Giuseppe (Joe) Venuti (September 16, 1903 – August 14, 1978) was a U.S. jaz… Read Full Bio ↴Giuseppe (Joe) Venuti (September 16, 1903 – August 14, 1978) was a U.S. jazz musician and violinist. Venuti claimed to have been born aboard a ship as his parents emigrated from Italy, though many believe he was simply born in Philadelphia. Considered the father of jazz violin, he pioneered the use of string instruments in jazz along with the guitarist Eddie Lang, a childhood friend of his. Through the 1920s and early 1930s, Venuti produced many recordings. He worked with Benny Goodman, the Dorsey Brothers, Bing Crosby, the Boswell Sisters and most of the other important white jazz and semi-jazz figures of the late 1920s and early 1930s. However, following Lang's early death in 1933, he began to slip off the radar. After a period of relative obscurity in the 1940s and 1950s, he was 'rediscovered' in the late 1960s and established a musical relationship with tenor saxophonist Zoot Sims, that was almost as fruitful as his previous collaboration with Lang. Venuti and Sims produced a number of very exciting recordings in 1974/75: an appropriate coda to the great violinist's career.

In the mid-1970s, Venuti performed and recorded, again in the limelight: good examples of his latter-day recordings are the Chiaroscuro CD's Joe Venuti and Zoot Sims (CR(D) 142) and Joe & Zoot & More (CR(D)126). He died in Seattle, Washington.

Venuti was also a legendary practical joker.

I Got Rhythm
Joe Venuti Lyrics

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Days can be sunny with never a sigh
Don't need what money can buy
Birds in the trees sing their dayful of songs
Why shouldn't we sing along?
I'm chipper all the day
Happy with my life
How do I get that way?
Look at what I've got:

I got rhythm, I got music, I got my man
Who could ask for anything more?
I've got daisies in green pastures
I've got my man
Who could ask for anything more?

Old man trouble I don't mind him
You won't find him 'round my door
I've got starlight
I've got sweet dreams
I've got my man
Who could ask for anything more?

Old man trouble, I don't mind him
You won't find him 'round my door
I've got starlight
I've got sweet dreams
I've got my man
Who could ask for anything more?

Oh, I've got rhythm
I've got music
I've got daisies in green pastures
I've got starlight
I've got sweet dreams
I've got my man
Who could ask for anything more?

I've got rhythm, I've got rhythm

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Joe Venuti’s “I Got Rhythm” are uplifting, jubilant, and speak to the joys of life. The song is an embodiment of the belief that one does not need materialistic things to find joy in life, it can be achieved through simple pleasures like singing along with the birds or having a loving partner. The song instills a sense of positivity, the feeling that nothing gets in the way of a sunny day (or any day for that matter) and a good attitude. The lyrics emphasize that one does not need anything else when they have rhythm, music, and love.

The first paragraph emphasizes the positive things in life. The singer talks about how their days can be sunny and they don't need anything money can buy to fill their life with happiness. The birds in the trees adding their dayful of songs, and the singer says there isn't any reason why they shouldn't chime in as well. The second paragraph is an exposition of what makes the singer happy. They are happy with their life because they have rhythm, music, and their partner. The third paragraph stresses that old man trouble does not stand a chance as the singer has starlight, sweet dreams, and their man by their side.

Overall, the song’s lyrics are simple yet profound in their impact. They convey a message to the people to focus on the simple things in life that make them happy, rather than being swayed by materialism.

Line by Line Meaning

Days can be sunny with never a sigh
Even when life is good, we often feel unhappy and dissatisfied, but there are days that are sunny without a single negative thought on our mind

Don't need what money can buy
Money cannot buy happiness or fulfilment, so there must be something more fulfilling money cannot purchase

Birds in the trees sing their dayful of songs
Birds sing their hearts out every day with no worries or restraints, we should take a cue from their freedom to be happy and sing along

Why shouldn't we sing along?
We should join the birds to sing our songs, the chorus of our hearts

I'm chipper all the day
I am full of happiness, lively and cheerful attitude throughout the day

Happy with my life
I am contented with everything that life has offered me.

Look at what I've got:
I have a lot in my life that bring me joy and happiness, like love, music, and natural beauty.

I got rhythm, I got music, I got my man Who could ask for anything more?
I have rhythm in my heart, music in my soul, and someone who loves me, what more do I need?

I've got daisies in green pastures
I find beauty in simplicity and see flowers blooming in fields of lush green

Old man trouble I don't mind him You won't find him 'round my door
Troubles can come and go, I am unfazed by them and won't be bothered by their arrival

I've got starlight, I've got sweet dreams I've got my man
I am blessed with pure light and positivity in my soul, I have peaceful and hopeful dreams, and I have someone who loves and cherishes me.

Oh, I've got rhythm I've got music I've got daisies in green pastures I've got starlight, I've got sweet dreams I've got my man
All the beautiful things that life has offered me, including music, rhythm, flowers, starlight, sweet dreams, and love from my special one.

Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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