Johnny was 13 years old when Clem took him to see Connie Cox, a Bay Area voice teacher, who agreed to take on the youngster in exchange for his doing odd jobs around her house. Johnny studied with Connie for six years learning vocal scales and exercises, voice production, classical and operatic skills.
At George Washington High School, Johnny was known not only for his singing ability but his athleticism as well. He became a star athlete on the track and field team as a high jumper and hurdler and played on the basketball team.
In 1954, Johnny enrolled at San Francisco State College with the intention of being an English and Physical Education teacher. While there, Johnny set a high jump record of 6’-5 1/2”. This is still on the College’s Top 15 list and was only two inches short of the Olympic record of the time. Just as when he was in high school, Johnny’s name was frequently mentioned in the sports sections of the Northern California newspapers. He was often referred to as “the best all-around athlete to come out of the San Francisco Bay Area”.
A fellow student whose sextet was working at the Black Hawk nightclub brought Johnny in for a Sunday afternoon jam session. It was at the Black Hawk that Helen Noga, co-owner of the club, first heard him sing. She decided that she wanted to manage his career.
In early September of 1955, Johnny landed a job singing weekends at Ann Dee’s 440 Club. After repeated attempts, Helen convinced George Avakian, then head of Jazz A&R at Columbia, to see him. Avakian came to the club, heard Johnny sing and sent the now famous telegram to his record company: “Have found phenomenal 19 year old boy who could go all the way. Send blank contracts.”
Avakian left for New York after telling Johnny that he would eventually send for him. Johnny continued his studies at San Francisco State and gained additional fame as a high jumper. In early 1956, Johnny was asked to attend the trials for the 1956 Olympic teams that would travel to Melbourne, Australia that summer. At the same time, Columbia Records requested that Johnny come to New York to start arrangements for his first recording session. Clem helped his son decide that his future and best interests were with the recording company. So, Johnny gave up his chance to become a member of the USA Olympic Team. He went to New York to record his first album in March of 1956.
The first album was a collection of jazz oriented renditions of popular standards entitled: Johnny Mathis: A New Sound In Popular Song. It included jazz musicians Gil Evans, John Lewis and Teo Macero and songs like “Angel Eyes”, “Easy to Love” and “Babalu”. The album enjoyed only moderate success because jazz vocal albums were not good sellers. Nevertheless, Johnny remained in New York and landed bookings at some of the leading nightclubs such as the Village Vanguard, The Blue Angel and Basin Street East.
Soon, Columbia placed Johnny under the supervision of producer Mitch Miller. Mitch favored using Johnny’s voice to sing soft, romantic ballads. At his second recording session, in the fall of 1956, Johnny recorded two singles. These songs were to become among his most popular all-time greatest hits: “Wonderful, Wonderful” and “It’s Not For Me To Say.” Subsequently, MGM Studios signed Johnny to sing “It’s Not For Me To Say” in the film Lizzie . He played a tavern piano bar singer. In 1958, Johnny made another motion picture appearance. This time it was for 20th Century Fox in A Certain Smile. In this movie, he sang the title song playing himself in an elegant nightclub scene. Since then, Johnny’s voice has been used in countless Hollywood movies for theme songs, background music and to enhance a particular setting or segment.
“Wonderful, Wonderful” and “It’s Not For Me To Say” reached their peaks on the BILLBOARD pop chart in July of 1957. These successes were followed by the monumental single “Chances Are” which became Johnny’s first #1 hit.
In June of 1957, Johnny appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show where he was introduced to the record buying public and became a national celebrity and household name. Columbia Records continued to release albums of Johnny singing beautiful and romantic ballads, classic standards and the best songs from Broadway musicals. These albums, like the singles, became immediate successes with sales in the millions. It was not uncommon for Johnny to have as many as four albums on the BILLBOARD Top Albums chart at the same time. In late 1959, Johnny recorded another song that became synonymous with the name of Johnny Mathis, the Erroll Garner composition, “Misty”.
