In the mid-1940s, Les and Larry started up their own ensemble, hiring Nelson Riddle, Bill Finegan, and Ralph Flanagan to arrange tunes for them. Their ensemble was not successful, and after a few years they scuttled the band and sold the arrangements they had commissioned to Tommy Dorsey. Both returned to sideman positions in various orchestras.
In 1953, Larry met Charles Albertine and recorded two of his experimental compositions, "Impressions of Outer Space" and "Music for Barefoot Ballerinas". Released on 10" vinyl, these recordings became collector's items for fans of avant-garde jazz, but they were not commercially successful at the time. Larry and Albertine put together a more traditional ensemble and began recording them using precise microphone placements, producing what came to be known as the "Elgart sound". This proved to be very commercially successful, and Larry enjoyed a run of successful albums and singles in the 1950s.
In 1954, the Elgarts left their permanent mark on music history in recording Albertine's "Bandstand Boogie," for the legendary television show originally hosted by Bob Horn, and two years later, Dick Clark. Clark took the show national, to ABC-TV, in 1956 and remained host for another 32 years. Variations to the original surfaced as the show's theme in later years. Les and Larry reunited in 1963, but it would not last long; soon after, Les retired from performing altogether, while Larry continued to perform and record regularly for decades.
Larry's biggest exposure came in 1982, with the smash success of a recording called "Hooked on Swing". The instrumental was a medley of swing jazz hits - "In the Mood", "Cherokee", "American Patrol", "Sing, Sing, Sing", "Don't Be That Way", "Little Brown Jug", "Opus #1", "Zing Went the Strings of My Heart", and "String of Pearls" - that became so popular it even cracked the US Billboard Pop Singles chart (at #31) and Adult Contemporary chart (#20). Billed as "Larry Elgart and His Manhattan Swing Orchestra", the LP from which the tune was taken hit #24 on the US charts. The follow-up, Hooked on Swing 2, debuted at #89 on the album charts, and soon after Larry was back to the jazz touring circuit. He continued to tour internationally and record into the 2000s.
You're Driving Me Crazy
Les and Larry Elgart Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Why did you leave me lonely?
For here's a heart that's only
For nobody but you!
I'm burning like a flame, dear;
Oh, I'll never be the same, dear;
I'll always place the blame, dear,
Yes, you,
You're driving me crazy!
What did I do? What did I do?
My tears for you
Make everything hazy,
Clouding the skies of blue.
How true,
Were the friends who were near me to cheer me,
Believe me, they knew!
But you,
Were the kind who would hurt me, desert me,
When I needed you!
Yes, you!
You're driving me crazy!
What did I do to you?
The song "You're Driving Me Crazy" by Les and Larry Elgart is a classic torch song that speaks of heartbreak, desperation and loss. The song speaks about the pain and the loneliness that the singer feels as a result of being left by a loved one. The first verse delivers a melancholy lyrical punch where the singer asks why he has been left alone with his heart belonging only to the one who left him. The second verse talks about how the singer is burning with the desire to have that person back, yet he is at fault. The chorus echoes the pain with the question "what did I do?" and a statement indicating how difficult it has become for him to function in life as everything is hazy due to tears he shed for this person.
Line by Line Meaning
You left me sad and lonely;
You abandoned me and left me heartbroken and alone.
Why did you leave me lonely?
I am curious as to why you chose to leave me feeling lonely.
For here's a heart that's only
My heart belongs and is devoted only to you.
For nobody but you!
There is nobody else in my heart but you.
I'm burning like a flame, dear;
My passion for you is like a fierce burning flame.
Oh, I'll never be the same, dear;
My love for you has changed me completely, and I will never be as I was before.
I'll always place the blame, dear,
I attribute all my pain and suffering to you.
On nobody but you.
There is nobody else to blame but you.
Yes, you,
You, and only you.
You're driving me crazy!
Your actions and behavior are causing me emotional turmoil and chaos.
What did I do? What did I do?
What have I possibly done to deserve this treatment from you?
My tears for you
My crying and sadness is a result of my affection towards you.
Make everything hazy,
I am so consumed by sadness that everything around me becomes blurry and unclear.
Clouding the skies of blue.
My sadness is so deep that it overshadows the beauty around me, even the skies themselves.
How true,
How right and accurate.
Were the friends who were near me to cheer me,
My friends who tried to cheer me up were genuine and loyal.
Believe me, they knew!
They understood the depth of my pain and sorrow.
But you,
You, however,
Were the kind who would hurt me, desert me,
You, on the other hand, have been cruel enough to cause me pain and leave me when I needed you the most.
When I needed you!
You have abandoned me during the time when I needed you the most.
What did I do to you?
I am still at a loss on why you chose to hurt me this way.
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: WALTER DONALDSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Jerome Glick
Yours are some of the clearest and most detailed vinyl transfers on YouTube. Especially crisp high-frequencies. What cartridge do you use?
In 2013 you uploaded Percy Faith's Theme From "A Summer Place" (comments disabled on that video). In more recent years others have done the same but all fall short of yours in terms of sound quality. Your playback still sounds more soothing to me than the digitally remastered releases. You certainly know what you're doing when encoding to digital. That's usually the step where the most loss occurs because people don't always know how to optimize the settings.
Steeler Y360 Nation
Love this song, and the different versions, like Billy May & his Orchestra's (he's from my hometown of Pgh)
mario58396
En las mismas horas en que me volvías loco, por ti.
Mike Samra
That's a nice arm. It looks like a 12inch SME.
maynardcat
Yes it is the model 3009
Mike Samra
maynardcat
I know. Very nice. I have an SME IV and I love it but I wish it had the detachable headshell.
maynardcat
Those are very handy.
Mike Samra
maynardcat
Here is a pair of Mcintosh Mc60s I redid with an all film cap power supply and new chassis in this case.
http://www.audioasylum.com/forums/vintage/messages/22/227605.html
maynardcat
Those look great, I have a McIntosh C-28 and a MC 2105 power amp. I almost had a MC60 for less than 20.00 on ebay. Someone was trying to sell a pa speaker, and he had it listed with what he called a transformer, he didn't know what it was. I foolishly asked a question instead of just buying it with the pa speaker which caused others to recognize it as a MC 60, instead of 20.00 it went for around 400.00.
vinylhound43
Another really nice track from The Brothers Elgart, Bill!
Good one!