Wiley was born in Fort Gibson, Oklahoma. While still in her early teens, she left home to pursue a singing career with the Leo Reisman band. Her career was temporarily interrupted by a fall while horseback riding. Wiley suffered temporary blindness, but recovered, and at the age of 19 was back with Reisman again, with whom she recorded three songs: "Take It From Me," "Time On My Hands," and her own composition, "Got The South In My Soul." She sang with Paul Whiteman and later, the Casa Loma Orchestra. A collaboration with composer Victor Young resulted in several songs for which Wiley wrote the lyrics, including "Got The South in My Soul" and "Anytime, Anyday, Anywhere," the latter an R&B hit in the 1950s.
In 1939, Wiley recorded eight Gershwin songs on 78s with a small group for Liberty Music Shops. The set sold well and was followed by 78s dedicated to the music of Cole Porter (1940) and Richard Rodgers & Lorenz Hart (1940 and 1954), Harold Arlen (1943), and 10" LPs dedicated to the music of Vincent Youmans and Irving Berlin (1951). The players on these recordings included Bunny Berigan, Bud Freeman, Max Kaminsky, Fats Waller, Billy Butterfield, Bobby Hackett, Eddie Condon, Stan Freeman, Cy Walter, and the bandleader Jess Stacy, to whom Wiley was married for a number of years. These influential albums launched the concept of a "songbook" (often featuring lesser-known songs), which was later widely imitated by other singers.
Wiley's career made a resurgence in 1950 with the much admired ten-inch album Night in Manhattan. In 1954, she opened the very first Newport Jazz Festival accompanied by Bobby Hackett. Later in the decade she recorded two of her finest albums, West of the Moon (1956) and A Touch of the Blues (1957). In the 1960s, Wiley retired, although she acted in a 1963 television film, Something About Lee Wiley, which told her life story. The film stimulated interest in the singer. Her last public appearance was a concert in Carnegie Hall in 1972 as part of the New York Jazz Festival, where she was enthusiastically received.
Tea For Two
Lee Wiley Lyrics
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So I have invented my own.
Darling, this place is lovely oasis
Where life's weary taste is unknown
Far from the crowded city
Where flowers pretty caress the stream
Cozy to hide in, to live side by side in,
Picture me upon your knee
Just tea for two
And two for tea
Just me for you
And you for me alone
Nobody near us to see us or hear us
No friends or relations
On weekend vacations
We won't have it known
That we own a telephone, dear
Day will break and I'll wake
And start to bake a sugar cake
For you to take for all the boys to see
We will raise a family
A boy for you
And a girl for me
Can't you see how happy we would be
Picture you upon my knee
Just tea for two
And two for tea
Just me for you
And you for me alone
Nobody near us to see us or hear us
No friends or relations
On weekend vacations
We won't have it known
That we own a telephone, dear
Day will break, you'll wake
And start to bake a sugar cake
For you to take for all the boys to see
We will raise a family
A boy for you
And a girl for me
The lyrics to Lee Wiley's "Tea for Two" describe the singer's discontentment with rented homes and her desire to create her own space. She has found this in the form of a lovely oasis far from the crowded city, where she and her loved one can hide away and live side by side without interference. The picture she paints is one of domestic bliss, with just the two of them sharing tea and sugary treats. They have no need for friends or relations, and they will keep their happy existence a secret from the rest of the world. The song ends with the promise of starting a family and becoming even happier together.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm discontented with homes that I've rented
I'm sad because I'm not satisfied with the homes I've lived in, which I did not own.
So I have invented my own.
That's why I made my own lovely home oasis for myself, dear.
Darling, this place is lovely oasis
Honey, this place of ours is absolutely wonderful.
Where life's weary taste is unknown
It's the place where life's difficulties can't reach us, dear.
Far from the crowded city
We're living very remotely from a urbanized area.
Where flowers pretty caress the stream
We're surrounded by beautiful flowers that are beside a lovely stream.
Cozy to hide in, to live side by side in,
It's comfy enough to live and hide in with you by my side, dear.
Don't let it apart in my dream
Let's not make it simply a dream and ruin it, let's hold onto it and make it a reality.
Picture me upon your knee
Imagine me sitting on your lap, dear.
Just tea for two
Just you and me drinking tea together.
And two for tea
We'll have enough for both of us to enjoy a cup of tea.
Just me for you
I'm happy to have just me for you, dear.
And you for me alone
And you for me only.
Nobody near us to see us or hear us
No one will see or hear us, there's just us two.
No friends or relations
None of our friends or family members will see or hear us.
On weekend vacations
Even while we're on vacation, we don't want others to find out.
We won't have it known
We won't let anyone discover it.
That we own a telephone, dear
That we actually own a telephone, darling.
Day will break and I'll wake
The next day will come and I'll get up.
And start to bake a sugar cake
And I will begin making a sweet cake.
For you to take for all the boys to see
So you can show off to all your friends, dear.
We will raise a family
We will have and raise children, dear.
A boy for you
You will have a son, dear.
And a girl for me
I will have a daughter.
Can't you see how happy we would be
Don't you realize how happy we would be together, dear?
Picture you upon my knee
Now picture yourself on my lap, dear.
Just tea for two
Just the two of us having tea together.
And two for tea
Enough for both of us to have a cup of tea.
Just me for you
I'm happy to have just myself for you, dear.
And you for me alone
And you just for me as well.
Nobody near us to see us or hear us
Just us two and no one else around to watch or listen.
No friends or relations
None of our friends or family members nearby.
On weekend vacations
Even while we're away or on vacation, we want to keep it to ourselves.
We won't have it known
We don't want others to find out.
That we own a telephone, dear
Especially that we own a telephone, my dear.
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: IRVING CAESAR, VINCENT YOUMANS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind