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.
Days of Wine & Roses
Henry Mancini Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Through a meadow land toward a closing door
A door marked "nevermore" that wasn't there before
The lonely night discloses just a passing breeze filled with memories
Of the golden smile that introduced me to
The days of wine and roses and you
Of the golden smile that introduced me to
The days of wine and roses and you-oo-oo
The song "Days of Wine and Roses" by Henry Mancini tells the story of nostalgia and lost love. The lyrics describe the fleeting nature of happiness and how easily it can slip away. The use of the metaphor of the days of wine and roses running away like a child at play through a meadow and towards a closing door highlighted the wistful tone of the song. The door marked "nevermore" that wasn't there before symbolizes the closure of a chapter in life, a door that once opened, can never be reopened.
The lonely night mentioned in the song speaks to the feeling of emptiness that lingers after a lost love. The gentle breeze filled with memories of the past only serve as a reminder of what was once had, and what is now gone. The golden smile that introduced the singer to the days of wine and roses and the lost love is a testament to how deeply that person affected their life.
Line by Line Meaning
The days of wine and roses laugh and run away like a child at play
The happy times spent drinking wine and enjoying life seem to fly by quickly and effortlessly, much like a carefree child playing in a field.
Through a meadow land toward a closing door
As the good times come to an end, it feels like we are slowly walking away from them and towards a closed door.
A door marked "nevermore" that wasn't there before
The closed door represents the end of the happy times, and although it may seem permanent, it wasn't there before and can therefore be opened again.
(The lonely night discloses) just a passing breeze filled with memories
On lonely nights, memories of the good times can be felt in the wind, but they are fleeting and temporary.
Of the golden smile that introduced me to
The memory of a special smile that brought about these good times is what lingers and is cherished.
The days of wine and roses and you-oo-oo
The combination of the happy times and the person who was a part of them is what truly made them special and memorable.
Lyrics © Ultra Tunes, BMG Rights Management, Royalty Network, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Songtrust Ave, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: HENRY N. MANCINI, JOHNNY MERCER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@patrickstocks3576
The days of wine & roses laugh and run away like a child at play
Through a meadow land toward a closing door 🚪
A door marked “never more “ that wasn’t there before
The lonely night discloses just a passing breeze filled memories
Of the golden smile that introduced me to
The days of wine & roses and you
Just a passing breeze filled with memories
Of the golden smile that introduced me to
The days of wine and roses and you-oo-oo
@screentime7798
"The wicked flee when no man pursueth " 🖤
@jamesmmcgill
From the Bible, yeah
@charlenecasoli4172
Nice!!
@joseemiliomartinezs4828
“You think we’re wicked?”
@1969pontiac1
Todd, Moon River and Days of Wine and Roses were my parents two favorite songs. My dad could really sing. I remember watching them dance in the living room with the records on there stereo. It brings back wonderful times. I miss my dad so much, and I cannot listen to one of these without tears in my eyes and be so thankful for the wonderful childhood I had. I still drive by the house we grew up in and I can see my dad on the front porch. late 60s and 70s seemed so different than now. Best wishes
@karenhill3970
Oh i read this...i under stand!!...ive never seen this movie but heard bout it all my life going to watch over HOLIDAYS but the theme !! Oh my gosh i know my PRECIOUS Mo.m played on her HiFi or i would ...i was LITTLE but would move the furniture outta way a bit and dance beautifully to this sooo dramatically...loved it..as a little girl...like u sir brings bk memories...very poignant what u said about your PRECIOUS Dad.......💝
@RexHrothgar1
You’re right. Things were so different. I miss it too. The younger generations haven’t a clue what a loss it is to see their generation and all they stood for fade away into history. History itself cannot describe it accurately. In all of the things that we seem to have gained in the sixties and beyond, the sexual revolution etc. etc. we’ve also lost a lot of what is so important to our collective culture. Too much loss of convention is making us pay for whatever freedoms we thought we needed so badly. Sadly the balance was never struck. Now, generations later, people don’t even conduct themselves as adults, they don’t even try. So many of us act like spoiled little children who upon being told “no” , scream, yell, stamp their feet and worse. They pull guns or threaten those who may dare to ask them to try and think and act for “the better good”. Which is exactly what my parents and their parents etc. generations would do simply by reflex. Everyone in society has an unspoken obligation to each other to do that which is for the “greater good” leaving little room for the base selfishness we experience so often in today’s reality.
@judycassel1380
I will treasure those moments forever
@daltmonts8401
Que o Todo Poderoso .. abençoe...estas tuas... tão sentidas...e doces lembranças...
@trinidadapodaca7027
really like that flick 'somewhere in time with jane seymore and the old superman dude