In 1928 (on his 25th birthday) Hines began leading his own big band. For over 10 years his was "The Band" in Al Capone's Grand Terrace Cafe — Hines was Capone's "Mr Piano Man". Hines recorded for Victor in 1929, then after a gap for Brunswick from 1932-1934, Decca from 1934-1935, then after another gap, Vocalion from 1937-1938 and Bluebird from 1939-1942 (nearly all among the best Black Jazz of the era). From the Grand Terrace, The Earl Hines Orchestra (or "Organization" as he more happily referred to it) broadcast on "open mikes", sometimes five nights a week and over many years, coast to coast across America — Chicago being well placed to deal with the U.S. live-broadcasting time-zone problem. Hines's band became the most broadcast band in America. Sometimes Nat "King" Cole was Hines's relief pianist (though Cliff Smalls was his favorite) and it was here with Hines that Charlie Parker got his first professional job...until he was fired for his time-keeping — by which Hines meant Parker's inability to show up on time despite Parker resorting to sleeping under the Grand Terrace stage in his attempts to do so. Hines led his big band until 1947, taking time out to front the Duke Ellington orchestra in 1944 while Duke was ill...but the big-band era was over. (Thirty years later, Hines's 20 solo "transformative versions" of his "Earl Hines Plays Duke Ellington" recorded in the 1970s were described by Ben Ratliff in the "New York Times" as "as good an example of the jazz process as anything out there".)
At the start of 1949 Hines rejoined Armstrong in the latter's "All Stars" "small band", where Hines stayed through 1951. He then led his own small combo around the States and Europe. At the start of the jazz-lean 1960s he settled in Oakland, California, opened a tobacconist's, and came close to giving up the profession. Then, in 1964 Hines was "suddenly rediscovered" following a series of concerts in New York. He was the 1965 "Critics' Choice" for Down Beat Magazine's "Hall of Fame". From then till he died he recorded endlessly both solo and with jazz notables like Cat Anderson, Buck Clayton, Roy Eldridge, Ella Fitzgerald, Paul Gonsalves, Sonny Greer, Lionel Hampton, Coleman Hawkins, Johnny Hodges, Budd Johnson, Jimmy Rushing, Stuff Smith, Sarah Vaughan, Joe Venuti and Ben Webster. Possibly more surprising were Elvin Jones, Peggy Lee, Charles Mingus, Dinah Washington — and Ry Cooder. But his most acclaimed recordings of this period were his dazzling and endlessly inventive solo performances, which could show him at his very best, "a whole orchestra by himself".[12] Solo tributes to Louis Armstrong, Hoagy Carmichael, Duke Ellington, Cole Porter, and George Gershwin were all put on record in the 1970s. Hines also toured Europe again regularly at this time, and added Asia, Australia and the Soviet Union to his list of State Department–funded destinations. At the top of his form, Hines also displayed his endearing quirks (not to say grunts) in these performances. Sometimes he sang as he played, especially his own "They Never Believed I Could Do It - Neither Did I". In 1975 he made an hour-long "solo" film for British TV out-of-hours in a Washington nightclub: the "New York Herald Tribune" described it as "The greatest jazz-film ever made". He played solo in The White House and played solo for the Pope — and played (and sang) his last job a few days before he died in Oakland, quite likely somewhat older than he had always maintained.
The One I Love Belongs To Someone Else
Earl Hines Lyrics
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And all my daydreams have gone astray
I think about the one and only
Who's bound to find me some golden day
The one I love is coming along some day
And I'll have none except the one I love
He/She may be near or ever so far away
And though our meeting is left to chance
Until our meeting
I still will have my dream romance
And through the night I pray to the moon above
To please be kind and find the one I love
Earl Hines's song, The One I Love Belongs To Someone Else, is all about unrequited love. The lyrics speak of longing and loneliness, with the singer daydreaming about the one they love. The singer finds comfort in the thought that the person they love will come to them someday, even though they may be far away. The lyrics convey a sense of hope that things will eventually work out, even if they do not know when or how.
The mood of the song is somber, with the instrumentation reflecting the bittersweet nature of the lyrics. The slow tempo combined with Hines's crooning voice creates an atmosphere of heartbreak that is palpable throughout the song. The lyrics show that even though the singer is experiencing a great deal of pain, they still have hope and believe that their love will eventually be reciprocated.
Overall, The One I Love Belongs To Someone Else is a poignant song that speaks to the human experience of unrequited love. Its timeless theme is still relevant today, and the song continues to resonate with listeners across generations.
Line by Line Meaning
When days are long and nights are lonely
During times of prolonged loneliness and solitude
And all my daydreams have gone astray
And all my fantasies have turned into disappointments
I think about the one and only
I think about the person who is my ultimate love interest
Who's bound to find me some golden day
Who is certain to come into my life and bring happiness some day
The one I love is coming along some day
I am very confident that the person I love will come to me someday
And I'll have none except the one I love
And I'll never be satisfied with anyone other than the one I love
He/She may be near or ever so far away
This person may be close to me or very far away geographically
But I'll have none except the one I love
I'll hold out for the one I love and never settle for someone else
And though our meeting is left to chance
Even though there is an element of luck involved in us meeting each other
Until our meeting
Until we meet each other
I still will have my dream romance
I'll still keep my romantic hopes and fantasies alive
And through the night I pray to the moon above
And during the night, I pray to the moon in the sky
To please be kind and find the one I love
Asking for divine intervention to bring the person I love into my life
Lyrics © Royalty Network, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Bronislaw Kaper, Gus Kahn, Walter Jurmann
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind