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.
Misty
Johnny Mathis Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm as helpless as a kitten up a tree
And I feel like I'm clinging to a cloud
I can't understand
I get misty just holding your hand
Walk my way
And a thousand violins begin to play
That music I hear
I get misty the moment you're near
You can say that you're leading me on
But it's just what I want you to do
Don't you notice how hopelessly I'm lost
That's why I'm following you
On my own
Would I wander through this wonderland alone
Never knowing my right foot from my left
My hat from my glove
I'm too misty, and too much in love
On my own
Would I wander through this wonderland alone
Never knowing my right foot from my left
My hat from my glove
I'm too misty, and too much in love
Look at me
The lyrics to Johnny Mathis's song Misty describe the intense emotions and sensations that the singer experiences when he is with the person he loves. The first verse compares his feelings to being helpless like a kitten up in a tree and feeling like he is clinging to a cloud. He cannot understand why he feels this way, but he gets misty just from holding the person's hand. The second verse describes how walking with the person feels like a romantic movie, with a thousand violins playing or the simple sound of a hello triggering an emotional response. He hears music and feels misty just from being near the person he loves.
The chorus repeats the words "On my own," emphasizing the singer's feelings of loneliness before he found this person. He would have been wandering "through this wonderland alone," not knowing which way to turn or how to navigate without the person he loves. He is too misty, or too emotional, and too much in love to be without this person. The bridge of the song acknowledges that the singer may be led on by this person, but he wants to be led on because he is so hopelessly lost without them.
Overall, the lyrics to Misty describe a deep and intense romantic love that the singer cannot explain or control. The simple act of being near the person he loves triggers a passionate emotional response in him that he cannot ignore.
Line by Line Meaning
Look at me
I am vulnerable and in need of your attention.
I'm as helpless as a kitten up a tree
I am completely reliant on you and unable to fend for myself.
And I feel like I'm clinging to a cloud
Being with you makes me feel like I am on top of the world.
I can't understand
I am overwhelmed and speechless in your presence.
I get misty just holding your hand
The simple act of being with you is enough to make me emotional.
Walk my way
Come towards me and be with me.
And a thousand violins begin to play
When you're with me, it's like a symphony is playing.
Or it might be the sound of your hello
Even the smallest interaction with you is enough to make me happy.
That music I hear
The world around me fades away when I'm with you.
I get misty the moment you're near
I become emotional and overwhelmed as soon as you're close to me.
You can say that you're leading me on
You may think you're playing games with me, but I'm happy to follow your lead.
But it's just what I want you to do
I am willing to follow you because I am hopelessly in love with you.
Don't you notice how hopelessly I'm lost
I am completely absorbed in my love for you and am unable to focus on anything else.
That's why I'm following you
I am doing everything in my power to be close to you at all times.
On my own
Without you, I am alone and lost.
Would I wander through this wonderland alone
Without you, I would be lost in a world that is beautiful but lonely.
Never knowing my right foot from my left
I would be directionless and confused without you by my side.
My hat from my glove
I would struggle to even keep track of my own belongings without you to ground me.
I'm too misty, and too much in love
My emotions for you are overwhelming and all-consuming, making it hard for me to think straight.
Lyrics © Spirit Music Group, Downtown Music Publishing, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Erroll Garner, Johnny Burke
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Look at me
I'm as helpless as a kitten up a tree
And I feel like I'm clinging to a cloud
I can't understand
I get misty just holding your hand
[Verse 2]
Walk my way
And a thousand violins begin to play
Or it might be the sound of your hello
That music I hear
I get misty the moment you're near
[Verse 3]
You can say that you're leading me on
But it's just what I want you to do
Don't you notice how hopelessly I'm lost?
That's why I'm following you
[Verse 4]
On my own
Would I wander through this wonderland alone
Never knowing my right foot from my left
My hat from my glove
I'm too misty and too much in love
[2x]
[Outro]
Look at me
cassie tjlc
My grandpa used to sing this song to my grandma all of the time. Just two nights ago my grandpa passed, 8 years after my grandma. I shed some happy tears listening, just knowing my grandpa can finally sing this to her again. I love and miss you. With all of my heart.
INDY Dan
Sorry for your loss..Good thing we have happy memories..
PinkbubblegumPop 🖤
❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤😔
Janet Lawson
That just broke my heart, I am so sorry. Especially since this reminds me of my grandfather.
Philip Tinker
My dad used to sing this to mom. Dad passed a couple of years ago, mom passed in June. We are planning the joint memorial service for both and want this to be played if the Church will allow it. Happy memories of an undying love and respect for each other. They were two of the most precious people I will ever know.
Junia Silveira Martins
Que confortante saber que o amor ainda existe.
binslick1200
Johnny Mathis has the perfect voice. The way he carries those notes, the range, and purity of his voice—an amazing gifted singer.
Laboon 344
he*
Martin Robinson
Johnny Mathis, Nat King Cole et al. had perfect enunciation, especially when compared to modern songs where the lyrics are pure guesswork. OMG, I sound like my dad!
GetterRay
@Martin Robinson I don't wanna be THAT guy who complains about modern music and says the old days are better, but as a Canadian who is forced to listen to Michael Buble on the radio by law, he's so terrible compared to the old singers.