Donaldson attended North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University in Greensboro in the early 1940s. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy during World War II and was trained at the Great Lakes bases in Chicago, where he was introduced to bop music in the lively club scene there. At the war's conclusion, he returned to Greensboro, where he worked club dates with the Rhythm Vets, a combo composed of A and T students who had served in the U.S. Navy. The band recorded the soundtrack to a musical comedy featurette, "Pitch a Boogie Woogie," in Greenville, North Carolina, in the summer of 1947. The movie had a limited run at black audience theatres in 1948 but its production company, Lord-Warner Pictures, folded and never made another film. "Pitch a Boogie Woogie" was subsequently restored by the American Film Institute in 1985 and re-premiered on the campus of East Carolina University in Greenville the following year. Donaldson and the surviving members of the Vets performed a reunion concert after the film's showing. In the documentary made on "Pitch" by UNC-TV, "Boogie in Black and White", Donaldson and his musical cohorts recall the film's making—he originally believed that he had played clarinet on the soundtrack. A short piece of concert footage from a gig in Fayetteville, North Carolina, is included in the documentary.
Donaldson's first jazz recordings were with the Charlie Singleton Orchestra in 1950 and then with bop emissaries Milt Jackson and Thelonious Monk in 1952, and he participated in several small groups with other jazz luminaries such as trumpeter Blue Mitchell, pianist Horace Silver and drummer Art Blakey.
In 1953, he also recorded sessions with the trumpet virtuoso Clifford Brown, and Philly Joe Jones.
He was a member of Art Blakey's Quintet and appeared on some of their best regarded albums, including the two albums recorded at Birdland in February 1954 Night at Birdland.
Donaldson has recorded in the bop, hard bop, and soul jazz genres. For many years his pianist was Herman Foster.
He was inducted into the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame on October 11, 2012.
Ebb Tide
Lou Donaldson Lyrics
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Then rolls out to sea and the sea is very still once more
So I rush to your side like the oncoming tide
With one burning thought, will your arms open wide?
At last face to face, and as we kiss through an embrace
I can tell, I can feel you are love, you are real
Really mine in the rain, in the dark, in the sun
Like the tide at its ebb I'm at peace in the web of your arms
First the tide rushes in, plants a kiss on the shore
Then rolls out to sea and the sea is very still once more
So I rush to your side like the oncoming tide
With one burning thought, will your arms open wide?
At last face to face, and as we kiss through an embrace
I can tell, I can feel you are love, you are real
Really mine in the rain, in the dark, in the sun
Like the tide at its ebb I'm at peace in the web of your arms
The lyrics of Lou Donaldson's "Ebb Tide" describe a deep longing and a feeling of completeness that comes with the embrace of a loved one. The song opens with the metaphor of the tide rushing in to kiss the shore, before rolling back out to sea and leaving the water still. The singer uses this image to describe their own journey towards their loved one, rushing to their side with the hope that their arms will open wide.
As they come face to face and embrace, the singer feels a sense of love and connection that cannot be denied. They describe their partner as "real" and "mine" in all conditions, whether it's raining, dark or sunny. Just like the ebb tide that brings peace to the shore, the embrace of the loved one brings peace to the singer's soul.
The song is a beautiful expression of the depth of human connection and the hope that comes with being reunited with a loved one after a period of separation. The metaphor of the ebb tide is particularly poignant, as it symbolizes the cyclical nature of life and the way that even the most turbulent emotions can eventually ebb and flow like the tide.
Line by Line Meaning
First the tide rushes in, plants a kiss on the shore
The waves suddenly crash onto the sandy shore to greet it gently
Then rolls out to sea and the sea is very still once more
After making contact, the water recedes, becoming placid again
So I rush to your side like the oncoming tide
In the same fashion, I am drawn to you with great speed and eagerness
With one burning thought, will your arms open wide?
I only have one thing on my mind - will you welcome me with open arms?
At last face to face, and as we kiss through an embrace
Finally, we are able to meet and connect intimately through physical contact
I can tell, I can feel you are love, you are real
Through this sensory experience, I sense that you are genuine and that love exists between us
Really mine in the rain, in the dark, in the sun
No matter the circumstances, you belong to me and I, to you
Like the tide at its ebb I'm at peace in the web of your arms
Just as the retreating tide brings calmness, being held in your embrace offers me serenity
Lyrics © Kanjian Music, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Robert Maxwell, Carl Sigman
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind