Lush Life
Joe Williams with Horace Ott and His Orchestra Lyrics

I used to visit all the very gay places
In the past, I would often go to the most lively and animated public areas

Those come-what-may places
Such places where unplanned events are expected to occur randomly

Where one relaxes on the axis of the wheel of life
Where everyone can unwind and take a break from the daily activities that form the circle of life

To get the feel of life
To experience the essence of existence

From jazz and cocktails
From the kind of music and drinks that are available there

The girls I knew had sad and sullen gray faces
The women I used to know had gloomy and dull appearances

With distinguish traces
With remnants of their former vibrant selves

That used to be there
Which are no longer there

You could see where they'd been washed away
You can observe where their joy and energy had been eroded

By too many through the day
Because they had gone through too much in the course of the day

Twelve o'clock tales
Stories told late into the night

Then you came along with your siren song
And then you appeared with your irresistible and alluring invitation

To tempt me to madness
To lead me to the brink of insanity

I thought for awhile that your poignant smile
I once assumed that your thoughtful and expressive smile

Was tinged with the sadness
Contained a hint of sorrow and despair

Of a great love for me
Which symbolized a profound affection for me

Ah yes, I was wrong
Alas, I was mistaken

Again, I was wrong
I was mistaken once again

Life is lonely again
Life has returned to being solitary once more

And only last year
A mere year ago

Everything seemed so sure
Everything appeared to be so definite and predictable

Now life is awful again
Now one's life is bitter and wretched yet again

A trough full of hearts could only be a bore
Even a large group of people, all full of passionate emotions, would become tedious

A week in Paris could ease the bite of it
Although a brief interval in Paris may alleviate some of the agony

All I care is to smile in spite of it
The only thing I can manage to do is put on a brave face regardless of the situation

I'll forget you, I will
I'll do my best to erase you from my memories

While yet you are still
While you are still with me

Burning inside my brain
Still blazing in my mind

Romance is mush
Love is nothing but sentimentality

Stifling those who strive
Inhibits those who work hard to attain great things

So I'll live a lush life in some small dive
Thus, I will live a life of luxury and abundance in small, unassuming locales

And there I'll be, while I rot with the rest
And that's where I will be, with others who languish in obscurity

Of those whose lives are lonely too
Of those whose lives are similarly wretched and solitary