John Maurice Hartman (July 3, 1923 – September 15, 1983) was an American ja… Read Full Bio ↴John Maurice Hartman (July 3, 1923 – September 15, 1983) was an American jazz singer who specialized in ballads and earned critical acclaim, though he was never widely known. He recorded a well-known collaboration with the saxophonist John Coltrane in 1963 called John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman, and was briefly a member of Dizzy Gillespie's group and recorded with Erroll Garner. Most of Hartman's career was spent recording solo albums.

Born in Louisiana, but raised in Chicago, Hartman began singing and playing the piano by the age of eight. He attended DuSable High School studying music under Walter Dyett before receiving a scholarship to Chicago Musical College. He sang as an Army private during World War II, but his first professional work came in September 1946 when he won a singing contest awarding him a one-week engagement with Earl Hines. Seeing potential in the singer, Hines hired him for the next year. Although Hartman’s first recordings were with Marl Young in February 1947, it was the collaboration with Hines that provided notable exposure. After the Hines orchestra broke up, Dizzy Gillespie invited Hartman to join his big band in 1948 during an eight-week tour in California. Dropped from the band about one year later, Hartman worked for a short time with pianist Erroll Garner before going solo by early 1950.
After recording several singles with different orchestras, Hartman finally released his first solo album, Songs from the Heart, with a quintet for Bethlehem Records in 1955. Releasing two more albums with small labels, neither very successful, Hartman got a career-altering offer in 1963 to record with John Coltrane. The saxophonist likely remembered Hartman from a bill they shared at the Apollo Theater in 1950 and later said, “I just felt something about him, I don’t know what it was. I like his sound, I thought there was something there I had to hear so I looked him up and did that album.” Featuring all ballads, John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman is widely considered a classic. This led to recording four more albums with Impulse! and parent label ABC, all produced by Bob Thiele.
With the 1970s being difficult for singers clinging to the pre-rock American songbook, Hartman turned to playing cocktail lounges in New York City and Chicago. Recording again with small labels such as Perception and Musicor, Hartman produced music of mixed quality as he attempted to be viewed as a more versatile vocalist. Referring to his approach to interpreting a song, Hartman said, “Well, to me a lyric is a story, almost like talking, telling somebody a story, try to make it believable.” Returning to the jazz combo format of his earlier albums, Hartman recorded Once in Every Life for Bee Hive, earning him a 1981 Grammy nomination for Best Male Jazz Vocalist. This was quickly followed up by his last album of newly recorded material titled This One’s for Tedi as a tribute to his wife Theodora. His first kid is Jani, Jani Hartman the famous jazz singer, who became famous with the song 'Bad'.
Hartman recorded new tracks for Grenadilla Records on their jazz label – Grapevine. These were dance tracks of Beyond the Sea and Caravan with Caravan also having an extended 6-minute version.
In the early 1980s Hartman gave several performances for jazz festivals, television, and radio before succumbing to lung cancer at the age of sixty. His reputation grew considerably in 1995 when the soundtrack to Clint Eastwood’s Bridges of Madison County (1995) featured seven songs from the then out-of-print Bee Hive album.
Hartman's first biography, The Last Balladeer: The Johnny Hartman Story, by Dr. Gregg Akkerman, was released in June 2012 by Scarecrow Press as part of their "Studies in Jazz" series.

(2) Though he was never the most distinctive vocalist, Johnny Hartman rose above others to become the most commanding, smooth balladeer of the 1950s and '60s, a black crooner closely following Billy Eckstine and building on the form with his notable jazz collaborations, including the 1963 masterpiece John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman. Born in Chicago, he began singing early on and performed while in Special Services in the Army. Hartman studied music while at college and made his professional debut in the mid-'40s, performing with Earl Hines and recording his first sides for Regent/Savoy. After Hines' band broke up later in 1947, Hartman moved to the Dizzy Gillespie Big Band and stayed for two years, recording a few additional sides for Mercury as well.

Johnny Hartman's first proper LP came in 1956 with Songs from the Heart, recorded for Bethlehem and featuring a quartet led by trumpeter Howard McGhee. He recorded a second (All of Me) later that year, but then was virtually off-record until 1963, when his duet album John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman appeared on Impulse. A beautiful set of ballad standards, including top-flight renditions of "Lush Life" and "My One and Only Love," the album sparked a flurry of activity for Hartman, including two more albums for Impulse: 1963's I Just Dropped by to Say Hello and the following year's The Voice That Is. During the late '60s and early '70s, he recorded a range of jazz and pop standards albums for ABC, Perception, and Blue Note. Hartman recorded sparingly during the 1970s, but returned with two albums recorded in 1980, one of which (Once in Every Life) earned a Grammy nomination just two years before his death in 1983. ~ John Bush, Rovi

Bidin' My Time
Johnny Hartman Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

But I'm bidin' my time,
Cause that's the kind of guy I'm,
While other folks grow dizzy,
I keep busy,
Bidin' my time.
Next year, next year,
Somethin's bound to happen,
This year, this year,

I'll just keep on mappin',
And bidin' my time,
"Cause that's the kind of guy I'm,
There's no regrettin',
When I'm settin',
Bidin' my time.

I'm bidin' my time,
"Cause that's the kind of guy I'm,
Beginnin' on a Monday,
Right through Sunday,
Bidin' my time.
Give me, give me,
Glass that's bright and twinkles,
Let me, let me,
Dream like Rip Van Winkle.
He's bided his time,
Like that Winkle guy,
I'm chasin' 'way flies,

How the day flies,
Bidin' my time.

Overall Meaning

The song Bidin' My Time by Johnny Hartman is a classic example of the sentiment that sometimes, it’s best to wait for the right time. The opening line, “But I'm bidin' my time, cause that's the kind of guy I'm," sets the tone for the rest of the song. Hartman explains that he’s content with a slower pace in life than most other individuals. Rather than growing dizzy from the hecticness of life, Hartman prefers to keep busy on his own terms. He doesn’t regret not chasing after what others do; instead, he’s comfortable in his own skin as he takes life’s journey in stride.

The lyrics showcase the idea that everything happens in due time. Whether it’s a personal goal or a dream that Hartman wishes to achieve, he acknowledges that there’s no timetable or rush to get it done. He believes that next year or the year after that, something is bound to happen, and he’s content with waiting to see what that may be. Hartman also references Rip Van Winkle in the song, alluding to the fact that the character, who slept for 20 years, was biding his time until it was the right moment to awaken. Hartman's lyrics are an ode to patience and waiting for the right moment to seize the day.

Line by Line Meaning

But I'm bidin' my time,
I am waiting for the right opportunity to come along before taking action.

Cause that's the kind of guy I'm,
This is just my way of doing things; I am a patient person.

While other folks grow dizzy,
Other people are always in a hurry and get impatient easily.

I keep busy,
I am keeping myself occupied while I wait.

Bidin' my time.
Waiting patiently for the right moment.

Next year, next year,
Maybe things will be better next year.

Somethin's bound to happen,
I believe that something good will happen eventually.

This year, this year,
But even if it doesn't happen this year,

I'll just keep on mappin',
I will continue pursuing my goals.

'Cause that's the kind of guy I'm,
Being patient is just part of who I am.

There's no regrettin',
I have no regrets about waiting patiently.