Henry Mancini (April 16, 1924 – June 14, 1994) was an Academy Award-winning… Read Full Bio ↴Henry Mancini (April 16, 1924 – June 14, 1994) was an Academy Award-winning American composer, conductor and arranger. He is remembered particularly for being a composer of film and television scores - his best-known works are the jazz-idiom theme to The Pink Panther film series and Moon River. Mancini won a record number of Grammy awards, including a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1995.

Mancini was born Enrico Nicola Mancini in the Little Italy neighborhood of Cleveland, Ohio, and grew up near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in the steel town of West Aliquippa, Pennsylvania. His parents emigrated from the Abruzzo region of Italy. Mancini's father, Quinto, was a steelworker, who made his only child begin flute lessons at the age of eight. When Mancini was 12 years old, he began piano lessons. Quinto and Henry played flute together in the Aliquippa Italian immigrant band, "Sons of Italy". After high school, Mancini attended the renowned Juilliard School of Music in New York. In 1943, after roughly one year at Juilliard, his studies were interrupted when he was drafted into the army. In 1945, he participated in the liberation of a South German concentration camp.

Mancini recorded over 90 albums, in styles ranging from big band to classical to pop. Eight of these albums were certified gold by The Recording Industry Association of America. He had a 20 year contract with RCA Records, resulting in 60 commercial record albums that made him a household name composer of easy listening music.

Mancini's range also extended to orchestral and ethnic scores (Lifeforce, The Great Mouse Detective, Sunflower, "Tom and Jerry: The Movie", Molly Maguires, The Hawaiians), and darker themes ("Experiment In Terror," "The White Dawn," "Wait Until Dark," "The Night Visitor").

Mancini was also a concert performer, conducting over fifty engagements per year, resulting in over 600 symphony performances during his lifetime. Among the symphony orchestras he conducted are the London Symphony Orchestra, the Israel Philharmonic, the Boston Pops, the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. He appeared in 1966, 1980 and 1984 in command performances for the British Royal Family. He also toured several times with Johnny Mathis and with Andy Williams, who had sung many of Mancini's songs.[citation needed]

Mancini had experience with acting and voice roles. In 1994 he made a one-off cameo appearance in the first season of the sitcom series Frasier, as a call-in patient to Dr. Frasier Crane's radio show. Mancini voiced the character Al, who speaks with a melancholy drawl and hates the sound of his own voice, in the episode "Guess Who's Coming to Breakfast?" Mancini also had an uncredited performance as a pianist in the 1967 movie Gunn, the movie version of the series Peter Gunn, the score of which was originally composed by Mancini himself.

Mancini was nominated for an unprecedented 72 Grammys, winning 20 Additionally he was nominated for 18 Academy Awards, winning four. He also won a Golden Globe Award and was nominated for two Emmys.

Mancini won a total of four Oscars for his music in the course of his career.

Mancini died at the age of 70 in Beverly Hills/Los Angeles, California of pancreatic cancer. He was working at the time on the Broadway stage version of Victor/Victoria. At the time of his death, Mancini was married to singer Virginia "Ginny" O´Connor, with whom he had three children. Ginny Mancini went on to found the Society of Singers a non profit organization which benefits the health and welfare of professional singers worldwide. Additionally the Society awards scholarships to students pursuing an education in the vocal arts and holds the annual Ella Awards.

The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers(ASCAP) Foundation "Henry Mancini Music Scholarship" has been awarded annually since 2001.

Bachelor In Paradise
Henry Mancini Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

When she sighs
And her baby-blue eyes
Embrace your face
Lies, all lies
What the lady wants
Is your closet space
Bachelor in paradise, be careful
Bachelor in paradise, beware

Lights down low
Frankie's records
And cocktails on the floor
You should know
It's the garden of Eden
Seen once more
Adam, come on, be smart
Just take your fig leaf and depart
And leave one bachelor less in paradise

Lights down low
Frankie's records
And cocktails on the floor
You should know
It's the garden of Eden
Seen once more
Adam, come on, be smart

Just take your fig leaf and depart
And leave one bachelor less in paradise, bum, bum

Overall Meaning

The song Bachelor in Paradise, created by Henry Mancini, has a playful feel to it, but if you dive deeper into the lyrics, you will find insightful meaning within them. The song tells the story of a bachelor's paradise, which is filled with tempting women, music, and drinks that can lead to a man's downfall. The first verse suggests that the woman in the song is deceiving the singer with her baby-blue eyes and lies. She wants to latch onto him and use his space to her advantage. The chorus warns bachelors to be aware and careful of what they indulge in, as it could lead to serious trouble.

The second verse takes a more lighthearted approach, suggesting that the setting is like the garden of Eden, but now it's being replayed in the form of a nightclub with low lights, Frankie's records, and cocktails on the floor. The song compares the woman in the first verse to Eve in the Garden of Eden and the singer, to Adam. Mancini advises the Adam to be smart, step out of his fig leaf, and depart from the paradise, as he would become one bachelor less in paradise.

Line by Line Meaning

When she sighs
Whenever she expresses herself with a deep breath

And her baby-blue eyes
And her blue-colored eyes

Embrace your face
Are directed towards your face

Lies, all lies
These actions are deceptive and false

What the lady wants
Her desires

Is your closet space
Are for your belongings and space

Bachelor in paradise, be careful
You should exercise caution in this idyllic setting

Bachelor in paradise, beware
You should be wary in this blissful and ideal place

Lights down low
Dimly lit surroundings

Frankie's records
Music provided by Frankie

And cocktails on the floor
And alcoholic beverages being consumed