Grant was born as Myrtle Audrey Arinsberg in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the eldest of six children of Russian Jewish parents, Rose (née Jacobson) and Alexander Arinsberg. At the age of 12, she moved to Los Angeles, where she attended Venice High School. In California, she won a teenage singing contest and appeared on television talent shows.
She worked as a car salesperson in the early 1950s.In 1952 she began to record, using first the name "Audrey Brown" and later "Audrey Grant." She was given the name "Gogi" by Dave Kapp, the head of Artists and Repertory at RCA Victor, who liked to patronize a restaurant called "Gogi's LaRue." (Another source says that Grant asked Kapp, "What is a Gogi?" She continued, "His answer was, 'Darned if I know, I dreamed it last night.'")
In 1955 Grant signed with a small record company, Era Records, and had her first top ten hit with "Suddenly There's a Valley." The next year, she had an even bigger hit, reaching number 1 on Billboard 's Top 100 chart with "The Wayward Wind" and holding there for six weeks. The song sold over one million copies in the United States alone, and peaked at No. 9 in the UK Singles Chart. She was voted the most popular female vocalist by Billboard magazine. This single returned to the Billboard Hot 100 in 1961.
In 1957, she supplied the vocals for Ann Blyth's portrayal of Helen Morgan in the biographical film, The Helen Morgan Story. The soundtrack occasioned her return to RCA Victor (the soundtrack album climbed to No. 25 in the Billboard album chart), where she had a minor hit the following year with "Strange Are the Ways of Love." Moreover, she was signed to star in The Big Beat in the spring of 1957. The film, which featured musical performances by the Cal Tjader Quintet, George Shearing, and the Del Vikings, was produced and directed by William Cowan and released in February 1958.
In 1958, Grant was one of the three solo singers featured in the first stereo LP of the classic musical Show Boat. The other solo singers were Howard Keel, who had appeared in the 1951 film version of the show, and Anne Jeffreys.
Although she made albums and appeared on television into the 1960s, her popularity declined and she initially retired from singing in 1967 after a final US chart single, "The Sea" (top 20 on Billboard's Easy Listening chart). An album of hers was released in UK some 20 years later. Grant survived cancer surgery and was in remission. In 2004, aged 80, she made an appearance on the PBS 1950s pop music special Magic Moments and sang "The Wayward Wind."
Grant headlined with The Fabulous Palm Springs Follies in Palm Springs, California. One of her more notable appearances of her later years was with the Follies on December 31, 2006. She was still performing as late as 2013, at the age of 89.
In 1959, Grant married attorney Robert Rifkind. The couple had two children.
Grant died on March 10, 2016, aged 91. Her death was announced by her son, Joshua Beckett. She also had a daughter, Jeri Brown.
I'm Getting' Sentimental Over You
Gogi Grant Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
But now I hear love call,
I'm getting sentimental over you
Things you say and do,
Just thrill me through and through,
I'm getting sentimental over you.
I could live without love
Now I must admit,
Love is all I'm thinking of
Won't you please be kind,
And just make up your mind
That you'll be sweet & gentle,
Be gentle with me
Because I'm sentimental over you
"I'm Getting Sentimental Over You" is a romantic love song that conveys a powerful mix of emotions centering around the joy and hope of falling in love. The first verse begins with the singer explaining that they never thought they would fall in love, but they have begun to hear "love call" and find themselves falling for their love interest. The second verse focuses on how the smallest things their love interest says or does fills them with excitement and passion.
In the third verse, the singer admits that they once believed they could live without love and thought they were happy on their own, but now they know that love is all they can think about. The final verse is a plea to their love interest to be kind, make up their mind, and be gentle because the singer is now deeply sentimental about them.
The song is powerful in its ability to express the innermost feelings of someone discovering the joy and vulnerability of falling in love. It is a timeless classic that has been recorded by countless artists over the decades.
Line by Line Meaning
Never thought I'd fall,
I never anticipated falling in love or becoming attached to a person.
But now I hear love call,
I'm attracted to someone and they're stirring some feelings within me that I've never felt before.
I'm getting sentimental over you
I am developing feelings gradually towards you, making me sentimental and vulnerable.
Things you say and do,
Your words and actions are very special to me and they make my heart leap with joy.
Just thrill me through and through,
You excite me wholly and completely, and I am filled with joy when it comes to you.
I'm getting sentimental over you.
My feelings are strong, getting attached, and I could not resist sensing emotions towards what we have.
I thought I was happy,
I thought I was content in my life without you, and didn't require anyone to fill my needs.
I could live without love
I was convinced that love wasn't necessary, and that being alone was sufficient for me.
Now I must admit,
However, I've come to realise that I was mistaken, and I actually long for love and companionship.
Love is all I'm thinking of
I'm always thinking about love and you occupy my mind, and heart.
Won't you please be kind,
Can you please be gentle and considerate of my feelings toward you?
And just make up your mind
Please make your decision, let me know if you reciprocate the feelings or if I need to move on.
That you'll be sweet & gentle,
I want you to treat me kindly and not break my heart.
Be gentle with me
Please handle my feelings with caution since they're very fragile, and I am vulnerable more than you know.
Because I'm sentimental over you
I'm very emotional about you, and my feelings are strong and meaningful.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: GEORGE BASSMAN, NED WASHINGTON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Veronica Gombach
Merci beaucoup !!! Gogi Grant est superbe !!!
John Benn
WOW WOW WOW !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
From a 72yo Aussie fan.