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.
It's Not The Presents Under My Tree
Eva Cassidy Lyrics
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Everyone's filled with the season's good cheer
This is my Christmas love song to you
For your holiday spirit all the year through
Snow may not fall but it matters not
The one thing I want I've already got
'Cause it's not the presents under my tree
Gifts wrapped with ribbons don't mean a thing
My greatest gift is I'll wear your ring
To see in your eyes and what's in your heart
That's to know we'll never be apart
And to share each day of the year with you
Makes all my Christmas dreams come true
'Cause it's not the presents under my tree
It's your presence right here next to me
Yes that means more than a Christmas of white
Colored lights twinkling ever so bright
And when they sing of that Christmas of blue
I feel so fortunate santa brought you
Each day of the year you brighten my life
And I thank the Lord on this Christmas Eve night
'Cause it's not the presents under my tree
It's your presence right here next to me
I don't look for presents under my tree
Only your presence right here next to me
The lyrics to Eva Cassidy's "It's Not The Presents Under My Tree" convey a heartfelt message about the true meaning of Christmas. Despite the flashy decorations and piled-up gifts, the singer states that what matters most is having her love next to her. The song emphasizes the importance of relationships and companionship over material objects in a world that often puts so much stock in consumer goods. The lyrics also express gratitude for the love shared with her significant other, saying that their dedication to each other lasts throughout the year and makes all her Christmas dreams come true.
The words of this song embody Eva Cassidy's signature style of delivering simple, honest music to tap into the emotions of listeners. Recognizing the value of love over consumerism, the song offers a comforting message for those who feel lost in the center of the consumerist madness that comes with the holiday season. This song is a reminder that the beauty of the holiday season comes from the people in our lives that we hold dear, rather than the material things we give and receive. With its catchy tune and sentimental message, it's impossible to not feel the spirit of the holidays in this song.
Line by Line Meaning
Here it is Christmas again this year
It's that time of the year called Christmas again, just like it happens every year.
Everyone's filled with the season's good cheer
People are happy and excited because it's the season of Christmas.
This is my Christmas love song to you
I wrote this song to express my love for you during Christmas.
For your holiday spirit all the year through
I hope that your holiday joy and cheer can last throughout the year.
Snow may not fall but it matters not
Even if it doesn't snow, it doesn't matter because there's something more important than that.
The one thing I want I've already got
I already have what I really want and need.
'Cause it's not the presents under my tree
The real gift that I value is not the ones wrapped and placed under the Christmas tree.
It's your presence right here next to me
It's the fact that you are here with me that makes me happy and fulfilled.
Gifts wrapped with ribbons don't mean a thing
The material presents that are wrapped and decorated with ribbons are not important to me.
My greatest gift is I'll wear your ring
The most precious gift that I can receive from you is to be your partner for life.
To see in your eyes and what's in your heart
What truly matters to me is to be able to understand and connect with your emotions and desires.
That's to know we'll never be apart
Knowing that we will always be together is the most reassuring feeling I can have.
And to share each day of the year with you
Being together every day of the year is the most important thing to me.
Makes all my Christmas dreams come true
The thought of spending the rest of my life with you makes everything else in my life feel complete.
Yes that means more than a Christmas of white
Having you by my side is more meaningful to me than having a white Christmas.
Colored lights twinkling ever so bright
Although the colorful lights are beautiful, they are not as important to me as the warmth of your presence.
And when they sing of that Christmas of blue
Even when people sing about the sad or lonely aspects of Christmas, I still feel lucky to have you.
I feel so fortunate santa brought you
I feel incredibly lucky that you are in my life, like it was a special gift from Santa.
Each day of the year you brighten my life
Having you in my life means that every single day feels fuller and brighter.
And I thank the Lord on this Christmas Eve night
On this special night of Christmas Eve, I express my gratitude and appreciation to God for bringing you into my life.
'Cause it's not the presents under my tree
As I said before, the real gift that I value is not the ones wrapped and placed under the Christmas tree.
It's your presence right here next to me
Having you by my side is the best Christmas gift I could ask for.
Contributed by Arianna S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.