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.
Never On Sunday
Henry Mancini Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A Monday, a Monday is very, very good
Or you can kiss me on a Tuesday
A Tuesday, a Tuesday, in fact I wish you would
Or you can kiss me on a Wednesday
A Thursday, a Friday and Saturday is best
But never, never on a Sunday
A Sunday, a Sunday, 'cause that's my day of rest
Most any day you can be my guest
Any day you say, but my day of rest
Just name the day that you like the best
Only stay away on my day of rest
Oh, you can kiss me on a cool day, a hot day
A wet day, which everyone you choose
Or try to kiss me on a gray day, a May day
A pay day, and see if I refuse
And if you make it on a bleak day
A freak day, a week day, why you can be my guest
But never, never on a Sunday
The lyrics to "Never On Sunday" by Henry Mancini tell the story of a lover who is willing to be kissed on any day of the week except Sunday, which is their "day of rest". While this may seem like a simple request, it is actually a very powerful one, as it speaks to the idea of taking time for oneself and the importance of honoring personal boundaries.
The first verse of the song lays out the different days of the week on which the lover is willing to be kissed. Monday through Saturday are all acceptable, but Sunday is not. This is followed by the chorus, which repeats the line "never, never on a Sunday" several times. The second verse reinforces this idea by saying that the lover can visit on any day except their "day of rest".
Overall, the lyrics of "Never On Sunday" are a testament to the importance of self-care and boundaries in relationships. While it may seem like a small thing to ask for, honoring someone's need for rest and relaxation is key to building a healthy and fulfilling partnership.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh, you can kiss me on a Monday
It is acceptable for you to kiss me on a Monday
A Monday, a Monday is very, very good
Kissing on a Monday is particularly enjoyable
Or you can kiss me on a Tuesday
I would welcome a kiss on a Tuesday
A Tuesday, a Tuesday, in fact I wish you would
I hope that you would kiss me on a Tuesday
Or you can kiss me on a Wednesday
Kissing on a Wednesday would also be nice
A Thursday, a Friday and Saturday is best
However, Thursday, Friday, or Saturday would be even better
But never, never on a Sunday
I must ask that you never kiss me on a Sunday
A Sunday, a Sunday, 'cause that's my day of rest
Sunday is the day I reserve for rest and do not wish to be disturbed
Most any day you can be my guest
Feel free to visit me most any day
Any day you say, but my day of rest
Except for my day of rest, which I would like to keep free
Just name the day that you like the best
Choose whichever day suits you
Only stay away on my day of rest
Just please avoid visiting on my day of rest
Oh, you can kiss me on a cool day, a hot day
Kisses are welcome on any type of day
A wet day, which everyone you choose
Even on a rainy day
Or try to kiss me on a gray day, a May day
It would be interesting to try kissing on a dull day or during the month of May
A pay day, and see if I refuse
I would never refuse a kiss on payday
And if you make it on a bleak day
Even during a depressing day
A freak day, a week day, why you can be my guest
Visiting and kissing on a strange or work day is just fine
But never, never on a Sunday
But please respect my wishes and avoid Sunday
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Manos Hadjidakis, Billy Towne
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind