Webb first came to prominence as Ann in the original London production of Half a Sixpence opposite Tommy Steele. She later dubbed the singing voice of Julia Foster, her replacement for the film adaptation. Immediately prior to her appearance in Half a Sixpence, Webb had made her West End debut in Stop the World, I Want to Get Off, which starred and had lyrics by Anthony Newley, whom Webb considered to be her mentor. She also played Nancy in the first UK tour of Oliver! where she met and befriended the show's Assistant Stage Manager Cameron Mackintosh, who was to become one of the most prominent musical theatre producers in world. When the production returned to the West End, Phil Collins who later achieved fame with Genesis played The Artful Dodger.
During the 1970s she carved out a career as a respected, though not yet famous, West End actress and singer appearing in both The Card, written by Tony Hatch and Jackie Trent, and Godspell, opposite David Essex, Julie Covington and Jeremy Irons. In 1979 she began to appear as a regular alternate to Elaine Paige in the original London production of Evita, taking over the role full time in 1980 just as the album of Tell Me on a Sunday was released. This was a #1 hit in the UK Albums Chart, and saw Webb become a household name.
The album of Tell Me on a Sunday had music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Don Black and was based on the story of the composer's friend, who had moved from London to the United States to begin a new life. Webb was asked to collaborate on the piece when only two songs had been written, so the rest of the album was created specifically with her voice and character in mind. Black, who became her manager and a close friend, said of her performance, "She was the girl, and that was it." Her tendency to, "Talk for hours about the most boring everyday things, like the gas or insurance," also inspired him in creating the narrative pieces in the song cycle which were letters to the character's mum.
Webb has a distinctive, untrained coloratura voice and Lloyd Webber was said to have told her "You sing in my keys." She apparently retorted, "You write in mine." He produced her second solo album Won't Change Places (1980) which featured two songs written by Lynsey De Paul:All I Am and What You Gonna do With Your Freedom. She has regularly performed at the Sydmonton Festival, his private gathering where new work is tried-out prior to a professional debut.
In the mid-1980s, she again succeeded Elaine Paige, this time in the musical Cats both in the West End production at the New London Theatre and subsequently on tour. When Tell Me on a Sunday was combined with Lloyd Webber's other successful album Variations, which had featured his brother, cellist Julian Lloyd Webber, to create the show Song and Dance, Webb reprised her role as the unnamed girl in the first act. In the second act Wayne Sleep and a dance troupe performed choreographed routines to Variations. The pair toured with the show extensively in the latter half of the decade.
She sang a cover version of Michael Jackson's Ben in memory of Ben Hardwick, a young boy who died of cancer after appearing on the BBC television programme That's Life!. The single reached #5 in the UK charts. She also later released "Always There", a version of the theme to BBC television drama Howards' Way, which was written by Simon May and Leslie Osbourne with lyrics by Don Black. The success of this inspired an album of the same name in which she covered other television themes.
In 1990, on the last studio collaboration between Alan Parsons and Eric Woolfson, the album Freudiana, Webb performed two songs: the solo "Don't Let the Moment Pass" and "No One Can Love You Better Than Me" in which she joined forces with Woolfson, Gary Howard and Kiki Dee.
Webb co-devised and starred in 'The Magic of the Musicals', a UK concert tour featuring songs from musical theatre in 1992 opposite Opportunity Knocks winner Mark Rattray. The gold-selling album of the show was co-produced by Webb's former husband, sound engineer Tom Button. BBC Television also filmed and broadcast the show. This was followed in 1993 by a North American and Canadian tour and numerous UK versions in the following years, in which Rattray was succeeded by Dave Willetts, Robert Meadmore and most recently Wayne Sleep.
In 1995 Webb reprised her leading role in a UK tour of Evita, opposite Chris Corcoran as Che and Duncan Smith as Peron. The popularity of the tour led to it being repeated in 1996.
She more recently appeared in the new London stage production of Thoroughly Modern Millie (2003) uniquely alternating the role of Mrs Meers with Maureen Lipman, to allow Lipman to nurse her terminally ill husband. At the beginning of the following year, she again reprised her role in Tell Me On A Sunday both in the West End and on tour. The show had been substantially rewritten for a production starring Denise Van Outen, but a combination of the new and original scores was created specifically for Webb.
Christmas 2006 was spent in pantomime at the Theatre Royal, Windsor playing the Fairy Godmother in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
In 2007, Webb is to play alongside Sheila Ferguson and Rula Lenska in a new musical about the menopause called Hot Flush.
She is a patron of The Players Music Hall Theatre in London, which specialises in Victorian variety theatre.
Webb has married and divorced three times but has no children. She was married to Alexander Balfour in 1963, the actor Tim Flavin briefly in 1985 and sound engineer Tom Button, 25 years her junior, in the early 1990s. She lives in Westminster, London and Somerset.
