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).
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Dee Dee Bridgewater Lyrics
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Bringing back sweet memories
Hey windowpane do you remember
How sweet it used to be
When we were together
Everything was so grand
Oh, there's one sound that I just can't stand
I can't stand the rain against my window
Bringing back sweet memories
I can't stand that rain, oh on my window
'Cause he's not here with me
Alone with the pillow
Where his head used to lay
I know you've got some sweet memories
But like a window you ain't got nothin' to say
I can't stand the rain
Now, now, now
I can't stand the rain against my window
Bringing back sweet memories
I can't stand the rain against my window
It just keeps on hauntin' me
Hey, rain, rain, get out off of my window
'Cause he ain't here with me
Rain, rain go away
Come again another day
I don't know what I'm gonna do
But I'm gonna figure it out without you
Rain, rain get on out
Rain, rain hear the shout
I goin' on, I'm movin' on, I'm gonna be me
I'm gonna, gonna, gonna, gonna set myself free, oh
The Dee Dee Bridgewater song "I Can't Stand the Rain" is a melancholic ballad about heartbreak and the pain of remembering times gone by. The lyrics describe the sound of rain hitting a window as a painful reminder of a lost love. The song starts with the singer expressing how the rain against her window brings back sweet memories, memories that were made together with her former partner. As she reminisces, she asks the windowpane if it also remembers how sweet it was when they were together. However, now that they have parted ways, she cannot stand the sound of rain against her window, as it reminds her of the times they spent together, and how much she misses him.
In the chorus, she repeats the phrase "I can't stand the rain against my window" multiple times, emphasizing her longing for her lost love. She speaks of the pillow where his head used to lay and the memories it holds. However, unlike the pillow, the window has nothing to say. The song ends on a hopeful note, with the singer telling the rain to go away and declaring her plan to move on and set herself free.
Overall, Dee Dee Bridgewater's poignant lyrics use the metaphor of rain hitting a window to depict the contrast between the beauty of a past relationship and the sadness of its ending. The "windowpane" can represent either the singer herself, as she opens up to her listeners, or her former lover, whom she is addressing as if he were still there.
Line by Line Meaning
I can't stand the rain 'gainst my window
The sound of rain hitting my window is unbearable
Bringing back sweet memories
It reminds me of the good times we had
Hey windowpane do you remember
Window, do you recall?
How sweet it used to be
How wonderful things were between us
When we were together
During the time we spent together
Everything was so grand
The quality of our relationship was excellent
But now that we've parted
Since we've gone our separate ways
Oh, there's one sound that I just can't stand
The sound of rain against my window now that you're gone
Alone with the pillow
I am by myself in bed
Where his head used to lay
Where his head used to rest
I know you've got some sweet memories
I am aware that you hold some pleasant memories
But like a window you ain't got nothin' to say
But you, like a window, can not speak
Hey, rain, rain, get out off of my window
Rain, please leave my window
'Cause he ain't here with me
Because he is not here with me
Rain, rain go away
Rain, please depart
Come again another day
Come back another time
I don't know what I'm gonna do
I am uncertain about what I will do
But I'm gonna figure it out without you
But I will find a solution without you
Rain, rain get on out
Rain, please depart
Rain, rain hear the shout
Rain, listen to my plea
I goin' on, I'm movin' on, I'm gonna be me
I am going forward, I am leaving you behind, I will be myself
I'm gonna, gonna, gonna, gonna set myself free, oh
I will break free from you
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Ann Peebles, Bernard Miller, Don Bryant
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
DELLGOTIT
THE BAND
Sharisse Norman: Vocals
Shontelle Norman-Beatty: Vocals
Carlos Sargent: Drums
Barry Campbell: Bass Guitar
Charlton Johnson: Lead Guitar
Dell Smith: Keyboard
Curtis Pulliam: Trumpet
Bryant Lockhart: Tenor Sax
Rita Kubiak
You ain't nothing but a hound dog
Been snoopin' 'round the door
You ain't nothing but a hound dog
Been snoopin' 'round my door
You can wag your tail
But I ain't gonna feed you no more
You told me you was high class
But I could see through that
Yes, you told me you was high class
But I could see through that
And daddy I know
You ain't no real cool cat
You ain't nothing but a hound dog
Been snoopin' 'round the door
You're just an old hound dog
Been snoopin' 'round my door
You can wag your tail
But I ain't gonna feed you no more
You made me feel so blue
You made me weep and moan
You made me feel so blue
Well you made me weep and moan
'Cause you ain't looking for a woman
All you're lookin' for is a home
You ain't nothing but a hound dog
Been snoopin' 'round the door
You ain't nothing but a hound dog
Been snoopin' 'round my door
You can wag your tail
But I ain't gonna feed you no more
DELLGOTIT
We had a BLAST recording this! Big thanks to all the staff at NPR!
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Bernhard Lohr
Dee Dee Bridgewater ..always fantastic !
She is sooooo good in Jazz,Blues,Soul...
Very nice gig !
Thanks !
DDB years ago seen live in Germany...it was brilliant !!
B.L., Germany
Julie Jensen
Luv her!
Crystal Harris-Thomas
Dee Dee you've still that that soulful touch. You are like a glass of wine. Do your thing sistah!
Michael Bruchas
Love her! Like her stuff with the folks at Jazz at Lincoln Center...what a talent!
Thuan Vu
Dee Dee was the special guests last night at the Blue Note Jazz bar, she absolutely killed it
Phillie_B_30
Not one misplaced note!
Splendid performance from everyone!!
My soul feels amazing after listening to this!!!