Some of her best known hits are "It's So Peaceful in the Country", "Trust In Me", "Where Are You", "I Let A Song Go Out Of My Heart", "Small Fry", "Please Be Kind", "Darn That Dream", "Rockin' Chair", "Blame It On My Last Affair", and "Says My Heart".
Born Mildred Rinker in Tekoa, Washington, her mother, Josephine, was an enrolled member of the Coeur d'Alene Tribe and a devout Roman Catholic. Her father, Charles, played fiddle and called square dances. Her mother played piano every evening after supper and taught Mildred to play and sing. Her brothers were the vocalist and composer Al Rinker, and the lyricist Charles Rinker.
[edit]Career
At the age of seventeen, Bailey moved to Seattle and worked as a sheet music demonstrator at Woolworth's. She married and divorced Ted Bailey, keeping his last name because she thought it sounded more American than Rinker.[3] With the help of her second husband, Benny Stafford, she became an established blues and jazz singer on the West Coast. According to Gary Giddins' book Bing Crosby – A Pocketful of Dreams – The Early Years 1903-1940, in 1925 she secured work for her brother, Al Rinker, and his partner Bing Crosby. Giddins further states that Crosby first heard of Louis Armstrong and other Chicago black jazz records from Bailey's own record collection. Crosby helped Bailey in turn by introducing her to Paul Whiteman. She sang with Paul Whiteman's band from 1929 to 1933 (Whiteman had a popular radio program and when Bailey debuted with her version of "Moaning Low" in 1929, public reaction was immediate, although she did not start recording with Whiteman until late 1931).
Her first two records were as uncredited vocalist for an Eddie Lang Orchestra session in 1929 ("What Kind O' Man Is You?", an obscure Hoagy Carmichael song that was only issued in the UK) and a 1930 recording of "I Like To Do Things For You" for Frankie Trumbauer. She was Whiteman's popular female vocalist through 1932 (recording in a smooth crooning style), when she left the band due to salary disagreements. She then recorded a series of records for Brunswick in 1933 (accompanied by The Dorsey Brothers), as well an all-star session with Benny Goodman's studio band in 1934 that featured Coleman Hawkins.
In the mid-1930s, she recorded with her third husband Red Norvo. A dynamic couple, they earned the nicknames "Mr. and Mrs. Swing". During this period (1936–1939) Norvo recorded for Brunswick (with Bailey as primary vocalist) and Bailey recorded her own set of recordings for Vocalion, often with Norvo's band. Some of her recordings instead featured members of Count Basie's band. Despite her divorce from Norvo, she and Red would continue to record together until 1945. Suffering from diabetes and depression (during her adult life Bailey was overweight), she only made a few recordings following World War II.
Mildred Bailey died December 12, 1951, in Poughkeepsie, New York, of heart failure, aged 44, chiefly due to her diabetes. Her ashes were scattered. Red Norvo outlived Bailey by nearly half a century, dying in April 1999, a week after his 91st birthday.
When That Man Is Dead and Gone
Mildred Bailey Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Dressed as a man
Walking the earth and since he began
The world is hell for you and me.
But what a heaven it will be
When that man is dead and gone.
When that man is dead and gone.
Kissing everyone we meet
When that man is dead and gone.
What a day to wake up on.
What a way to greet the dawn.
Hap- hap- happy, yes indeed!
On the morning when we read
That that man is dead and gone.
We've got a date
To celebrate
The day we catch up with that one man spreading hate.
His account is overdrawn.
And his chances are in pawn.
Some fine day the news will flash
Satan with the small moustache
Is asleep beneath the lawn
When that man is dead and gone.
Come on now, we're going to celebrate.
He's the guy that's spreading hate.
His account is overdrawn.
And his chances are in pawn.
Some fine day the news will flash
Satan with the small moustache
Is asleep beneath the lawn.
When that man is dead and gone-
What a day to wake up on!
What a way to greet the dawn!
When a certain man is dead and gone!
The song "When That Man is Dead and Gone" by Mildred Bailey is a tongue-in-cheek take on the idea of Satan walking the earth in human form and the joy that would be experienced once he is gone. The singer describes how Satan has made the world a living hell for everyone, but once he is dead and gone, people will be free to dance in the streets and kiss everyone they meet without fear. They anticipate the day when they awake to the news that Satan is finally gone and can celebrate his absence.
The lyrics of the song are clearly meant to be playful, but they also carry a deeper meaning. Bailey's song was released in 1935, during the height of the Great Depression, which was a difficult time for many Americans. It's possible that the lyrics of "When That Man is Dead and Gone" were meant to speak to that sense of struggle and despair, offering a sense of hope and release from the difficulties of contemporary life. Additionally, the song could also be seen as a commentary on the political climate of the time, particularly as the world was gearing up for the start of World War II.
Line by Line Meaning
Satan, Satan thought up a plan,
The devil came up with a plan
Dressed as a man
To deceive and manipulate people, the devil appeared in the form of a human
Walking the earth and since he began
Ever since the devil started this plan of his
The world is hell for you and me.
The world has become a living hell for all of us
But what a heaven it will be
But things will improve dramatically
When that man is dead and gone.
When the person responsible for this plan is dealt with accordingly
We'll go dancing down the street
We'll celebrate and express our joy
Kissing everyone we meet
Showing our affection for everyone
When that man is dead and gone.
When the one responsible is no longer living
What a day to wake up on.
It would be an amazing day to wake up to
What a way to greet the dawn.
A great start to the day
Hap- hap- happy, yes indeed!
We would be extremely happy
On the morning when we read
The day we find out
That that man is dead and gone.
About the death of the person responsible
We've got a date
We have a plan
To celebrate
To rejoice
The day we catch up with that one man spreading hate.
The day when the person responsible for causing so much pain and suffering is held accountable
His account is overdrawn.
He has run out of chances
And his chances are in pawn.
He has no more opportunities
Some fine day the news will flash
One day, we will receive the news
Satan with the small moustache
The evil person responsible for all the problems
Is asleep beneath the lawn
Has died and has been buried
When that man is dead and gone.
When the person responsible has passed away
Come on now, we're going to celebrate.
Let's celebrate
He's the guy that's spreading hate.
The person who caused so much misery
When a certain man is dead and gone!
When the person who caused so much pain and suffering has passed away
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: IRVING BERLIN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
KanWoo76
Oh wow!! I remember my Grandmother playing this back in the day on Sundays when we used to visit her down south! I'm just realizing it was about Hitler. This brings back so much memories!! Nice post
Bob Jones
Many thanks for posting. I love Mildred Bailey though I hadn't heard this tune until I was researching Al Bowlly who also covered it. Likening Hitler to Satan in such an inventive musical and lyrical gospel blues style is marvellous, given the WW2 context. An Irving Berlin composition.
LF Quitas
Wonderful.
hebneh
Yes, Al Bowlly recorded this song in England too - but tragically, "that man" Hitler was responsible for Al's death in a bombing raid in London.
kitkat patywhack
al's death, less then a week after it was made
Didou
so sad to know
Willow 404
That one dislike is Satan with a small mustache
I See
April 30th 1945 must of been one hell of a party
Apooyo
Heard this song played at a silent film festival in SF.
JacktheFlying
Just thought of this song today.
No reason.