<… Read Full Bio ↴Gary Bartz (born in 1940) is an American alto and soprano saxophonist.
Since graduating from The Juilliard School he has worked with Charles Mingus, Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers, Miles Davis, McCoy Tyner, Max Roach, and Jackie McLean, as well as performing and recording with his own groups, among them the Gary Bartz NTU Troop, which combined soul, funk, African folk music, hard bop, and avant-garde jazz.
In 2005, Bartz won a Grammy for playing on McCoy Tyner's album Illuminations.
He currently teaches at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music when not touring.
Laura
Gary Bartz Lyrics
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Of something that never happened, yet you recall it well
You know the feeling of recognizing someone
That you've never met as far as you could tell, well
Laura is the face in the misty light
Footsteps that you hear down the hall
The laugh that floats on a summer night
And you see Laura on the train that is passing through
Those eyes, how familiar they seem
She gave your very first kiss to you
That was Laura but she's only a dream
In Gary Bartz's song Laura, the lyrics describe the feeling of a half-remembered memory, a person or an event that never happened but somehow feels familiar. The song speaks to the experience of recognizing someone that you've never met, and how that person can feel so familiar, yet you cannot recall ever having met them. The song speaks to the idea of memory and how memories can sometimes be so vivid, yet can also be fleeting and difficult to hold onto.
The lyrics of "Laura" are poetic and open-ended, allowing listeners to interpret the song in different ways. This ambiguity is part of what makes the song so intriguing and timeless. One interpretation of the song is that Laura is a metaphor for lost love or a longing for something that is just out of reach. Another interpretation is that Laura represents a moment in time that has been forgotten, but still lingers on in the mind like a dream.
Line by Line Meaning
You know the feeling of something half remembered
A sentiment you have when you see something that you can almost remember
Of something that never happened, yet you recall it well
A thought of an event that never took place, still brings a clear picture in your mind
You know the feeling of recognizing someone
You feel confident that you know a person
That you've never met as far as you could tell, well
But it is apparent that you have never seen the person before
Laura is the face in the misty light
Laura is an image that appears in a vague, hazy glow
Footsteps that you hear down the hall
You hear footsteps echoing in a corridor
The laugh that floats on a summer night
A giggle that you hear in a warm, summer evening
That you can never quite recall
Even though you hear the footsteps and the giggle often, you cannot remember where they come from
And you see Laura on the train that is passing through
You visualize Laura on a passing train
Those eyes, how familiar they seem
Her eyes look very familiar to you
She gave your very first kiss to you
Laura is the person who kissed you for the first time
That was Laura but she's only a dream
But Laura only exists as a dream
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: David Raksin
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind