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.
Serenade In Blue
Mark Murphy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm somewhere in another world, alone with you
Sharing all the joys we used to know
Many moons ago
Once again your face comes back to me
Just like the theme of some forgotten melody
In the album of my memory
It seems like only yesterday
The small cafe, a crowded floor
And as we danced the night away
I hear you say forever more
And then the song became a sigh
Forever more became goodbye
Cause you remained in my heart, but
Tell me darling in there still a spark?
Or only lonely ashes of the flame we knew
Should I go on whistling in the dark,
Serenade in blue
Mark Murphy's "Serenade In Blue" is a heartfelt and nostalgic song about a lost love. The lyrics describe how the singer feels transported to another world when he hears the titular serenade. He is reminded of the past and the joys he shared with his former partner many moons ago. He vividly remembers her face and the feeling of being in love with her. The song speaks to the power of music to evoke memories and emotions, even ones that may be painful to recall.
The song's final verses reveal the singer's uncertainty and his longing for his lost love. He wonders if there is still a spark between them, or if all that remains are the ashes of a flame that once burned bright. He contemplates whether he should continue to hold on to his memories and the "Serenade in Blue," or if it’s time to move on. The song is a poignant reflection on the endurance of love and the complexities of letting go.
Line by Line Meaning
When I hear that Serenade in blue
I am transported to another world when I listen to Serenade in Blue
I'm somewhere in another world, alone with you
It feels like I am back in the past with you, alone, in a world of our own
Sharing all the joys we used to know
Remembering the happy times we shared together
Many moons ago
A long time has passed since we were last together
Once again your face comes back to me
I see your face in my mind once again
Just like the theme of some forgotten melody
Like a tune that I once knew, but have now forgotten
In the album of my memory
In the collection of memories that I have gathered over time
Serenade in blue
The song that brings all these memories back to me
It seems like only yesterday
It feels like it was just yesterday that we were together
The small cafe, a crowded floor
Remembering the surroundings where we spent time together
And as we danced the night away
Recalling the moments we spent dancing together all night long
I hear you say forever more
I remember hearing you say that we would be together forever
And then the song became a sigh
But then the happy tune turned into a sad melody
Forever more became goodbye
Our promise of forever became a goodbye
Cause you remained in my heart, but
Even though you are not with me, you are still in my heart
Tell me darling in there still a spark?
I wonder if there is still any love left for us?
Or only lonely ashes of the flame we knew
Or have all our feelings turned into ashes, leaving us lonely?
Should I go on whistling in the dark,
Should I just pretend that everything is fine and continue to hope?
Serenade in blue
The song that keeps these memories alive.
Lyrics © Kanjian Music, BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Songtrust Ave, Peermusic Publishing, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Harry Warren, Mack Gordon
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind