Pink Martini has twelve instrumentalists (and sometimes travels with string sections), and performs its multilingual repertoire on concert stages and with symphony orchestras throughout Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Northern Africa, Australia and New Zealand and North America. Pink Martini made its European debut at the Cannes Film Festival in 1997 and its orchestral debut with the Oregon Symphony in 1998 under the direction of Norman Leyden. Since then, the band has gone on to play with over 30 orchestras around the world, including multiple engagements with the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl, the Boston Pops, the National Symphony at the Kennedy Center and the BBC Concert Orchestra in London. Other appearances include the grand opening of the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s new Frank Gehry-designed Walt Disney Concert Hall, with return sold-out engagements for New Year’s Eve 2003, 2004 & 2008; two sold-out concerts at Carnegie Hall; the opening party of the remodeled Museum of Modern Art in NYC; the Governor’s Ball at the 80th Annual Academy Awards in 2008; and the opening of the 2008 Sydney Festival in Australia.
Lauderdale met China Forbes, Pink Martini’s lead vocalist, at Harvard. He was studying history and literature while she was studying English literature and painting. Late at night, they would break into the lower common room in their college dormitory and sing arias by Puccini and Verdi – and the occasional campy Barbra Streisand cover –thus sealing their creative collaboration. Three years after graduating, Lauderdale called Forbes who was living in New York City, where she’d been writing songs and playing guitar in her own folk-rock project, and asked her to join Pink Martini. They began to write songs together for the band. Their first song “Sympathique”– with the chorus “Je ne veux pas travailler” (”I don’t want to work”) – became an overnight sensation in France, and was even nominated for “Song of the Year” at France’s Victoires de la Musique Awards. Forbes, though fluent only in English, sings in 15 different languages.
Pink Martini’s debut album Sympathique was released independently in 1997 on the band’s own label Heinz Records (named after Lauderdale’s dog), and quickly became an international phenomenon, garnering the group nominations for “Song of the Year” and “Best New Artist” in France’s Victoires de la Musique Awards in 2000.
In October 2004, the group released its second album, Hang on Little Tomato.
In May 2007, it released its third album, Hey Eugene!.
A fourth studio album, Splendor in the Grass, followed on October 27, 2009.
Sympathique, Hang on Little Tomato and Hey Eugene! have all gone gold in France, Canada, Greece and Turkey; collectively, Pink Martini's records have sold more than two million copies worldwide.
On New Year's Eve 2005, Pink Martini performed live at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall in Portland, Oregon. This performance was aired live on National Public Radio's Toast of the Nation, and in partnership with Oregon Public Broadcasting was recorded for a live DVD and later broadcast on US public broadcasting and French television.[citation needed] The DVD has been rereleased to retail as Discover the World: Live in Concert, featuring not only the full concert, but several vignettes and a short documentary of the band's history.
The band has collaborated and performed with Jimmy Scott, Carol Channing, Henri Salvador, Jane Powell, Chavela Vargas, Georges Moustaki, Michael Feinstein, DJ Dimitri from Paris, clarinetist and conductor Norman Leyden, Hiroshi Wada, DJ Johnny Dynell and several drag queens from New York City, among others. On June 1, 2007, the band appeared on the long-running BBC Two Later with Jools Holland TV music program. On June 14, 2007, Pink Martini performed on Late Show with David Letterman, performing "Hey Eugene".
Pink Martini played Walt Disney Concert Hall on New Year's Eve for the first two years it was open (2003/4 and 2004/5). They returned to play NYE there again in 2008/9.
In May 2009, the band recorded three concerts with the Oregon Symphony under the direction of Carlos Kalmar for the band’s fifth album … a symphonic record which is slated for a 2011 release.
Pink Martini songs appear in such films as In the Cut, Nurse Betty, Josie and the Pussycats, Tortilla Soup, Shanghai Kiss, Mary and Max, and Mr. & Mrs. Smith and have been used on television shows such as Dead Like Me, The Sopranos and The West Wing, among others.[citation needed] Their song "Una notte a Napoli" is an integral part of the Italian movie Mine Vaganti (2010), by the Italian-Turkish director Ferzan Özpetek. The song "No Hay Problema" is included as background/setup music for Microsoft's Windows Server 2003 and was also used as the background/setup music for an early build of Windows Longhorn, now known as Windows Vista.[citation needed]
In February 2011, the group's lead singer, China Forbes, recorded a video greeting to the European Space Agency's Italian astronaut, Paolo Nespoli, and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Kaleri, on board the International Space Station. The astronauts were preparing to oversee the docking of ESA's Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) cargo vessel, Johannes Kepler, which took place at 17:08 CET on 24 February. The greeting was set to the sound track of Dosvedanya Mio Bombino - one of Pink Martini's signature songs - and was mixed with footage of the actual docking.
