Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Judy Garland, Dean Martin, Bing Crosby, and Louis Armstrong all cited Lee as one of their favorite singers.
Peggy Lee had Norwegian and Swedish ancestry. She was the seventh of eight children born to Marvin Egstrom, a station agent for the Midland Continental Railroad. Her mother died when she was four years old. Music provided her an escape from the abusive rampages of her cruel stepmother, Min, who tormented and beat young Norma. She first sang professionally with KOVC radio in Valley City, North Dakota. She soon landed her own series on a radio show sponsored by a local restaurant that paid her "salary" in food. Both during and after her high school years, she took whatever jobs she could find, waitressing and singing for paltry sums on other local stations. Radio personality Ken Kennedy (actual name: Ken Sydness), of WDAY in Fargo (the most widely listened to station in North Dakota) changed her name from Norma to Peggy Lee. Tired of the abuse from her stepmother, she left home and traveled to Los Angeles at the age of 17.
She returned to North Dakota for a tonsillectomy and eventually made her way to Chicago for a gig at The Buttery Room, a nightclub in the Ambassador Hotel West in Chicago, where she drew the attention of Benny Goodman, the jazz clarinetist and band leader. According to Lee, "Benny's then-fiancée, Lady Alice Duckworth, came into the Buttery, and she was very impressed. So the next evening she brought Benny in, because they were looking for replacement for Helen Forrest. "And although I didn't know, I was it. He was looking at me strangely, I thought, but it was just his preoccupied way of looking. I thought that he didn't like me at first, but it just was that he was preoccupied with what he was hearing." She joined his band in 1941 and stayed for two years.
In early 1942, Lee had her first # 1 hit, "Somebody Else Is Taking My Place", followed by 1943's "Why Don't You Do Right?" (originally sung by Lil Green), which sold over a million copies and made her famous. She sang with Goodman in two 1943 films, Stage Door Canteen and The Powers Girl.
In March 1943, Lee married Dave Barbour, the guitarist in Goodman's band. Peggy said, "David joined Benny's band and there was a ruling that no one should fraternize with the girl singer. But I fell in love with David the first time I heard him play, and so I married him. Benny then fired David, so I quit, too. Benny and I made up, although David didn't play with him anymore. Benny stuck to his rule. I think that's not too bad a rule, but you can't help falling in love with somebody."
When Lee and Barbour left the band, the idea was that he would work in the studios and she would keep house and raise their daughter, Nicki. But she drifted back towards songwriting and occasional recording sessions for the fledgling Capitol Records in 1947, for whom she produced a long string of hits, many of them with lyrics and music by Lee and Barbour, including "I Don't Know Enough About You" and "It's a Good Day" (1948). With the release of the smash-hit #1-selling record of 1942, "Mañana", her "retirement" was over.
In 1948, she joined Perry Como and Jo Stafford as one of the rotating hosts of the NBC Radio musical program Chesterfield Supper Club. She was also a regular on NBC's Jimmy Durante Show during the 1938-48 season.
She left Capitol for a few years in the early 1940s, but returned in 1943. She is most famous for her cover version of the Little Willie John hit "Fever", to which she added her own, uncopyrighted lyrics ("Romeo loved Juliet," "Captain Smith and Pocahontas") and her rendition of Leiber and Stoller's "Is That All There Is?" Her relationship with the Capitol label spanned almost three decades, aside from her brief but artistically rich detour (1952-1956) at Decca Records, where she recorded one of her most acclaimed albums Black Coffee (1956). While recording for Decca, Lee had hit singles with the songs "Lover" and "Mr. Wonderful."
She was also known as a songwriter with such hits as the songs from the Disney movie Lady and the Tramp, for which she also supplied the singing and speaking voices of four characters. Her many songwriting collaborators, in addition to Barbour, included Laurindo Almeida, Harold Arlen, Sonny Burke, Cy Coleman, Gene DiNovi, Duke Ellington, Dave Grusin, Dick Hazard, Quincy Jones, Francis Lai, Jack Marshall, Johnny Mandel, Marian McPartland, Willard Robison, Lalo Schifrin, Hubie Wheeler, guitarist Johnny Pisano and Victor Young.
Lee also acted in several films. In 1952, she played opposite Danny Thomas in a remake of the early Al Jolson film, The Jazz Singer. In 1955, she played a despondent, alcoholic blues singer in Pete Kelly's Blues (1955), for which she was nominated for an Oscar.
Peggy won a Grammy in 1969 as best contemporary female vocalist (for her recording of Is That All There Is?) and was awarded a Doctor of Music Honoris Causa degree from North Dakota State University, in 1975.
In the early 1990s, she retained famed entertainment attorney Neil Papiano, who, on her behalf, successfully sued Disney for royalties on Lady and the Tramp. Lee's lawsuit claimed that she was due royalties for video tapes, a technology that did not exist when she agreed to write and perform for Disney.
