Eva Marie Cassidy (February 2, 1963 in Washington, DC – November 2, 1996 in… Read Full Bio ↴Eva Marie Cassidy (February 2, 1963 in Washington, DC – November 2, 1996 in Bowie, Maryland) was an American vocalist described by the British newspaper The Guardian as "one of the greatest voices of her generation." She had a diverse repertoire of jazz, blues, folk, gospel and pop. Cassidy remained virtually unknown outside of her native Washington, DC, when she died of melanoma (which had spread to her bones) in 1996. Her posthumously released recordings have since sold in excess of four million copies, and in early 2001 the compilation album Songbird reached #1 on the UK album charts.

Eva Cassidy was the third of four children born to Hugh and Barbara Cassidy. From an early age, she displayed artistic and musical talent. When she was nine years old, her father taught her to play the guitar, and she began to play and sing at family gatherings.

While a student at Bowie High School, she did sing with a local band, called Stonehenge, and received considerable praise.

At the age of eighteen, Cassidy began her professional career, singing and playing guitar in a Washington, D.C., area band, called Easy Street. This band performed in a variety of styles, at weddings, corporate parties, and pubs.

During the summer of 1983, Cassidy sang and played guitar, six days per week, at Wild World, in Maryland. Her brother Dan was also a member of this working band.

Throughout the 1980s, Cassidy worked with a number of other bands, including the soul and Motown-oriented band The Honeybees, and the techno-pop band Characters Without Names, later called Method Actor.

During this period, Cassidy also worked as a propagator at a plant nursery and as a furniture painter in Annapolis, Maryland. In 1986, she met (bassist and recording engineer) Chris Biondo, who encouraged her and helped her find work as a backup singer for various acts. In 1990, Biondo and Cassidy hired the so-called "Eva Cassidy Band", composed of Chris Biondo, Lenny Williams, Keith Grimes and Raice McLeod, and she began to perform frequently in the Washington area.

In 1992, Biondo played a tape of Cassidy's voice for Chuck Brown. Best known as the "Godfather of Go-go", Brown is also a jazz and blues vocalist. This led to the first commercial recording of Cassidy, the duet album with Chuck Brown, The Other Side; which featured performances of classic songs such as "Fever", Billie Holiday's "God Bless the Child" and Cassidy's signature tune "Over the Rainbow". The album was released and distributed by Liaison Records, the label that also released Brown's Go-go albums. The duet CD attracted the attention of various record companies, but the offers all required Cassidy to pigeonhole herself within a single style (e.g., pop or jazz), something she adamantly refused to do.[citation needed]

In 1993 Eva Cassidy was first honored by the Washington area music community when she was awarded two Wammie awards for "Female Vocalist Roots/Traditional R&B" and "Vocalist Jazz/Traditional." The next year she was chosen to perform for the awards ceremony.

In January 1996, Cassidy recorded the album Live at Blues Alley, about which The Washington Post later commented that "she could sing anything and make it sound like the only music that mattered". [1] Cassidy was unhappy with her singing on the album, because she had a bad cold on the night of the recording; she began recording a studio album which was eventually released as Eva by Heart posthumously in 1997.

During a promotional event for the Live at Blues Alley CD in July 1996, Cassidy noticed an ache in her hips, which she attributed to stiffness from painting murals. The pain persisted, and, a few weeks later, Cassidy was diagnosed with melanoma. By the time of her diagnosis, the cancer had spread throughout her body. Cassidy's health rapidly deteriorated, and her final performance was in September 1996. At the performance, she had used a walker to reach the stage, sang "What a Wonderful World" in front of an audience of friends, and was subsequently admitted to Johns Hopkins Hospital.[citation needed]

Eva Cassidy died on November 2, 1996, at the age of 33. She was posthumously inducted into the Hall of Fame of the Washington Area Music Association.

Forever
Eva Cassidy Lyrics

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Open your eyes
I'm not far away
It won't be too much longer
Till I'm in your arms again
Oh to be with you
To be with you forever

When we're apart

I think of you and I
And those summer nights by the lakeside
I'd stare into your eyes
Oh to see through you
To see through you forever

Now now I won't ever be alone
Now now I won't ever be alone
'Cause your love's inside of me
And your heart is in my soul
I won't ever be alone

A winter storm freezes my heart
Until I'm there with you again
I can't break the ice apart
Oh to be with you
To be with you forever yeah

Now now I won't ever be alone
Now now I won't ever be alone
'Cause your love's inside of me
And your heart is in my soul
I won't ever be alone

Now now I won't ever be alone
Now now I won't ever be alone
'Cause your love's inside of me
And your heart is in my soul
I won't ever be alone

I won't ever be

I won't ever be alone
No no no

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Eva Cassidy's "Forever" depict a deep-seated longing to be reunited with a loved one. The song begins with the lines "Open your eyes, I'm not far away", which suggest that the singer's presence is not tangible but rather one that's felt through an emotional connection. The second verse then reveals that the two lovers were once together by the lakeside during summer nights, emphasizing that this yearning for companionship has existed before and lingers on. The line "Oh to see through you, to see through you forever" could suggest one of two things. Either the singer wants to understand their partner better or wants to have a lasting empathetic connection regardless of circumstances. The chorus shows that this yearning is now being expressed in the present moment, when the singer is facing the difficulties of a winter storm without their significant other. The lyrics show that they are unable to break the ice apart until they are reunited with their loved one, emphasizing their commitment to this relationship.

The pre-chorus "Now now I won't ever be alone/ 'Cause your love's inside of me/ And your heart is in my soul" further depicts this enduring emotional connection that even physical distance cannot shatter. The reference to the love being inside the singer, and the heart of their partner being in their soul hints at a deeper spiritual connection between the two, rather than just a physical desire to be together. The song ends with the lines "I won't ever be alone/ No no no", showing that this connection is something that's always present, regardless of distance or time.

Line by Line Meaning

Open your eyes
Please pay attention

I'm not far away
I am always nearby

It won't be too much longer
Soon enough we will reunite

Till I'm in your arms again
Until I can feel your loving embrace

Oh to be with you
How I long to be with you

To be with you forever
To stay connected for eternity

When we're apart
During separation

I think of you and I
I reflect on us

And those summer nights by the lakeside
I recall fond memories of our time together

I'd stare into your eyes
I looked deep into your being

Oh to see through you
To understand your complete essence