Day's film career began during the latter part of the Classical Hollywood Film era with the 1948 film Romance on the High Seas, and its success sparked her twenty-year career as a motion picture actress. She starred in a series of successful films, including musicals, comedies, and dramas. She played the title role in Calamity Jane (1953), and starred in Alfred Hitchcock's The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956) with James Stewart. Her most successful films were the bedroom comedies she made co-starring Rock Hudson and James Garner, such as Pillow Talk (1959) and Move Over, Darling (1963), respectively. She also co-starred in films with such leading men as Clark Gable, Cary Grant, David Niven, and Rod Taylor. After her final film in 1968, she went on to star in the CBS sitcom The Doris Day Show (1968–1973).
Day was usually one of the top ten singers between 1951 and 1966. As an actress, she became the biggest female film star in the early 1960s, and ranked sixth among the box office performers by 2012. In 2011, she released her 29th studio album, My Heart, which became a UK Top 10 album featuring new material. Among her awards, Day has received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and a Legend Award from the Society of Singers. In 1960, she was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress, and in 1989 was given the Cecil B. DeMille Award for lifetime achievement in motion pictures. In 2004, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George W. Bush followed in 2011 by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association's Career Achievement Award. She was one of the last surviving stars of the Golden Age of Hollywood.
Her death was announced by her charity, the Doris Day Animal Foundation, on Monday 13th May 2019.
Discography
chart hits
Year Title Chart Positions
US CB UK
1945 "Sentimental Journey" (w/ Les Brown) 1 — —
"My Dreams Are Getting Better All the Time" (w/ Les Brown) 1 — —
"'Tain't Me" (w/ Les Brown) 10 — —
"Till the End of Time" (w/ Les Brown) 3 — —
"Aren't You Glad You're You?" (w/ Les Brown) 11 — —
"Come to Baby Do" (w/ Les Brown) / 13 — —
1946 "You Won't Be Satisfied (Until You Break My Heart)" (w/ Les Brown) 4 — —
"Day by Day" (w/ Les Brown) 15 — —
"I Got the Sun in the Mornin' (and the Moon at Night)" (w/ Les Brown) 10 — —
"The Whole World Is Singing My Song" (w/ Les Brown) 6 — —
1947 "The Christmas Song" (w/ Les Brown) 12 — —
"Sooner or Later" (w/ Les Brown) 13 — —
"Papa, Won't You Dance With Me" 21 — —
1948 "Thoughtless" (w/ Modernaires) 24 — —
"Love Somebody" (w/ Buddy Clark) / 1 — —
"Confess" (w/ Buddy Clark) 16 — —
"Put 'em in a Box, Tie 'em with a Ribbon, and Throw 'em in the Deep Blue Sea" / 27 — —
"It's Magic" 2 — —
"My Darling, My Darling" (w/ Buddy Clark) 7 — —
1949 "Powder Your Face with Sunshine" (w/ Buddy Clark) 16 — —
"Again" 2 — —
"Everywhere You Go" 22 — —
"Let's Take an Old-Fashioned Walk" (w/ Frank Sinatra) 17 — —
"Now That I Need You" 20 — —
"Canadian Capers" 15 — —
"Bluebird on Your Windowsill" 19 — —
1950 "Quicksilver" 20 — —
"I Said My Pajamas (and Put on My Prayers)" 21 — —
"Enjoy Yourself (It's Later than You Think)" 24 — —
"Hoop-Dee-Doo" 17 — —
"Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered" 9 — —
"I Didn't Slip, I Wasn't Pushed, I Fell" 19 — —
"A Bushel and a Peck" 16 — —
1951 "It's a Lovely Day Today" 30 — —
"Would I Love You (Love You, Love You)" 10 — —
"Shanghai" 7 — —
"Domino" 21 — —
1952 "A Guy Is a Guy" 1 — —
"Sugarbush" (w/ Frankie Laine) 7 12 8
"When I Fall in Love" 20 — —
"No Two People" (w/ Donald O'Connor) 25 — —
"My Love and Devotion" — 31 10
"The Cherries" — 39 —
"A Full Time Job" (w/ Johnnie Ray) / 20 21 11
"Ma Says, Pa Says" (w/ Johnnie Ray) 23 28 12
1953 "Mister Tap Toe" 10 11 —
"When the Red, Red Robin (Comes Bob, Bob, Bobbin' Along)" 29 — —
"Candy Lips" (w/ Johnnie Ray) / 17 18 —
"Let's Walk That-a-Way" (w/ Johnnie Ray) — 31 4
"Kiss Me Again, Stranger" / 30 — —
"A Purple Cow" 25 — —
"Choo Choo Train (Ch-Ch-Foo) 20 — —
1954 "Secret Love" 1 1 1
"The Black Hills of Dakota" — — 7
"Lost in Loveliness" — 25 —
"I Speak to the Stars" 16 17 —
"Someone Else's Roses" — 32 —
"If I Give My Heart to You" / 3 2 4
"Anyone Can Fall in Love" 27 41 —
"Ready, Willing, and Able" / — 31 7
"Hold Me in Your Arms" — 39 —
1955 "Foolishly Yours" — 25 —
"Love Me Or Leave Me" — — 20
"I'll Never Stop Loving You" 13 14 17
"Ooh Bang Jiggily Jang" 83 — —
1956 "Let It Ring" 51 — —
"Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be)" 2 3 1
"Julie" / 64 40 —
"Love in a Home" 79 — —
"The Party's Over" 63 47 —
1957 "Twelve O'Clock Tonight" 68 — —
1958 "Teacher's Pet" 56 36 —
"A Very Precious Love" — — 16
"Everybody Loves a Lover" 6 6 25
"Tunnel of Love" 43 53 —
1959 "Love Me in the Daytime" 100 51 —
1960 "Any Way the Wind Blows" 50 109 —
"Please Don't Eat the Daisies" 102 102 —
"A Perfect Understanding" 111 — —
1962 "Lover Come Back" 98 — —
1964 "Move Over Darling" — — 8
"Send Me No Flowers" 135 — —
1967 "Sorry" * — — —
* "Sorry" made the US AC charts at #19.
Albums
10" LP
You're My Thrill (1949)
Young Man with a Horn (1950, soundtrack with Harry James)
Tea for Two (1950, soundtrack)
Lullaby of Broadway (1951, soundtrack)
On Moonlight Bay (1951, soundtrack)
I'll See You in My Dreams (1951, soundtrack)
By the Light of the Silvery Moon (1953, soundtrack)
Calamity Jane (1953, soundtrack)
Young at Heart (1954, soundtrack with Frank Sinatra)
12" LPs
Love Me or Leave Me (1955, soundtrack)
Day Dreams (1955, expanded re-issue of You're My Thrill)
Day By Day (1956)
The Pajama Game (1957, soundtrack)
Day by Night (1957)
Hooray for Hollywood (2 volumes, 1958)
Cuttin' Capers (1959)
What Every Girl Should Know (1960)
Show Time (1960)
Listen to Day (1960)
Bright and Shiny (1961)
I Have Dreamed (1961)
Duet (with André Previn, 1962)
You'll Never Walk Alone (1962)
Billy Rose's Jumbo (1962, soundtrack with film cast)
Annie Get Your Gun (1963, with Robert Goulet)
Love Him (1963)
The Doris Day Christmas Album (1964)
With a Smile and a Song (1964)
Latin for Lovers (1965)
Doris Day's Sentimental Journey (1965)
The Love Album (recorded in 1967, released in 1994)
My Heart (2011)
Singles
Hit records:
(with Les Brown's Band of Renown)
"Sentimental Journey"
5,000,000+ sales
"My Dreams Are Getting Better All The Time"
1,000,000+ sales
(As a solo performer)
"It's Magic"
1,000,000+ sales
"Again"
"Love Somebody" (duet with Buddy Clark)
1,000,000+ sales
"Confess" (duet with Buddy Clark) (also done by Patti Page)
"Bewitched"
1,000,000+ sales
"Shanghai"
"Sugarbush" (duet with Frankie Laine)
1,000,000+ sales
"Mister Tap Toe"
"Secret Love"
1,000,000+ sales
"If I Give My Heart to You" (also done by Denise Lor)
"I'll Never Stop Loving You"
1,000,000+ sales
"Whatever Will Be, Will Be (Que Sera, Sera)" ("Que Sera, Sera")
1,000,000+ sales
"Everybody Loves a Lover"
"Move Over Darling"
If I Could Be With You One Hour Tonight
Doris Day Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
All day through, I seem to say to you,
I did wrong when I let you go away,
'Cause now I dream about you night and day,
I'm so unhappy and dissatisfied
I'll be happy if I had you by my side,
If I could be with you one li'l hour tonight,
I want you to know you wouldn't go,
Until I told you that I loved you so.
