Floyd Cramer (October 27, 1933 – December 31, 1997) was an American Hall of… Read Full Bio ↴Floyd Cramer (October 27, 1933 – December 31, 1997) was an American Hall of Fame pianist who was one of the architects of the "Nashville Sound."

Born in Shreveport, Louisiana, Cramer grew up in the small town of Huttig, Arkansas, teaching himself to play the piano. After finishing high school, he returned to Shreveport, where he worked as a pianist for the Louisiana Hayride radio show.

In 1952, he made his way to Nashville at a time when the use of piano accompanists in country music was growing in popularity. Before long, Cramer would become one of the busiest studio musicians in the industry, playing piano for stars such as Elvis Presley, Brenda Lee, Patsy Cline, The Browns, Jim Reeves, Roy Orbison, Don Gibson and the Everly Brothers, and many others. It is Cramer's piano that is heard, for example, on Presley's first national hit, "Heartbreak Hotel."

However, Cramer remained a virtual unknown to anyone but music industry insiders until he recorded a 45 rpm single in 1960 called "Last Date." An instrumental, the music exhibited a relatively new concept for piano playing known as the "slip note" style. The record went to Number two on the Billboard Hot 100 pop music chart. By the mid-1960s, Cramer had become a respected performer, making numerous record albums and touring with guitar maestro Chet Atkins and saxophonist Boots Randolph.

Floyd Cramer died of lung cancer in 1997 at the age of 64 and was interred in the Spring Hill Cemetery in the Nashville suburb of Madison, Tennessee.

In 2003, he was inducted into both the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

East Tennessee State University in Johnson City, Tennessee offers the "Floyd Cramer Competitive Scholarship."

The Look Of Love
Floyd Cramer Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

The look of love
Is in your eyes
A look your smile can't
disguise

The look of love
Is saying so much more than
Just words could every say

And what my heart has heard
Well it takes my breath away

[Chorus]
I can hardly wait to hold you
Feel my arms around you
How long I have waited
Waited just to love you
Now that I have found you

You've got the look of love
It's on your face
A look that time can't erase
Baby be mine, tonight

Let this be just the start of
So many nights like this
Let's take a lovers vow
And seal it with a kiss

[Chorus]

Don't ever go
Don't ever go
I love you so
The look of love

Let this be just the start of
So many nights like this
Let's take a lover's vow
And baby we'll seal it with a kiss

[Chorus]

Overall Meaning

Floyd Cramer's song, The Look Of Love, is a love ballad that celebrates the deep, all-consuming nature of love. The song begins with the declaration that the look of love is in the eyes of his beloved and that her smile can't conceal it. The singer furthers this by saying that the look of love says more than what words ever could, and that it takes his breath away. To him, love is not just about hearing sweet nothings, it's about a deeper, more profound feeling that touches the soul.

The singer goes on to sing about how he has waited for this moment to hold and love his beloved. He sees the look of love on her face, and he deduces that time cannot erase the intensity of the emotion he sees in her. He wants her to be his tonight, and he hopes that this is the start of many like it. He wants them to take a lover's vow and seal it with a kiss. The song reinforces this by repeating the chorus a few more times in the end, reaffirming his love and pleading with his beloved not to go.

In essence, The Look Of Love is about the power of love to transcend mere words and the intense passion that it inspires. It's about finding someone who loves you just as deeply and how that feeling can take your breath away. It's a reminder to cherish the moments spent with your loved one and to never take them for granted.

Line by Line Meaning

The look of love
The expression of love

Is in your eyes
Displayed through your eyes

A look your smile can't disguise
Even if you try to hide it, your happiness gives it away

The look of love
The expression of love

Is saying so much more than
Conveys feelings beyond what words can say

Just words could every say
Limited by the power of language

And what my heart has heard
Sensitive to the romantic vibe

Well it takes my breath away
It's breathtakingly beautiful

I can hardly wait to hold you
Excited to embrace you

Feel my arms around you
Desire to hold you tight

How long I have waited
Longing for this moment