As a vocalist, Maxine Sullivan was active for half a century, from the mid-1930s to just before her death in 1987. She is best known for her 1937 recording of a swing version of the Scottish folk song "Loch Lomond". Throughout her career, Sullivan also appeared as a performer on film as well as on stage. A precursor to better-known later vocalists such as Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, and Sarah Vaughan, Maxine Sullivan is considered one of the best jazz vocalists of the 1930s.
Maxine Sullivan was born in Homestead, Pennsylvania in 1911. Sullivan began her music career singing in her uncle's band, The Red Hot Peppers, in her native Pennsylvania, in which she occasionally played the flugelhorn and the valve trombone, in addition to singing. In the mid-1930s she was discovered by Gladys Mosier (then working in Ina Rae Hutton's big band). Mosier introduced her to Claude Thornhill, which led to her first recordings made in June of 1937. Shorty thereafter, Sullivan became a featured vocalist at the Onyx Club in New York. During this period, she began forming a professional and close personal relationship with bassist John Kirby, to whom she was married from 1938 to 1941.
Early sessions with Kirby in 1937 yielded a hit recording of a swing version of the Scottish folk song "Loch Lomond" featuring Sullivan on vocals. This early success "branded" Sullivan's style, leading her to sing similar swing arrangements of traditional folk tunes mostly arranged by pianist Claude Thornhill, such as "Darling Nellie Gray", "I Dream of Jeanie", "Drink to Me Only with Thine Eyes", and "If I Had a Ribbon Bow". Her early popularity also led to a brief appearance in the movie Going Places opposite Louis Armstrong. In 1940, Sullivan and Kirby were featured on the radio program Flow Gently Sweet Rhythm, making them the first black jazz stars to have their own weekly radio series. From 1940-1942, Sullivan often performed with her husband Kirby's sextet. During the 1940s Sullivan then performed with a wide range of bands, including those of Teddy Wilson, Benny Carter, and Jimmie Lunceford. Sullivan also performed at many of New York's hottest jazz spots such as the Ruban Bleu, the Village Vanguard, the Blue Angel, and the Penthouse.
In 1956, Sullivan shifted away from her earlier style and recorded the album A Tribute to Andy Razaf. Originally on the Period record label, A Tribute to Andy Razaf featured Sullivan's interpretations of a dozen tunes featuring the lyrics of the poet and lyricist Andy Razaf. The album also highlighted the music of Fats Waller, including versions of "Keepin' Out of Mischief Now", "How Can you Face Me?", "My Fate is in Your Hands", "Honeysuckle Rose", "Ain't Misbehavin'", and "Blue Turning Grey Over You". Sullivan was joined by a sextet that was reminiscent of John Kirby's group of 15 years prior, including trumpeter Charlie Shavers and clarinetist Buster Bailey. In 1953 Sullivan starred in the play, Take a Giant Step.
From 1958 to 1966, Sullivan began working as a nurse and raising her children, which largely consumed most of her time. Her music career did not reassert itself until 1966, when she began performing in jazz festivals alongside her new husband, Cliff Jackson, who can be heard on the 1966 live recording of Sullivan's performance at the Manassas Jazz Festival.
Sullivan continued to perform throughout the 1960s and 1970s, and produced an output of recordings during the 1980s despite being over 70 years old. She was nominated for the 1979 Tony Award for Featured Actress in a Musical for her role in My Old Friends. She participated in a documentary film portrait, Maxine Sullivan: Love to Be in Love, shortly before her death.
Maxine Sullivan died in 1987 in New York. She was inducted into the Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame in 1998.
S'posin'
Maxine Sullivan Lyrics
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Though there is no better time than now.
I have waited hoping you would guess it,
Gotta make my feelings known somehow.
S'posin I should fall in love with you?
Do you think that you could love me too?
S'posin I should hold you and caress you,
Would that impress you, or distress you?
Would you think I'm speakin' out of turn?
And s'posin I declare it, would you take my love and share it?
I'm not s'posin I'm in love with you.
Always thought that I was up in Grammond,
Till the happy day you came my way.
When you're near all I can do is stammer.
Hope you'll understand me when I say...
S'posin I should say for you I yearn?
Would you think I'm speakin' out of turn?
And s'posin I declare it, would you take my love and share it?
I'm not s'posin i'm in love with you.
I'm not supposing I'm in love with you.
The lyrics to Maxine Sullivan's song "S'Posin" is about the singer expressing their feelings to someone they have feelings for. The singer starts off by saying they know something but cannot express it, but now is the time for them to make their feelings known. The singer is unsure how the person they admire will respond. They wonder if the person could love them too and if they were to hold and caress them, would that impress or distress them. The singer questions whether speaking up about their feelings would be speaking out of turn. They end the song by repeating that they are not supposing that they are in love with the person.
The lyrics convey the electric feeling of falling for someone and trying to gather the courage to reveal your feelings to them, unsure of how they will respond. The melody and steady rhythm accompanying the lyrics capture the feeling of hope and anticipation that comes with wanting someone to reciprocate your emotions.
Line by Line Meaning
I know something but I can't express it,
I have feelings for you that I can't put into words.
Though there is no better time than now.
I feel like I need to tell you how I feel about you right now.
I have waited hoping you would guess it,
I've been waiting for you to realize my feelings for you.
Gotta make my feelings known somehow.
I have to find a way to express my feelings to you.
S'posin I should fall in love with you?
What if I were to fall in love with you?
Do you think that you could love me too?
Would you be capable of loving me back?
S'posin I should hold you and caress you,
What if I were to hold you and show you physical affection?
Would that impress you, or distress you?
Would that make you happy or uncomfortable?
S'posin I should say for you I yearn?
What if I were to tell you that I desire you?
Would you think I'm speakin' out of turn?
Would you feel like I'm being inappropriate or saying too much?
And s'posin I declare it, would you take my love and share it?
What if I straight up tell you that I love you, would you be willing to reciprocate my feelings?
I'm not s'posin I'm in love with you.
I'm not guessing or assuming that I'm in love with you.
Always thought that I was up in Grammond,
I always thought I knew the direction my life was going.
Till the happy day you came my way.
But then you came into my life, and everything changed for the better.
When you're near all I can do is stammer.
Whenever I'm around you, I find it difficult to express myself coherently.
Hope you'll understand me when I say...
I hope you'll be able to understand what I'm trying to say.
Writer(s): Andy Razaf, Paul Denniker
Contributed by Asher E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.