If I could be with you I'd love you long,
If I could be with you I'd love you strong,
And I'm telling you for true, you'd be anything but blue,
If I could be with you
The lyrics to Doris Day's song "If I Could Be With You One Hour Tonight" speak of a longing for a lost lover. The singer is consumed with sadness and regret for letting their partner go. The lyrics suggest that the singer is constantly thinking about their former lover and spends their days wishing they could be reunited. The singer's regret for their actions is reflected in the line, "I did wrong when I let you go away."
The chorus of the song is where the singer's intense desire to be with their former partner is most evident. The singer longs to be with their partner for just one hour, to be free to do all those little things they might have done if they were together. The singer wants their partner to know that they love them and that they wouldn't let them go until they had heard it. The chorus culminates with the singer expressing their desire to love their partner for a long time, "If I could be with you I'd love you long, If I could be with you I'd love you strong."
The song is an emotional plea for a second chance at love, and the lyrics paint a vivid picture of the singer's longing for their former partner.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm so blue, I don't know what to do,
I am feeling sad and lost, and I don't know how to shake it off.
All day through, I seem to say to you,
All day long, my thoughts and words revolve around you.
I did wrong when I let you go away,
I regret my mistake of letting you go away.
'Cause now I dream about you night and day,
My constant dreams of you haunt me both during the day and night.
I'm so unhappy and dissatisfied
My life feels unfulfilled and unsatisfied without you.
I'll be happy if I had you by my side,
My happiness hinges entirely on having you by my side.
If I could be with you one li'l hour tonight,
Even just one hour with you is all I wish for right now.
And free to do all those little things I might,
During that hour, I want to be free to do all the small things that would make me happy.
I want you to know you wouldn't go,
I want you to realize that you don't have to leave yet.
Until I told you that I loved you so.
I want to express my deep and true love for you before you go.
If I could be with you I'd love you long,
If only I had the chance to be with you, I would love you for a long time.
If I could be with you I'd love you strong,
My love for you would be powerful and unwavering if we were together.
And I'm telling you for true, you'd be anything but blue,
I promise that being with me would make you anything but sad or 'blue'.
If I could be with you
If only I could have you in my life again.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Trombonology Erstwhile
Beautiful rendition! Doris' delicate delivery is matched by this quiet arrangement. When this oldie was new, I think it was more often treated as a ballad, like here, but then it became a jazz vehicle and often received more boisterous interpretations -- some of them great.
Ser Listogiette
@Trombonology Erstwhile Oh that were their names. That is great to know all this was great to know. I thought the taller one maybe was the younger one because he looked at his feet more it seemed. Well that puts it to rest. The times were truly fascinating and I think the style and fashion were dazzling. I just read about Ray's full life well not entirely but it have me a lot of insight. And good news I found my singing voice again! Sometimes I lose it and am stuck for a while but I have it now. To be honest I can only sing older musics I cannot sing modern stuff because well in my opinion older music had more flavor in it, such as skill amd variety. I am unsure but today it seems music is more spoken like regular words than actual singing well at least in some songs or I do not know. It is a hard opinion.
