois, je n'ai pas oublié
Les feuilles mortes se rammassent à la pelle
Les souvenirs et les regrets aussi
Mais le vent de nord les emporte dans la nuit froide de l'oubli
Tu vois, je n'ai pas oublié
La chanson que tu me chantais
The autumn leaves drift by my window
The falling leaves of red and gold....
I see your face, the summer kisses
The sunburned hands, I used to hold
Since you went away, the days grow long
And soon I'll hear ol' winter's song.
But I miss you most of all, my darling,
When autumn leaves start to fall.
The autumn leaves drift by my window
The falling leaves of red and gold....
I see your face, the summer kisses
The sunburned hands, I used to hold
Since you went away, the days grow long
And soon I'll hear ol' winter's song.
But I miss you most of all, my darling,
When autumn leaves start to fall.
Dave Stahl
Stunningly beautiful rendition. The band kicks ass, too!
Reza Badei
Exquisite voice & performance by her and her band! <3 from San Diego, CA <3
jean-claude LASSERRE
cette chanson a été reprise par tellement de grands artistes que l'on en oublie qu'elles est l'oeuvre de Wladimir Kosma et jacques PREVERT deux immenses artistes français... juste pour rappel...
Michelle Brosnahan
Sublime. I wish she did more jazz standards in this style. Maybe I just can't find them?
Dave Stahl
Maybe my favorite rendition of a song that has been played to death by those of lesser talents. Kind of like the jazz version of Moonlight Sonata, it is tres belle when performed by a master! Tierry Eliez is incredible on piano, too. Great ensemble work.
mougouch
Absolutely beautiful!
Glenda Davis
PURE ELEGANCE
🌼🦋🥀🌼🦋🥀🌼🦋🥀
Valentina Malorgio
Je voudrais tant que tu te souviennes
Des jours heureux où nous étions amis
En ce temps là, la vie était si belle
Et les souvenirs plus brûlants qu'aujourd'hui
Les feuilles mortes se rammassent à la pelle
Tu vois, je n'ai pas oublié
Les feuilles mortes se rammassent à la pelle
Les souvenirs et les regrets aussi
Mais le vent de nord les emporte dans la nuit froide de l'oubli
Tu vois, je n'ai pas oublié
La chanson que tu me chantais
The autumn leaves drift by my window
The falling leaves of red and gold....
I see your face, the summer kisses
The sunburned hands, I used to hold
Since you went away, the days grow long
And soon I'll hear ol' winter's song.
But I miss you most of all, my darling,
When autumn leaves start to fall.
The autumn leaves drift by my window
The falling leaves of red and gold....
I see your face, the summer kisses
The sunburned hands, I used to hold
Since you went away, the days grow long
And soon I'll hear ol' winter's song.
But I miss you most of all, my darling,
When autumn leaves start to fall.
Katheryn Fasola
Ah, it was magnificent to see the autumn leaves in Michigan with you my beloved!
james sholtz
We will again.