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."
There'll Be Some Changes Made
Peggy Lee Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
But I've found out this will never do
When you grow old you don't last long
You're here today and then tomorrow you're gone
I loved a man(gal) for many years gone by
I tho't his(her) love for me would never die
He(She) made some changes that would never do
From now on I'm goin' to make some changs too
For there's a change in the weather
There's a change in the sea
So from now on there'll be a change in me
My walk will be diff'rent, my talk and my name
Nothin' about me is goin' to be the same
I'm goin' to change my way of livin' if that ain't enough
Then I'll change the way that I strut my stuff
'Cause nobody wants you when you're old and gray
There'll be some changes made
They say the old time things are the best
That may be very good for all the rest
But I'm goin' to let the old things be
'Cause they are certainly not suited for me
There was a time when I thought that way
That's why I'm all alone here today
Since ev'ry one of these days seeks something new
From now on I'm goin' to seek some new things too
For there's a change in the weather
There's a change in the sea
So from now on there'll be a change in me
Why, my walk will be be different, and my talk and my name
Nothing about me gonna be the same
I'm gonna change my way of livin', and that ain't no shock
Why, I'm thinking of changin' the way I gotta set my clock
Because nobody wants you when you're old and gray
There's gonna be some changes made today
There'll be some changes made
The song "There'll Be Some Changes Made" by Peggy Lee is about the inevitability of change as we grow older and the need to embrace it in order to continue living a fulfilling life. The lyrics express a sense of urgency to make changes before it's too late, as time is finite and we never know when our time will come.
The first verse suggests that holding onto old ways of thinking or beliefs may not be sustainable as we age. The line "You're here today and then tomorrow you're gone" is a reminder to live in the present and make the most of every day. The second verse reinforces this idea by saying that while old traditions or habits may have worked in the past, they are not necessarily suited for the present or future.
The chorus highlights the importance of embracing change and adapting to it. The repetition of the phrase "there's a change in" emphasizes the constant state of flux in life, whether it's the weather, the sea, or ourselves. The singer acknowledges that she needs to make changes in herself, from the way she walks and talks to her entire way of living, in order to stay relevant and desirable.
The final verse adds a touch of humor to the song by suggesting even mundane things like changing the way she sets her clock can make a difference in how others perceive her. The closing line "There'll be some changes made today" is a call to action, urging listeners to not be afraid of change and to take control of their lives.
Overall, "There'll Be Some Changes Made" is a timeless song that encourages us to embrace change and approach life with a sense of adventure and curiosity.
Line by Line Meaning
They say don't change the old for the new
People say to stick with what you know, but that won't work for me.
But I've found out this will never do
I've learned that staying the same isn't an option.
When you grow old you don't last long
As you get older, your time becomes limited.
You're here today and then tomorrow you're gone
Life is short and unpredictable.
I loved a man(gal) for many years gone by
I was in a long-term relationship that has ended.
I tho't his(her) love for me would never die
I believed our love was forever, but it wasn't.
He(She) made some changes that would never do
My partner made some decisions that I couldn't accept.
From now on I'm goin' to make some changs too
I'm going to make changes to my own life as well.
For there's a change in the weather
The environment is constantly fluctuating.
There's a change in the sea
The oceans and natural world are never static.
So from now on there'll be a change in me
I'm going to transform who I am and how I live.
My walk will be diff'rent, my talk and my name
Everything about me will be altered, not just my external appearance.
Nothin' about me is goin' to be the same
I'm determined to become someone new.
I'm goin' to change my way of livin' if that ain't enough
I'm going to change my lifestyle significantly, and if that's not sufficient, I'll change more.
Then I'll change the way that I strut my stuff
Even my most simplistic behaviors will be transformed.
'Cause nobody wants you when you're old and gray
People are less interested in you as you age.
There'll be some changes made
I'm going to make alterations to myself and my life.
They say the old time things are the best
People often refer to the past as the golden era.
That may be very good for all the rest
But that doesn't necessarily apply to everyone.
But I'm goin' to let the old things be
I'm not going to cling to the past.
'Cause they are certainly not suited for me
I've outgrown the things that used to bring me happiness.
There was a time when I thought that way
I used to feel differently, but I've since changed my views.
That's why I'm all alone here today
The choices I made in the past have brought me to where I am now.
Since ev'ry one of these days seeks something new
Everybody desires novelty and fresh experiences.
From now on I'm goin' to seek some new things too
I'm going to pursue new experiences as well.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: ARTHUR CRUDUP
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Anonymous
on Why Don't You Do Right (Get Me Some Money Too)
Why Don't You Do Right - Casey Abrams - Lyrics
You had plenty money 1922
You let other women make a fool of you
Why don't you do right, like some other men do?
Get out of here and get me some money too?
You're sitting there wondering what it's all about
You ain't got no money, they will throw you out
Why don't you do right, like some other men do?
Get out of here and get me some money too?
Musical Interlude
You had plenty money 1922
You let other women make a fool of you
Why don't you do right, like some other men do?
Get out of here and get me some money too?
Why don't you do right, like some other men do?
Why don't you do right, like some other men do?