Washington was born Ruth Jones in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. As she was growing up in Chicago, she played piano and directed her church choir. Later, she studied in Walter Dyett's renowned music program at DuSable High School. For a while, she split her time between performing in clubs as Dinah Washington while singing and playing piano in Salle Martin's gospel choir as Ruth Jones.
Washington began performing in 1942 and soon joined Lionel Hampton's band. In 1943, she began recording for Keynote Records and released "Evil Gal Blues", her first hit. By 1955, she had released numerous hit songs on the R&B charts, including "Baby, Get Lost", "Trouble in Mind", "You Don't Know What Love Is" (arranged by Quincy Jones), and a cover of "Cold, Cold Heart" by Hank Williams. In 1958 she made a well-received appearance at the Newport Jazz Festival.
With "What a Diff'rence a Day Makes" 1959, Washington won a Grammy Award for Best Rhythm and Blues Performance; the song was her biggest hit, reaching #8 on the Billboard Hot 100. The commercially driven album of the same name, with its heavily reliance on strings and wordless choruses, was slammed by jazz and blues critics as being far too commercial, not keeping with her blues roots. Despite this, the album was a huge success and Washington continued to favor more commercial, pop-oriented songs rather than traditional blues and jazz songs. She also dealt in torch songs; her rendition of The Platters' "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes" was well-regarded.
She was married seven times, and divorced six times while having several lovers, including Quincy Jones, her young arranger. She was known to be imperious and demanding in real life, but audiences loved her. In London she once declared, "...there is only one heaven, one earth and one queen...Queen Elizabeth is an impostor", but the crowd loved it.
Dinah Washington died from an accidental overdose of diet pills and alcohol at the age of 39 in 1963.
Half As Much
Dinah Washington Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You wouldn't worry me half as much as you do
You're nice to me when there's no one else around
You only build me up to let me down
If you missed me half as much as I miss you
You wouldn't stay away half as much as you do
I know that I would never be this blue
You're nice to me when there's no one else around
You only build me up to let me down
If you missed me half as much as I miss you
You wouldn't stay away half as much as you do
I know that I would never be this blue
If you only loved me half as much as I love you
In Dinah Washington's Half as Much, the lyrics speak of unrequited love and the pain that comes with it. The singer expresses that she loves someone deeply and wishes they would love her back to the same extent. The song starts with the singer saying that if the person loved her half as much as she loves them, they would not worry her as much as they do. It can be inferred that the person's lack of affection is causing the singer stress and anxiety.
The lyrics in the second verse continue to express the same sentiment as the first. The singer sings that the person only seems interested in her when they are alone together and that they only build her up just to let her down. The chorus is then repeated which emphasizes the idea that if the person missed the singer half as much as she misses them, they would not stay away from her as much. The singer then further explains that she would not be as sad as she is if the person loved her back to the same extent.
Overall, the lyrics are a painful reminder of how hurtful unrequited love can be. The singer is devastated that the person she loves does not love her back and she can not help but wish they loved her at least half as much as she loves them.
Line by Line Meaning
If you loved me half as much as I love you
The amount of love I have for you is twice as much as the love you have for me.
You wouldn't worry me half as much as you do
Your constant worrying wouldn't bother me as much if you loved me more.
You're nice to me when there's no one else around
You only treat me well when we are alone, but not in public or in a group.
You only build me up to let me down
You give me false hope and then disappoint me.
If you missed me half as much as I miss you
I feel the pain of missing you twice as much as you do me.
You wouldn't stay away half as much as you do
You wouldn't stay away from me for so long if you missed me more.
I know that I would never be this blue
I am feeling very sad and depressed because I love you so much but you don't love me as much.
If you only loved me half as much as I love you
I wish you would love me as much as I love you, even if it is only half as much.
Writer(s): CURLEY WILLIAMS
Contributed by Jacob E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.