Trombonology Erstwhile
@Ser Listogiette I think of the voice as an instrument. It takes just as much time and practice to learn to control it and use it properly as it does to master an instrument, so I would never feel lacking in concentrating on singing. Yes, there were some instrumentalists who were also good singers, like Tex and Woody Herman, but in the big band days, I think most of the best singers concentrated on that, even if they had the ability to play, too. I play guitar in the swing style, but I enjoy singing just for fun and really admire those who are very good at it. I can sing in tune (not everybody can say that) and harmonize well, but I have a limited range -- being female and having a low alto voice, about the only big band singer whose notes I can consistently hit is Tommy Dorsey's Edythe Wright; sometimes Peggy Lee. My favorite is Jo Stafford, but I can't begin to reach her range. Too, she was one of the best trained pop singers of her era. One thing I think is important to remember is that all good singers of the Big Band Era were trying to sound like instruments -- and all good musicians were trying to sound like singers. They made an effort to mimic each others' phrasing -- Sinatra copied Tommy Dorsey's breathing and TD made all his notes come across as actual words. I think that being aware of this exchange helps us develop our own musical talents. ... I feel exactly the same way as you in watching the Miller movies. The guys in the band all seem to have been having a great time. The '30's and '40's are by far my favorite period in history from a musical standpoint, and I would love to have experienced that time for the music, fun and fashion. ... The taller Nicholas brother, Fayard, was older; Harold was about six-and-a-half years younger. Fayard did outlive Harold by six years, though. They were incredibly talented!
Ser Listogiette
@Trombonology Erstwhile Haha I tried singing and right now my voice is stuck in younger Ray Eberle mode so I cannot sing all that I want too well. My voice goes up and down and all around and sometimes even it is hard to do vibrato or certain letters my throat just gets stuck, like a rock is in there. And also I have to clear my throat a lot I do not know if it is a me thing but when I talk or do anything vocally my throat gets clogged up constantly. Sorry if that was a bit gross too. I listen to a lot of old covers constantly. I wish I could play an instrument too so I could really feel like one of those performers. Bing said back in his day everyone was a two-way musician, a player and a singer. I can do Tex on his parts of songs pretty well and generally find the stereo versions easier because the pitches are lowered but at a time like this stuck in my bit higher range I can sing the "live" recording footage which seems more accurate to how it actually sounds. I fall in love with one song after another it just sounds all so lovely. I wish I could have asked my grandparents about it. My grandma was 6 during WW2 so she would have been a prime young lady in those days. Aw darn. I wish I could maybe sing in a band or play with one or an orchestra and maybe travel to different schools and share the music or different events. But I have other good dreams too. I want to maybe learn how to direct an orchestra my band friends says Glenn sometimes just does basically nothing meaningful with his hands because the band knows it but I like trying to follow along anyways. Especially hm "I Know Why And So Do You" in Sun Valley Serenade the and the two songs featured in Orchestra Wives you get some shots. They seemed so happy sometimes in the back of film you see them goofing around while the song is going or making faces at eachother and laughing or smiling. I hope they were happy. Like in "Chattanooga Choo Choo" One sax guy mouths something to Tex in the footage and he tries not to laugh while he smiles. I also like some of the outfits I can see some for modern day use and I can understand why not so much for others. I have a dress suit and a handkerchief for choir performances. I maybe want to learn tap dancing too like the Nicholas Brothers but I heard the older brother taught the younger brother but I have no clue which one either is. And that is probably one of the best ways to learn such a thing...
Trombonology Erstwhile
@Ser Listogiette Yes, Tex's style was a nice contrast with Ray's. In those days, most of the bands had a "crooner" for the romantic tunes and a so-called "rhythm" singer for the faster-tempoed and novelty numbers. Tex had a lot of personality in his singing -- and whistling. I think it's great that you take such a keen interest in the Miller band, one of the best ever!
Ser Listogiette
@Trombonology Erstwhile Absolutely stunning they were. I THOUGHT I knew good whistling but then Tex oowee just leaves you stunned. Also these songs made me realize I like vibrato and after about a month and a half I was able to do vibrato quite neatly if I say so myself. I wrote an informative essay on Glenn Miller and the Glenn Miller orchestra along with the song "Moonlight Serenade" but in this one Ray Eberle did the vocals and I have heard quite a few so I am sorry of I do not know exact details.
Jannetje Bicker
I never heard this song before! I Iove Doris Day and this song!☺️👏♥️🌹☺️🌺👏