Johnny’s accomplishments are numerous and varied. He holds many records and has set many precedents in the music industry. In 1958, two years after being signed by Columbia Records, Johnny’s Greatest Hits was released. It began a “Greatest Hits” tradition copied by every record company since then. Johnny’s Greatest Hits went on to become one of the most popular albums of all time and spent an unprecedented 490 continuous weeks (almost ten years) on the BILLBOARD Top Albums Chart. This record has been noted in the GUINNESS BOOK OF WORLD RECORDS.
According to record historian Joel Whitburn, Johnny is one of only five recording artists to have Top 40 Hits spanning each of the four decades since 1955. Amazingly, his second #1 Hit Single, “Too Much, Too Little, Too Late” (recorded with Deniece Williams), came almost 21 years after his very first #1 Hit Single, “Chances Are”.
Johnny has been honored to make several appearances before various heads of state. Starting in June of 1973, he sang at a State Dinner held in honor of the President of Liberia. In 1978, Johnny sang for the British Royal Family at A Command Performance held at The London Palladium. He performed for President and Mrs. Reagan at the State Dinner held in honor of the Prime Minister of Japan in April of 1987. Four years later in April of 1991, he sang for President and Mrs. Bush in honor of the President of Nicaragua. Most recently, in May of 1994, Johnny sang for President and Mrs. Clinton (along with the other five living First Ladies) at a very special First Ladies Tribute.
Johnny has also been honored by entertainment heads of state. In June of 1972, he was awarded his own star on the famous Hollywood Walk of Fame. He has participated in the Academy Awards presentation many times to sing the song nominated in the “Best Song” category. He has received two Grammy nominations. The first was for “Misty” in 1960 in the category of Best Vocal Performance Single Record or Track Male. The second came in 1992 for In a Sentimental Mood/Mathis Sings Ellington in the category of Best Traditional Pop Performance.
1996 marked Johnny’s 40th Anniversary as a recording artist. He celebrated by releasing All About Love. He then released The Global Masters (songs from his three year contract at Mercury Records) in 1997, and 1998 saw the release of The Ultimate Hits and Because You Loved Me.
In his free time, Johnny loves to golf. He plays golf almost every day when he’s not traveling and has sung at many golf banquets such as the Ryder Cup. In 1985 and 1986, Johnny hosted his own golf tournament, The Johnny Mathis Seniors PGA Classic which was held in Los Angeles, California.
Johnny’s other favorite avocation is cooking. He is a gourmet cook who cooks for himself and often others when he’s home or traveling. His mother taught him at an early age how to cook up a storm and do it well. He’s enjoyed doing so all his life.
Alone Again
Johnny Mathis Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
If I'm not feeling any less sour
I promise myself to treat myself
And visit a nearby tower
And climbing to the top will throw myself off
In an effort to make it clear to whoever
What it's like when you're shattered
Left standing in the lurch at a church
"She stood him up"
"No point in us remaining"
"We may as well go home"
As I did on my own
Alone again, naturally
To think that only yesterday
I was cheerful, bright and gay
Looking forward to who wouldn't do
The role I was about to play?
But as if to knock me down
Reality came around
And without so much as a mere touch
Cut me into little pieces
Leaving me to doubt
Talk about God in His mercy
Who if He really does exist
Why did He desert me?
In my hour of need
I truly am indeed
Alone again, naturally
It seems to me that there are more hearts
Broken in the world that can't be mended
Left unattended
What do we do? What do we do?
Alone again, naturally
Looking back over the years
And whatever else that appears
I remember I cried when my father died
Never wishing to hide the tears
And at sixty-five years old
My mother, God rest her soul
Couldn't understand why the only man
She had ever loved had been taken
Leaving her to start with a heart so badly broken
Despite encouragement from me
No words were ever spoken
And when she passed away
I cried and cried all day
Alone again, naturally
"Alone Again (Naturally)" is a song by Irish singer-songwriter Gilbert O'Sullivan that was released in 1972. The song tells a story of heartbreak and loss that is entirely relatable to anyone who has ever been alone or lost someone they loved. The lyrics are a powerful meditation on the human condition and the struggle to make sense of life's unpredictable twists and turns. The melody of the song is somber and plaintive, perfectly capturing the mood of the lyrics.
