"I started playing piano at five or six," Freddy remembers. "Music was all around me." In the Chicago home of his youth, visitors included Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and Lionel Hampton. He also credits Billy Eckstine as a major influence. " He was a fantastic entertainer," Freddy recalls. " I learned so much from just watching and being around him." After a possible career with the NFL was shelved due to a hand injury, he began playing and singing in Chicago clubs as a teenager. Although he was ready to hit the road at 18, his mother intervened and he continued his musical education at the Roosevelt Institute in Chicago.
Freddy moved to New York in 1951, where he studied at the Juilliard School of Music and found himself profoundly influenced by John Lewis, Oscar Peterson and Teddy Wilson. He got a Master's degree at the New England Conservatory of Music and then spent several months on the road as a member of an Earl Bostic band that also included Johnny Coles and Benny Golson.
It was back in New York that Freddy successfully laid the groundwork for a career that continues to flourish to this day. He developed a vast repertoire of songs in Manhattan bistros and concurrently began to supplement his live performances with television and radio commercial jingle work.
A resident of Atlanta since 1972, he currently leads a trio made up of himself, guitarist Jerry Byrd, drummer Curtis Boyd and bassist Elias Bailey that regularly tours the US, Europe, the Far East and South America. Freddy has been a recording artist since 1952, when his first single, "The Joke's on Me", was released on an obscure Chicago-based label.
Freddy recorded several albums for European and English companies during the 1970s that helped him develop a loyal overseas following. Cole believes that becoming an international favorite made him "widen my scope a little bit." He developed a stand-up act, a better rapport with audiences, and learned to sing in other languages. "It made me much more of a performer."
Cole doesn't apologize for sounding like his brother, Nat "King" Cole. There are certain unmistakable similarities. He plays piano and sings and performs live with guitar and upright bass, just like Nat. Yet his voice is raspier, smokier, jazzier even. But he has emerged from the awesome shadow cast by his elder brother. In truth, his phrasing is far closer to that of Frank Sinatra or Billie Holiday than that of his brother and his timing swings a little more. His vocals - suave, elegant, formidable, and articulate - are among the most respected in jazz. Cole's career continues to ascend as he has moved into the front ranks of America's homegrown art form with a style and musical sophistication all his own.
What Now My Love?
Freddy Cole Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Now that you left me
How can I live through another day
Watching my dreams turn into ashes
And all my hopes into bits of clay
Once I could see, once I could feel
Now I am numb
I've become unreal
I walk the night, oh, without a goal
Stripped of my heart, my soul
What now my love
Now that it's over
I feel the world closing in on me
Here come the stars
Tumbling around me
And there's the sky where the sea should be
What now my love
Now that you're gone
I'd be a fool to go on and on
No one would care, no one would cry
If I should live or die
What now my love
Now there is nothing
Only my last goodbye
Only my last goodbye
In the song "What Now My Love" by Freddy Cole, the singer is addressing their feelings after being left by someone they love. They are struggling to cope with the reality of being alone, as their dreams and hopes have crumbled into ashes and bits of clay. The singer once had the ability to see and feel, but now they are numb and feel unreal. They wander aimlessly through the night without a goal, feeling stripped of their heart and soul.
The singer is aware that their former love has gone and they feel like they would be foolish to continue living the same way. They feel like no one would care or cry if they were to die or continue living. They see nothing left, only their last goodbye. As the stars tumble around them, the singer is left feeling trapped as the world seems to be closing in on them. The sky is where the sea should be, an indication that things aren't quite right.
Overall, the song evokes a sense of despair and hopelessness, as the singer struggles to come to terms with their loss and find a reason to carry on.
Line by Line Meaning
What now my love
The singer is lost and unsure of what to do after their love left them.
Now that you left me
The singer's love has left them and they are struggling to cope with the aftermath.
How can I live through another day
The singer feels like life is unbearable without their love and they don't know how to go on.
Watching my dreams turn into ashes
The singer's dreams for the future have been destroyed and they are left feeling hopeless.
And all my hopes into bits of clay
The singer's hopes for the future have been shattered and they feel like they have nothing left to look forward to.
Once I could see, once I could feel
The singer used to be able to see and feel deeply, but now they feel numb and disconnected.
Now I am numb
The singer feels empty and disconnected from their emotions.
I've become unreal
The singer feels like they are no longer living in reality.
I walk the night, oh, without a goal
The singer is lost and wandering through life aimlessly.
Stripped of my heart, my soul
The singer feels like they have lost the very essence of who they are.
What now my love
The singer is asking a rhetorical question, wondering what they are supposed to do now that their love is gone.
Now that it's over
The relationship is over and the singer is struggling to move on.
I feel the world closing in on me
The singer feels trapped and suffocated by their grief.
Here come the stars
The stars symbolize the beauty and wonder of the world, but the singer is too consumed by sadness to appreciate them.
Tumbling around me
The singer feels like everything is falling apart and they are powerless to stop it.
And there's the sky where the sea should be
The singer's world has been turned upside down and everything is out of place.
Now that you're gone
The singer is acknowledging that their love has left them and they are struggling to cope.
I'd be a fool to go on and on
The singer feels like it would be foolish to keep living without their love.
No one would care, no one would cry
The singer feels like their absence wouldn't make a difference to anyone.
If I should live or die
The singer feels like their life is pointless without their love and they don't see the point in continuing to live.
Now there is nothing
The singer feels like they have nothing left in their life.
Only my last goodbye
The singer is saying farewell to their love and preparing to move on with their life.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Carl Sigman, Gilbert Becaud, Pierre Delanoe
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind