Desmond was bor… Read Full Bio ↴Paul Desmond (1924-1977) was a U.S jazz saxophonist.
Desmond was born Paul Emil Breitenfeld in San Francisco, California on 25th November 1924. He came to prominence with the Dave Brubeck Quartet, which lasted from 1951 until 1967. Desmond wrote their biggest hit, "Take Five".
Desmond's alto saxophone tone and technique owed nothing to the great alto player of the time, Charlie Parker; instead his was a clear, light, floating sound and highly melodic playing style. Much of the success of the classic Brubeck quartet was due to the superposition of his fragile, airy sound over Brubeck's sometimes relatively heavy, polytonal piano work.
Desmond died on 30th May 1977.
Paul Desmond is widely recognized for his genius as a melodic improviser and as the benchmark of cool jazz sax players. His warm, elegant tone was one that he admittedly tried to make sound like a dry martini. He and Art Pepper were virtually the only alto players of their generation not directly influenced by Charlie Parker. Desmond was influenced by Lester Young, but took it further, into melodic and harmonic worlds never before traveled by reedmen -- especially in the upper registers. Desmond is best known for his years with the Dave Brubeck Quartet (1959-1967) and his infamous composition "Take Five." He met Brubeck in the late '40s and played with his Octet. The Quartet formed toward the end of 1950 and took final shape with Eugene Wright and Joe Morello a few years later. Jazz at Oberlin and Take Five were considered essential purchases by college students of the era, but Jazz Impressions of Japan was its most innovative recording. Desmond played his loping, slow, ordered, and intricate solos in direct contrast to the pianist's obsession with large chords, creating a myriad of textures for melodic and rhythmic counterpoint unlike any heard in jazz. His witty quotations from musicals, classical pieces, and folk songs were also a watermark of his artistry. When the Quartet split in 1967, Desmond began an intermittent yet satisfying recording career. It included dates with Gerry Mulligan for Verve, various sessions with Jim Hall, and a concert with the the Modern Jazz Quartet. He played his last gigs with the Brubeck Quartet at reunions before dying of lung cancer. Desmond's recordings for RCA have gotten box-set treatment and Mosaic issued one of the complete sessions with Hall. There are also reissues from A&M and CTI, though recordings on Artist House and Finesse remain regrettably out of print. ~ Thom Jurek, Rovi
Too Marvelous for Words
Paul Desmond Lyrics
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Like glorious, glamorous and that old standby amorous
It's all too wonderful, I'll never find the words
That say enough, tell enough, I mean they just aren't swell enough
You're much too much and just too very, very
To ever be in Webster's Dictionary
And so I'm borrowing a love song from the birds
You're much, you're too much and just too very, very
To ever be, to ever be in Webster's Dictionary
And so I'm borrowing a love song from the birds
To tell you that you're marvelous, tell you that you're marvelous
Tell you that you're marvelous, too marvelous for words
In "Too Marvelous for Words," Paul Desmond expresses his overwhelming admiration and love for someone who is simply beyond words. The person he is addressing is described as "marvelous," a term that suggests awe, wonder, and amazement. This individual is elevated to a level of greatness that is incomprehensible and hard to articulate. Their allure is not only glamorous and attractive but also deeper, evoking emotions of love and romance.
Desmond conveys the idea that this person is so extraordinary it's almost unbelievable. He uses words like "glorious" and "wonderful" to emphasize the incomparable nature of their qualities. It is as if he is attempting to find words that can adequately describe their magnificence, but finds himself falling short. No matter how hard he tries, he can't capture the essence of what makes this person so special, causing him to declare that the words he can summon are not "swell enough."
Not only is this person marvelous, but they are also described as "too much" and "very, very," suggesting an overwhelming presence. Their impact is so profound that they surpass the limits of definition, as Desmond humorously notes that they could never be found in Webster's Dictionary. This reinforces their uniqueness and unquantifiable appeal, further highlighting their exceptional qualities.
Feeling unable to express his adoration adequately with his own words, Desmond turns to nature for inspiration. He borrows a love song from the birds, drawing on the beauty and purity of their melodies to convey the depth of his feelings. By doing so, he wants to communicate to this individual that they are truly remarkable, incredible, and beyond what can be put into words. The repetition of the line "Tell you that you're marvelous, too marvelous for words" underscores the intensity of his emotions and the insufficiency of language to convey them adequately.
In essence, "Too Marvelous for Words" is a testament to the overwhelming admiration and love Desmond feels for someone who transcends ordinary description. It showcases the struggle to articulate the indescribable, emphasizing the remarkable and almost supernatural qualities of this person. Through clever wordplay and a touch of humor, Desmond conveys his feelings of awe, wonder, and love for someone who is simply too marvelous for words.
Line by Line Meaning
You're just too marvelous, too marvelous for words
You are incredibly amazing, to an extent that cannot be expressed in words
Like glorious, glamorous and that old standby amorous
Similar to being splendid, attractive, and classically romantic
It's all too wonderful, I'll never find the words
Everything about you is so magnificent that I can never find adequate words to describe it
That say enough, tell enough, I mean they just aren't swell enough
No matter how much I try, the words I use don't do justice to convey the true greatness of you
You're much too much and just too very, very
You exceed any measure and are incredibly, unbelievably extraordinary
To ever be in Webster's Dictionary
Your greatness surpasses the boundaries of what can be captured in a dictionary
And so I'm borrowing a love song from the birds
In my attempt to express your marvelousness, I am taking inspiration from the enchanting songs of birds
To tell you that you're marvelous, too marvelous for words
To convey to you that you are truly exceptional, surpassing any description that words can provide
You're much, you're too much and just too very, very
You surpass any measure, going beyond what can be comprehended, and being exceptionally remarkable
To ever be, to ever be in Webster's Dictionary
To never be confined or captured within the limitations of a dictionary
And so I'm borrowing a love song from the birds
Thus, in my attempt to express your incredible charm, I am drawing inspiration from the romantic melodies sung by birds
To tell you that you're marvelous, tell you that you're marvelous
To communicate to you that you are truly extraordinary, reiterating your exceptional nature
Tell you that you're marvelous, too marvelous for words
To emphasize that you are astonishingly magnificent, surpassing the capacity of words to describe
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Capitol CMG Publishing, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: JOHNNY MERCER, RICHARD A. WHITING
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Scott Douglas
nice collection man