After appearing in Vaudeville theater with her sisters, Judy was signed to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer as a teenager. There she made more than two dozen films, including nine with Mickey Rooney, and the film with which she would be most identified, "The Wizard of Oz" (1939). After 15 years, Judy was released from the studio but gained renewed success through record-breaking concert appearances, including a critically acclaimed Carnegie Hall concert, a well-regarded but short-lived television series, and a return to film acting beginning with "A Star Is Born" (1954).
Despite her professional triumphs, Judy battled personal problems throughout her life. Insecure about her appearance, her feelings were compounded by film executives who told her she was unattractive and overweight. Plied with drugs to control her weight and increase her productivity, Garland endured a decades-long struggle with addiction. Garland was plagued by financial instability, often owing hundreds of thousands of dollars in back taxes, and her first four of five marriages ended in divorce. She attempted suicide on a number of occasions. Garland died of an accidental drug overdose at the age of 47, leaving children Liza Minnelli, Lorna Luft, and Joey Luft.
Legacy
Judy Garland's legacy as a performer and a personality has endured long after her death. The American Film Institute named Garland eighth among the "Greatest Female Stars of All Time". She has been the subject of over two dozen biographies since her death, including the well-received "Me and My Shadows: A Family Memoir" by her daughter, Lorna Luft. Luft's memoir was later adapted into the multiple award-winning television mini-series, "Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows", which won Emmy Awards for two actresses portraying Garland (Tammy Blanchard and Judy Davis).
Garland was posthumously awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1997. Several of her recordings have been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. These include "Over the Rainbow," which was ranked as the number one movie song of all time in the American Film Institute's "100 Years...100 Songs" list. Four more Garland songs are featured on the list: "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" (#76), "Get Happy" (#61), "The Trolley Song" (#26), and "The Man That Got Away" (#11).
Judy Garland has twice been honored on U.S. postage stamps, in 1989 (as Dorothy) and again in 2006 (as Vicki Lester from A Star Is Born).
By Myself
Judy Garland Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
This is the end of romance
I'll go my way by myself, love is only a dance
I'll try to apply myself and teach my heart how to sing
I'll go my way by myself like a bird on the wing
I'll face the unknown, I'll build a world of my own
No one knows better than I myself, I'm by myself alone
I'm sure that love's an overrated past time
It's the last time I'll ever be anything but fancy free
For love is just a junior high version, one way excursion
I'm sure that I am old enough to fly alone
And I'll face the unknown, I'll build a world of my own
No one knows better than I myself
I'm by myself alone, I'll go, I'll go by myself alone
The lyrics of Judy Garland's "By Myself" is an ode to independence and the end of a romantic relationship. She is determined to go her own way, without anyone's help or interference. She believes that love is just a dance and that she needs to learn how to be alone and build her own world. She talks about being a bird on the wing and facing the unknown, with nothing to hold her back, no one to guide her, and no one to lean on. The mood of the song is somewhat sad, but also empowering. Garland's voice is emotional and powerful, perfectly conveying the message of the song.
The chorus of "By Myself" repeats the line "No one knows better than I myself, I'm by myself alone". This line represents the idea that only Garland knows what she needs, and that she is capable of making her own decisions. She wants to apply herself and teach her heart how to sing, to create her own world without anyone else's input. The lyrics also feature Garland's thoughts on love, stating that it's overrated and that she's old enough to fly alone. She is ready to face the world and build a life for herself, and she doesn't need anyone else to do it.
Line by Line Meaning
I'll go, I'll go, I'll go my way by myself
I am going to take control of my own life and live it alone without relying on anyone else.
This is the end of romance
I have given up on the idea of romance. It is no longer a part of my life.
I'll go my way by myself, love is only a dance
I will continue on my path alone because love is just a temporary, superficial thing.
I'll try to apply myself and teach my heart how to sing
I will make an effort to find my own happiness and learn to love myself.
I'll go my way by myself like a bird on the wing
I will embrace my independence and fly solo like a free bird.
I'll face the unknown, I'll build a world of my own
I am ready to take on the challenges and uncertainties of life and create my own destiny.
No one knows better than I myself, I'm by myself alone
Only I understand the path I am on and I am comfortable being alone in it.
I'm sure that love's an overrated past time
I believe that love is not as important as people make it out to be.
It's the last time I'll ever be anything but fancy free
I have chosen to be free and I will never let myself be tied down by any romantic attachments again.
For love is just a junior high version, one way excursion
Love is a childish and immature concept that only takes us in one direction, towards heartbreak.
I'm sure that I am old enough to fly alone
I am confident that I am capable of surviving and thriving on my own without needing love or anyone else.
I'll go, I'll go by myself alone
I am determined to continue on my own path, completely independent and happy with myself.
Lyrics © DistroKid, BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Royalty Network, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Arthur Schwartz, Howard Dietz
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Fernando Graça
I'll go my way by myself
This is the end of romance
I'll go my way by myself
Love is only a dance
I'll try to apply myself
And teach my heart how to sing
I'll go my way by myself like a bird on the wing
I'll face the unkown
I'll build a world of my own
No one knows better than I myself
I'm by myself alone
I'll go my way by myself
Here's how the comedy ends
I'll have to deny myself, love and laughter and friends
Gray clouds in the sky above
Have put a blot on my fun
I'll try to fly high above
For my place in the sun
I'll face the unkown
I'll build a world of my own
No one knows better than I myself
No one knows better than I myself
How I wanted love and fell
Now I say what the hell
All of those black days are gone
Cause its solo, all alone
By myself, from now on
DIVA PLAVA LAGUNA
Pure genius. She is definitely one of the greatest performers in history.
Steven Stewart
I've watched this like a hundred times and I never tire of just how incredible the performance is. The way she literally seems to brace herself to beat out the final notes are astonishing.
crowe bobby
@Ptolemy Thirteen This was Piaf via Kay Thompson. Not to make little of Judy's phenomenal talent.
Ptolemy Thirteen
Agreed Steven. She can bring me to tears and that's rare for me. I too have watched it over and over and marvel at her. She had a way of using big hand gestures and body movement to "push" the sound out of her. Her vibrato is what amazes me, the way she sort of "swallows" the sound at the end of lines. Linda Ronstadt said once "The sound came out of her like a golden thread on a spool".
Carlos Jorge Stöckel
I get gossebumps when I heart ths song of the incomparable Judy Garland!
mickeymouse2able
She finished and then said to herself, "I killed it. The audience is dead"
LC60
Steven Stewart - so true. You just run out of adjectives when you try to describe what she does to you when she sings. Just an otherworldly talent. There will never be another like her.
Maxula Pretto
No dancers no special effects , just her and that voice!!. Judy was an original.
Deborah Matos
Yes she was
Carlos Jorge Stöckel
The didn´t need any spacial effect because she had a huge talent!