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).
Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart
Judy Garland Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You came along when everything was wrong and put a song in my heart
Dear when you smiled at me, I heard a melody
It haunted me from the start
Something inside of me started a symphony
Zing! Went the strings of my heart
About a nest set apart
All nature seemed to be in perfect harmony
Zing! Went the strings of my heart
Your eyes made skies seem blue again
What else could I do again
But keep repeating through and through
"I love you, love you"
I still recall the thrill, guess I always will
I hope 'twill never depart
Dear, with your lips to mine, a rhapsody divine
Zing! Went the strings of my heart
Dear when you smiled at me, I heard a melody
It haunted me from the start
Something inside of me started a symphony
Zing! Went the strings of my heart
'Twas like a breath of spring, I heard a robin sing
About a nest set apart
All nature seemed to be in perfect harmony
Zing! Went the strings of my heart
Your eyes made skies seem blue again
What else could I do again
But keep repeating through and through
"I love you, love you"
I still recall the thrill, I guess I always will
I hope 'twill never depart
Dear, with your lips to mine, a rhapsody divine
Zing! Oh, Oh, Oh went the strings of my heart
The lyrics of Judy Garland’s song “Zing! Went The Strings Of My Heart” describe the sensation of falling in love. The singer recalls a moment when they saw their loved one smile, and they felt as if they were hearing a melody in their mind for the first time. The melody lingered, becoming a symphony inside the singer’s head. The feeling is like a breath of fresh and exciting air, where the world appears perfect and harmonious. The expression “zing! went the strings of my heart” encapsulates the intense excitement and joy of falling in love, as if every fiber of their being is responding to this feeling.
The lyrics continue to describe the effect that the loved one has on the singer. Their eyes make the world appear more vivid and clear, their presence rekindling a sense of love and wonder, and the singer expresses this emotion in the words “what else could I do again but keep repeating through and through, I love you, love you”. The sensations of love are so intense that the singer hopes that it will never depart, and recalls the thrill of falling in love, and feeling as if it was a call from something divine. “Zing! Oh, Oh, Oh went the strings of my heart” is the chorus that encapsulates the particular moment of falling in love, and how it sets everything in motion in the singer’s mind.
Line by Line Meaning
Dear when you smiled at me, I heard a melody
When you smiled at me, I felt a beautiful tune resonating from inside me
It haunted me from the start
This melody stirred up something in me that I couldn't shake
Something inside of me started a symphony
This tune sparked a musical masterpiece within me
Zing! Went the strings of my heart
This tune struck a chord deep within me and ignited my heartstrings
'Twas like a breath of spring, I heard a robin sing
It was as if the arrival of spring had ushered in a beautiful serenade from a singing bird
About a nest set apart
The bird's song was about a special and unique nest
All nature seemed to be in perfect harmony
The world seemed to be in sync and completely aligned with this beautiful melody
Your eyes made skies seem blue again
Your eyes had the power to brighten my world and make everything seem beautiful once more
What else could I do again
I was so overwhelmed by your presence that I couldn't imagine doing anything else
But keep repeating through and through
All I wanted to do was express my love for you over and over again
"I love you, love you"
This simple phrase conveyed the depth of my feelings for you
I still recall the thrill, I guess I always will
I will never forget the excitement and joy that this melody brought me
I hope 'twill never depart
I wish that this beautiful melody will linger with me forever
Dear, with your lips to mine, a rhapsody divine
When we kiss, it's as if a heavenly musical composition is being performed
Zing! Oh, Oh, Oh went the strings of my heart
My heartstrings are still vibrating with the impact of this beautiful melody
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing
Written by: James F. Hanley
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@alexsummerscrane1522
Never could carry a tune, never knew where to start
You came along when everything was wrong and put a song in my heart
Dear when you smiled at me, I heard a melody
It haunted me from the start
Something inside of me started a symphony
Zing! Went the strings of my heart
'Twas like a breath of spring, I heard a robin sing
About a nest set apart
All nature seemed to be in perfect harmony
Zing! Went the strings of my heart
Your eyes made skies seem blue again
What else could I do again
But keep repeating through and through
"I love you, love you"
I still recall the thrill, guess I always will
I hope 'twill never depart
Dear, with your lips to mine, a rhapsody divine
Zing! Went the strings of my heart
Dear when you smiled at me, I heard a melody
It haunted me from the start
Something inside of me started a symphony
Zing! Went the strings of my heart
'Twas like a breath of spring, I heard a robin sing
About a nest set apart
All nature seemed to be in perfect harmony
Zing! Went the strings of my heart
Your eyes made skies seem blue again
What else could I do again
But keep repeating through and through
"I love you, love you"
I still recall the thrill, I guess I always will
I hope 'twill never depart
Dear, with your lips to mine, a rhapsody divine
Zing! Oh, Oh, Oh went the strings of my heart
@thatonepersonobsessedwithm4338
Dear when you smiled at me, I heard a melody
It haunted me from the start
Something inside of me started a symphony
Zing! Went the strings of my heart
'Twas like a breath of spring, I heard a robin sing
About a nest set apart
All nature seemed to be in perfect harmony
Zing! Went the strings of my heart
Your eyes made skies seem blue again
What else could I do again
But keep repeating through and through
"I love you, love you"
I still recall the thrill, guess I always will
I hope 'twill never depart
I knew I loved you heaps, and you were mine for keeps
Zing! Went the strings of my heart
Your eyes made skies seem blue again
What else could I do again
But keep repeating through and through
"I love you, love you"
I still recall the thrill, I guess I always will
I hope 'twill never depart
I knew I loved you heaps, and you were mine for keeps
Zing! Oh, Oh, Oh went the strings of my heart
@texasweather4148
She had so much passion and beauty yet this undeniable sense of sadness in her eyes
@GetlemanNightmare
Actually she sung this song when her father died and couldn't go to see him because of studio...
@EmmelineSama
@@GetlemanNightmare really???
@GetlemanNightmare
@@EmmelineSama yes in year 1935 age of 13 but studio said age 12
@charlesmaeger6162
Tex, she had such monumental fame so young. Wish she had a good, strong loving, very smart, older hand in show business.It might be have kept her from harm.
@mcdeadsquirrel
So true, so sad.
@klassicalmuzik
The way she said “in perfect harmony”
My heart melted
@samray3297
The pure innocence is so evident in her eyes & on her face! What a shame that she could never enjoy the early stages of her life! Like Marilyn, they lost their bearings facing endless deceptions until they quit life so early!
@chrisallen7911
There has never been an Angel with a voice like Judy’s on Earth. I pray she will be at peace in Heaven and singing there for us.
@bwsmyhero
If she isn’t singing in heaven, she certainly ought to be!