Born in Syracuse, New York, in 1932, Murphy was raised in a musical family, his parents having met as members of the local Methodist Church choir. He grew up in the nearby small town of Fulton, New York, where his grandmother and then his aunt were the church organists. Opera was also a presence in the Murphy home. He started piano lessons at the age of seven.
Murphy joined his brother's jazz dance band as the singer when a teenager, citing influences from Nat "King" Cole, June Christy, Anita O'Day, and Ella Fitzgerald. The Jazz pianist Art Tatum was also an influence.
Murphy graduated from Syracuse University in 1953, majoring in Music and Drama. University life included performing on campus and also in a club – playing piano and singing.
In 1954, Murphy moved to New York City, working part-time as an actor and singer. He appeared in productions for the Gilbert and Sullivan Light Opera Company and a musical version for television of Casey at the Bat. Also, he twice took second place at the Apollo Theatre amateur contests.
Murphy was eventually introduced to record producer Milt Gabler, who was an artist and repertoire director (A & R) for Decca. His resulting debut recording was Meet Mark Murphy (1956), followed closely by Let Yourself Go (1957).
In 1958 Murphy moved to Los Angeles and recorded for Capitol, but returned to New York in the early '60s and recorded the album Rah! (1961) on Riverside Records, performing "Angel Eyes", a version of Horace Silver's "Doodlin'", and "Green Dolphin Street", featuring Bill Evans, Clark Terry, Urbie Green, Blue Mitchell and Wynton Kelly as accompanists. His favorite recording to date, That's How I Love the Blues, soon followed. In 1963, Murphy hit the charts across the country with his single of "Fly Me to the Moon" and was voted New Star of the Year in Down Beat Magazine's Reader's Poll.[citation needed]
In the late 1960s Murphy moved to London, England, where he worked primarily as an actor. He continued however, to cultivate his jazz audiences in Europe. He returned to the States in 1972 and began recording an average of an album a year for more than fourteen years on the Muse label. These projects - including the albums Nat King Cole Songbook Vol. I and II, Bop for Kerouac, Kerouac Then And Now, Living Room, Satisfaction Guaranteed, Beauty And the Beast and, Stolen Moments - gained numerous Grammy nominations.[citation needed] This last album contains Oliver Nelson's "Stolen Moments" with lyrics by Murphy.
In 1984 together with Viva Brasil he recorded the album Brazil Song (Cancões do Brasil), which featured original material written by Brazilian songwriters including work by Antonio Carlos Jobim and Milton Nascimento.
In 1987, Murphy recorded Night Mood, an album of songs by Brazilian composer Ivan Lins, followed by the Grammy-nominated September Ballads on Milestone Records. Murphy has also appeared on U.F.O.'s last two releases (for Polydor Records), in which he wrote and rapped lyrics on songs composed with the group. This collaboration opened up further new audiences in the acid-jazz and hip-hop genres, demonstrating jazz's timelessness while transcending generations and styles.
In August 1997, BMG/RCA Victor released Song For The Geese, for which he has received his sixth Grammy nomination. Also in August 1997, the 32 Records label Joel Dorn and Michael Bourne released a double CD anthology Stolen and Other Moments, which features some of his recordings for the now defunct Muse label. The CD features material from the two "Kerouac" albums and a selection of "the best of Mark Murphy".
Murphy’s release Once to Every Heart (2005), on the Verve label, features sensuous ballads, where the listener can capture him singing in top form, with superb musicians and sounding better than ever. In 2007 Love is What Stays was released on Verve. Both albums were produced by German trumpeter Till Brönner.
Murphy has also collaborated with Five Corners Quintet, a modern Finnish jazz band. He appears on their albums Chasin' the Jazz Gone By (2005) and Hot Corner (2008).
In 2010 he released the independently produced CD, Never Let Me Go, on which he is supported by pianist Misha Piatigorsky, bassist Danton Boller and drummer Chris Wabich. A limited edition EP/MP3, "Beautiful Friendship: Remembering Shirley Horn" on Gearbox Records was released in 2013.
Murphy continued to tour internationally into his 80s, appearing at festivals, concerts, in jazz clubs and on television programs, throughout the U.S., Europe, Australia and Japan, as well as other places. John Bush at AllMusic.com described Murphy as "a major name in vocal jazz." A longtime resident of the Lillian Booth Actors Home in Englewood, New Jersey, he died there on October 22, 2015.
Dearly Beloved
Mark Murphy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Tell me you agree,
I was meant for you,
You were meant for me.
Dearly beloved, how clearly I see,
Somewhere in Heaven you were fashioned for me,
Angel eyes knew you, angel voices led me to you;
I know that I'll be yours come shower or shine;
So I say merely, dearly beloved be mine.
The lyrics of the song 'Dearly Beloved' by Mark Murphy express the strong feelings of love between two people who believe that they were meant for each other. The opening lines of the song convey a sense of urgency and desire, as the singer implores his beloved to confirm that their love is real and mutual. The repetition of the phrase 'meant for you' emphasizes the sense of destiny that the lovers feel, as if their coming together was pre-ordained by some higher power.
The chorus of the song, beginning with the phrase 'Dearly beloved', is a heartfelt declaration of the singer's love and devotion to his beloved. The words 'how clearly I see' suggest that the singer is overcome with a powerful sense of clarity and insight regarding his relationship, almost as if he has had a spiritual revelation. The references to angels and fate further emphasize the idea of the lovers being brought together through some kind of divine intervention. The final line of the chorus, 'be mine', is a simple but powerful expression of the singer's desire to possess and be possessed by his beloved.
Overall, 'Dearly Beloved' is a romantic and passionate song that celebrates the idea of two people being meant for each other. The lyrics are full of imagery and emotion, conveying a sense of profound connection and intimacy between the lovers.
Line by Line Meaning
Tell me that it's true,
Confirm to me that what I suspect is accurate,
Tell me you agree,
Validate my beliefs and tell me that you share the same sentiments with me,
I was meant for you,
It is a fact that I was created and built for you,
You were meant for me.
It is evident that you were molded and fashioned solely for me,
Dearly beloved, how clearly I see,
With great clarity, my love for you is visible and discernible,
Somewhere in Heaven you were fashioned for me,
It is believed that you were created in heaven for me,
Angel eyes knew you, angel voices led me to you;
The divine angels who operate from heaven guided me to you with their voices and gave me an insight of your appearance,
Nothing could save me, fate gave me a sign;
There was nothing that could rescue me or prevent me from the destiny that was charted out for me as fate gave me an indication that you were the one for me,
I know that I'll be yours come shower or shine;
I am confident that in all circumstances, through thick and thin, I will belong to you,
So I say merely, dearly beloved be mine.
Simply put, my beloved, I ask that you devote yourself to me entirely and become mine.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: JEROME KERN, JOHN H. MERCER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind