In 1983, acclaimed American jazz pianist Keith Jarrett asked bassist Gary P… Read Full Bio ↴In 1983, acclaimed American jazz pianist Keith Jarrett asked bassist Gary Peacock and drummer Jack DeJohnette (the latter his colleague in the Charles Lloyd Quartet of the late 1960s) to record an album of jazz standards that was released simply entitled Standards, Volume 1. The three had previously worked on Peacock's 1977 album Tales of Another.

Standards, Volume 2 and Changes, both recorded at the same session in New York, followed soon after. The success of these albums and the group's ensuing tour, which came as traditional acoustic post-bop was enjoying an upswing in the early 1980s, led to this new "Standards Trio" becoming one of the premier working groups in jazz, and certainly one of the most enduring, continuing to record and perform live over more than twenty years.

The Jarrett/Peacock/DeJohnette trio has also produced recordings that consist largely of challenging original material, most notably 1987's Changeless. (These recordings are noted above.) Several of the standards albums contain an original track or two, some attributed to Jarrett but mostly group improvisations. The live recordings Inside Out and Always Let Me Go (both released in 2001) marked a renewed interest by the trio in wholly improvised free jazz. By this point in their history, the musical communication between these three men had become all but telepathic, and their group improvisations frequently take on a complexity that sounds almost composed. The Standards Trio undertakes frequent world tours of recital halls (the only venues in which Jarrett, a notorious stickler for acoustic sound, will play these days) and is one of the few truly lucrative jazz groups to play both "straight-ahead" (as opposed to smooth) and free jazz.

Prelude To A Kiss
Keith Jarrett Trio Lyrics

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If you hear
A song in blue
Like a flower crying
For the dew
That was my heart serenading you
My prelude to a kiss

If you hear a song that grows

From my tender sentimental woes
That was my heart trying to compose
A prelude to a kiss

Though it's just a simple melody
With nothing fancy
Nothing much
You could turn it to a symphony
A Shubert tune with a Gershwin touch

Oh how my love song gently cries
For the tenderness within your eyes
My love is a prelude that never dies
A prelude to a kiss

Though it's just a simple melody
With nothing fancy
Nothing much
You could turn it to a symphony
A Shubert tune with a Gershwin touch

Oh how my love song so gently cries
For the tenderness within your eyes

My love is a prelude that never dies
A prelude to a kiss

Overall Meaning

The song "Prelude to a Kiss" by Keith Jarrett Trio is a beautiful love ballad that speaks about a tender and sentimental love. The lyrics tell of the deep emotions of the singer and his desire to express his feelings through music. The first stanza compares the singer's love to a beautiful flower that is craving for the morning dew. The song is his prelude to a kiss, a beautiful way to communicate his love for his beloved.

The second stanza continues to describe how the singer tries to convey his emotions through music. He composes a simple melody that carries all the deep feelings he has for his beloved, even though it may not be a grand symphony. However, he acknowledges that with the right touch, the simple melody could be turned into a beautiful tune reminiscent of the works of Schubert and Gershwin. The song ends with the singer stating how his love for his beloved will never die, and "Prelude to a Kiss" will always be a testament to it.

Line by Line Meaning

If you hear
If you listen

A song in blue
A melancholic tune

Like a flower crying
Expressing sadness

For the dew
For something missing

That was my heart serenading you
That was my sincere expression of love for you

My prelude to a kiss
My way of expressing my feelings as an introduction to a kiss

If you hear a song that grows
If you hear a tune that becomes stronger

From my tender sentimental woes
From my emotional troubles and longings

That was my heart trying to compose
That was me attempting to create a heartfelt piece

A prelude to a kiss
An introduction to a romantic moment

Though it's just a simple melody
Even though it's basic music