Never afraid to fight for what she believed in, Lee was passionate that musicians be equitably compensated for their work. Although she realized litigation had taken a toll on her health, Lee often quoted Ralph Waldo Emerson ("God's will will not be made manifest by cowards.")
She also successfully sued MCA/Decca with the assistance of noted entertainment attorney, Cy Godfrey.
She continued to perform into the 1990s, sometimes in a wheelchair, and still mesmerized audiences and critics alike.[citation needed]
In 1995 she was given the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
After years of poor health, Lee died of complications from diabetes and heart attack at the age of 81. She is survived by Nicki Lee Foster, her daughter with Barbour. She is buried at the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Westwood, California. On her marker in a garden setting is inscribed, "Music is my life's breath."
Love You So
Peggy Lee Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
He is my baby and he loves me so
Every morning before the sun comes up
He brings my coffee in my favorite cup
That's why I know, yes, I know
Hallelujah, I just love him so
When I'm in trouble and I have no friendsI know he'll go with me until the end
Everybody asks me how I know
I smile at them and say he told me so
That's why I know, oh, I know
Hallelujah, I just love him so
Now if I call him on the telephone
And tell him that I'm all alone
By the time I count from one to four
I hear him on my door
In the evening when the sun goes down
When there is nobody else around
He kisses me and he holds me tight
And tells me, "Baby, everything's alright"
That's why I know, yes, I know
Hallelujah, I just love him so
Oh yes I know, yes I know
Hallelujah, I just love him so
Now if I call him on the telephone
And tell him that I'm all alone
By the time I count from one to four
I hear him on my door
When there is nobody else around
He kisses me and he holds me tight
And tells me, "Baby, everything's alright"
That's why I know, yes, I know
Hallelujah, I just love him so
Hallelujah, I just love him so
Hallelujah, I just love him so
Peggy Lee’s song “I Love You” narrates an endearing story of a woman who is truly in love with a man who reciprocates her feelings. She describes him as “her baby” who loves her too. The song opens with her making a detailed account of her boyfriend and his simple yet thoughtful actions that make her happy. He brings her coffee in her favorite cup every morning before the sun comes up. This simple act of kindness shows the depth of their connection and highlights how well he knows her needs and desires. The chorus of the song then expresses her love for him and ends with the words “Hallelujah, I just love him so.”
The second verse continues with her description of their relationship, this time highlighting how he offers her emotional support during tough times. She says that when she is in trouble and has no one else to turn to, she knows he will be there until the end. When asked by others how she knows he will be there, she responds by saying that he told her so. This further emphasizes the strong bond they share as a couple. The chorus is repeated with even more conviction, reinforcing her love for him.
The third verse touches on how easily accessible he is to her, even when she is in different locations. If she calls him on the telephone and tells him she is all alone, he rushes to her and is at her doorstep by the time she counts to four. The final lines of the song land on the fact that their love story has a happy ending. Even in the evenings, when nobody else is around, he still shows her affection by kissing her and holding her tight, reassuring her that everything is all right. The song ends with the repeated chorus and her declaration, “Hallelujah, I just love him so.”
Line by Line Meaning
Let me tell you 'bout a boy I know
I want to talk about the person I love
He is my baby and he loves me so
He is my partner and he cares for me deeply
Every morning before the sun comes up
He brings me coffee early in the morning
He brings my coffee in my favorite cup
He pays attention to the small details that make me happy
That's why I know, yes, I know
I am certain of my love for him
Hallelujah, I just love him so
I feel so strongly about him - it's a blessing
When I'm in trouble and I have no friends
When I need help and support from others
I know he'll go with me until the end
I am confident that he will stay by my side no matter what
Everybody asks me how I know
Others want to know why I am so sure of his love
I smile at them and say he told me so
I trust him because he has told me how he feels
Now if I call him on the telephone
If I need to reach him urgently
And tell him that I'm all alone
And say that I am feeling lonely
By the time I count from one to four
He arrives so quickly
I hear him on my door
I can hear him knocking on my door
In the evening when the sun goes down
At the end of the day
When there is nobody else around
When I am alone
He kisses me and he holds me tight
He shows his affection through physical touch
And tells me, 'Baby, everything's alright'
He reassures me and comforts me
Hallelujah, I just love him so
I am grateful for my love for him
Oh yes I know, yes I know
I am certain and confident of our love
Hallelujah, I just love him so
I am so happy and in love with him
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Word Collections Publishing, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Royalty Network, Hipgnosis Songs Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Ray Charles
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@johnfury6481
I really enjoy watching Peggy Lee perform this tune live while at her peak vocally and in every other category as far as I am concerned.
@swingman5635
Peggy was a living doll,with a smokey,world-weary style that was perfectly suited to this tune,a favorite from 54's "White Christmas".
@HannahDunny
I love Peggy! Thanks for uploading! 😁
@rubberdc
Stunning !!