Take That Look Off Your Face
Marti Webb Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It couldn't have been
You couldn't have seen him yesterday
He's doing some deal up in Baltimore now
I hate it when he's away
You must be mistaken
I'm sure that you are
And lots of young guys wear corduroy pants
And I'd know if he hadn't gone
Take that look off your face (take that look off your face)
I can see through your smile (I can see through your smile)
You would love to be right
I bet you didn't sleep good last night
Couldn't wait to bring all of that bad news to my door
Well, I've got news for you
I knew before
If I'm not mistaken, it started last year
I'm not very clear how it began
I noticed a change but I just closed my eyes
As only a woman can
No, I didn't dig deep (No, I didn't dig deep)
I did not want to know (I did not want to know)
Well, you don't interfere
When you're scared of the things you might hear
When he's back, you think I will end it right there and then
Well, my fair weather friend,
You're wrong again
(Take that look off your face) take that look off your face
(I can see through your smile) I can see through your smile
You would love to be right
I bet you didn't sleep good last night
Couldn't wait to bring all of that bad news to my door
Well, I've got news for you
I knew before
(Take that look off your face)
I can see through your smile (I can see through your smile)
You would love to be right
I bet you didn't sleep good last night
Couldn't wait to bring all of that bad news to my door
Well, I've got news for you
I knew before
(Take that look off your face)
I can see through your smile (I can see through your smile)
You would love to be right
I bet you didn't sleep good last night
Couldn't wait to bring all of that bad news to my door
Well, I've got news for you
I knew before
The lyrics of Marti Webb's "Take That Look Off Your Face" portray a woman who is being confronted by someone who claims to have seen her partner with another woman. The singer of the song immediately becomes defensive, refusing to believe that her partner could be doing wrong. She accuses the accuser of being mistaken, pointing out that she has no proof of what she saw. As the song progresses, it becomes clear that the singer has actually suspected her partner of cheating for some time, but has chosen to ignore the signs. She questions her own intuition, admitting that she didn't want to confront her partner about her suspicions. The song reveals a deep sense of insecurity and fear of loneliness, as the singer realizes that her worst fears have come true.
The lyrics offer a commentary on the dangers of denial, and the way in which fear and insecurity can lead us to ignore troubling signs about the people we love. By refusing to confront her partner, the singer of the song has allowed the situation to spiral out of control, until she is left feeling betrayed and alone. The song is a reminder that honesty and trust are essential to healthy relationships, and that ignoring problems will only make them worse in the long run.
Line by Line Meaning
You must be mistaken
You are incorrect in your assumption
It couldn't have been
The situation you are describing cannot have occurred
You couldn't have seen him yesterday
You were unable to see him on the day in question
He's doing some deal up in Baltimore now
He is currently occupied with business in Baltimore
I hate it when he's away
I dislike his absence
Take that look off your face (take that look off your face)
Stop looking at me like that
I can see through your smile (I can see through your smile)
I know you are not being sincere
You would love to be right
You want to be correct in your assumptions
I bet you didn't sleep good last night
I suspect you had trouble sleeping last night
Couldn't wait to bring all of that bad news to my door
You were eager to bring me negative information
Well, I've got news for you
I have information to share with you as well
I knew before
I was already aware of the situation
If I'm not mistaken, it started last year
I believe this situation began last year
I'm not very clear how it began
I do not have a clear understanding of how it started
I noticed a change but I just closed my eyes
I saw a change in behavior but chose to ignore it
As only a woman can
I did this in a way unique to women
No, I didn't dig deep (No, I didn't dig deep)
I did not investigate further
I did not want to know (I did not want to know)
I did not want to find out the truth
Well, you don't interfere
You should not get involved
When you're scared of the things you might hear
When you are afraid of what you might discover
When he's back, you think I will end it right there and then
You assume I will end things as soon as he returns
Well, my fair-weather friend,
You are not really a loyal friend
You're wrong again
Your assumption is incorrect once more
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: Andrew Lloyd Webber, Don Black
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@user-ls3qd1xq4o
You must be mistaken
It couldn't have been
You couldn't have seen him yesterday
He's doing some deal up in Baltimore now
I hate it, when he's away
You must be mistaken
I'm sure that you are
There's more than one car with stickers on
And lots of young guys wear corduroy pants
And I'd know if he hadn't gone
Take that look of your face (take that look of your face)
I can see through your smile (I can see through your smile)
You would love to be right
I bet you didn't sleep good last night
Couldn't wait to bring all of that bad news to my door
Well, I've got news for you
I knew before
If I'm not mistaken, it started last year
I'm not very clear how it began
I noticed a change, but I just closed my eyes
As only a woman can
No, I didn't dig deep (no, I didn't dig deep)
I did not want to know (I did not want to know)
Well, you don't interfere
When you're scared of the things you might hear
When he's back, you think I will end it right there and then?
Well, my fair weather friend
You're wrong again
Take that look of your face (take that look of your face)
I can see through your smile (I can see through your smile)
You would love to be right
I bet you didn't sleep good last night
Couldn't wait to bring all of that bad news to my door
Well, I've got news for you
I knew before
(Take that look of your face)
I can see through your smile (I can see through your smile)
You would love to be right
I bet you didn't sleep good last night
Couldn't wait to bring all of that bad news to my door
Well, I've got news fo
@paulpauwels8593
Back than when music was music, really love this song. So great
@Ethericrose
And perms were bad. 😆 I love her voice so much.
@mistyo2158
Brilliant voice. Heard this for the first time as a child at singing class and her voice still gives me goosebumps.
@colingeddes2172
This song is 1 of my guilty pleasures. Memorable tune circ 1980.🙂
@janpetersen1372
You are very nice, greetings from Germany !!!
@francismurphy7248
This song is special to me , 1980 , the year I met my late Wife , we had many happy years together ,precious memories.
@robertgreen9960
Just watch the change in the expression in her eyes - magnificant!
@robert-trading-as-Bob69
I'm back in 1980... when music ruled.
@goonerbeau
The lyrics form an extremely relatable monologue that sounds like something someone would really say.
Take That Look Off Your Face', screams 'musical theatre but is a piece of pop magic!
@thomasmarthinussen8978
This song is in fact from a musical! Written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and included in one of his stage musical plays. A brilliant pop song in its own right and a big hit single for Marti.