The first verse sets the stage for the rest of the song, with the singer contemplating suicide if he is unable to get over his heartbreak. He resolves to climb a nearby tower and throw himself off, wishing to make it clear to anyone who cares about him what it's like to be left alone and shattered. The second verse reflects on the singer's past, as he remembers more heartbreak from his childhood and his mother's death. The song ends with a reprise of the chorus, driving home the message of how alone he truly feels.
Line by Line Meaning
In a little while from now
Soon, if my mood doesn't improve, I'll go to a nearby tower and throw myself off the top to make it crystal clear how it feels when you’ve been abandoned.
If I'm not feeling any less sour
If I'm not feeling any better.
I promise myself to treat myself
I pledge to do something nice for myself.
And visit a nearby tower
I'll go to a nearby tower.
And climbing to the top will throw myself off
I’ll climb to the top and jump off.
In an effort to make it clear to whoever
I’ll do this to make the pain I’m experiencing clear to others.
What it's like when you're shattered
The experience of feeling broken and abandoned.
Left standing in the lurch at a church
Being left alone at church.
Where people saying : 'My God, that's tough'
Others commenting on how difficult my situation is.
"She stood him up"
Referring to a woman who did not show up for a date with a man.
"No point in us remaining"
There's no reason to stay in the current situation.
"We may as well go home"
It's best to leave and go home.
As I did on my own
I left on my own.
Alone again, naturally
Once again, I’m alone as I was before.
To think that only yesterday
It's hard to believe that only yesterday things were different.
I was cheerful, bright and gay
I was happy and carefree.
Looking forward to who wouldn't do
I was looking forward to something exciting.
The role I was about to play?
A theatrical role I was about to perform.
But as if to knock me down
Suddenly, everything changed and my mood plummeted.
Reality came around
The harsh realities of life set in.
And without so much as a mere touch
Reality hurt me without even touching me physically.
Cut me into little pieces
The experience broke me into little pieces emotionally.
Leaving me to doubt
I'm left feeling uncertain.
Talk about God in His mercy
A reference to God and His mercy.
Who if He really does exist
If God exists.
Why did He desert me?
Why did God abandon me in this difficult time?
In my hour of need
During the time when I need God the most.
I truly am indeed
I really am feeling.
Alone again, naturally
Once again, I’m alone as I was before.
It seems to me that there are more hearts
It appears to me that many people's hearts are broken.
Broken in the world that can't be mended
Their broken hearts cannot be fixed or mended.
Left unattended
Without anyone there to care for them.
What do we do? What do we do?
What actions should we take? What should be done?
Alone again, naturally
Once again, I’m alone as I was before.
Looking back over the years
Reflecting on the past years.
And whatever else that appears
Thinking about whatever else comes to mind.
I remember I cried when my father died
Recalling the time when my father died and I cried.
Never wishing to hide the tears
I didn't want to hide or suppress my emotions and tears.
And at sixty-five years old
Now, at the age of sixty-five.
My mother, God rest her soul
My mother, who has passed away.
Couldn't understand why the only man
She couldn't fathom why her lifelong love was taken from her.
She had ever loved had been taken
The man she had loved for her entire life was gone.
Leaving her to start with a heart so badly broken
This left her with a deeply broken heart.
Despite encouragement from me
Even when I tried to cheer her up.
No words were ever spoken
There was nothing more to say.
And when she passed away
When she died.
I cried and cried all day
I spent the entire day crying and grieving by myself.
Alone again, naturally
Once again, I’m alone as I was before.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
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