In November 2011, they played at the Balboa Theater with the Bonita Vista High School band, Club Blue.
Lilly
Pink Martini Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Lilly runs when you look away
Lilly leaves kisses on your collar
Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, stay!
Lilly comes when you stop to call her
Lilly runs when you look away
Lilly leaves kisses on your collar
One day she passed him by
A twinkle in her eye
He said " she was meant for me!"
But when he turned around
He lost what he had found
Oh where can his Lilly be?
Lilly comes when you stop to call her
Lilly runs when you look away
Lilly leaves kisses on your collar
Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, stay!
He searched the city streets
He tempted her with treats
But nobody stopped to taste them
Some are in his pocket
Some are in a locket
He couldn't bring himself to waste them
Ever since she's gone
Some days he can't go on
She runined for another
Pressed up against the glass
He prays that she will pass
Now he's living with his mother
Lilly comes when you stop to call her
Lilly runs when you look away
Lilly leaves kisses on your collar
Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, stay!
Lilly comes when you stop to call her
Lilly runs when you look away
Lilly leaves kisses on your collar
Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, stay!
Stay, stay, stay, stay
The lyrics to Pink Martini's "Lilly" tell a story of a man who loses the love of his life because he wasn't attentive enough. Lilly, the woman in question, is described as fickle: coming when called, but running away when not watched closely enough. Despite this, the singer is in love with her and beseeches her to stay with him, even though she is already gone.
The song paints a picture of a man who is in love with someone who is not fully committed to him. He knows that she is not entirely reliable or trustworthy, but he loves her all the same. Despite his efforts to hold onto her, she slips away from him, leaving him feeling lost and alone. The lyrics are poignant and heartfelt, portraying the raw emotion of a love that is not entirely reciprocated.
Overall, "Lilly" is a beautiful ballad about love, loss and the bittersweet nature of relationships. The song perfectly captures the feeling of loving someone who is not quite there with you, and the desperation of wanting them to stay even when they can't.
Line by Line Meaning
Lilly comes when you stop to call her
Lilly appears when you show her attention
Lilly runs when you look away
Lilly disappears when you lose interest
Lilly leaves kisses on your collar
Lilly shows her love with affectionate gestures
Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, stay!
Please don't go, Lilly!
One day she passed him by
He saw Lilly on the street one day
A twinkle in her eye
She appeared cheerful and happy
He said "she was meant for me!"
He felt that Lilly was the one for him
But when he turned around
When he lost sight of her
He lost what he had found
He no longer had Lilly with him
Oh where can his Lilly be?
He wonders where Lilly went
He searched the city streets
He tried to find Lilly
He tempted her with treats
He offered Lilly things to lure her back
But nobody stopped to taste them
No one was interested in his offerings
Some are in his pocket
He still carries things Lilly would have liked
Some are in a locket
He keeps some of Lilly's things close to his heart
He couldn't bring himself to waste them
He can't bear to part with her belongings
Ever since she's gone
Since Lilly left
Some days he can't go on
He feels like giving up without Lilly
She runined for another
Someone else took Lilly away from him
Pressed up against the glass
He watches the world go by, feeling trapped
He prays that she will pass
He hopes to see Lilly again
Now he's living with his mother
He lost Lilly and his former life, and had to return to his family
Stay, stay, stay, stay
He begs for Lilly to stay with him
Lyrics © MUSIC SALES CORPORATION, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: ALLAN ROBERTS, DORIS FISHER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@puspitapermatahati7049
Lilly comes when you stop to call her
Lilly runs when you look away
Lilly leaves kisses on your collar
Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, stay!
Lilly comes when you stop to call her
Lilly runs when you look away
Lilly leaves kisses on your collar
Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, stay!
One day she passed him by
A twinkle in her eye
He said " she was meant for me!"
But when he turned around
He lost what he had found
Oh where can his Lilly be?
Lilly comes when you stop to call her
Lilly runs when you look away
Lilly leaves kisses on your collar
Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, stay!
He searched the city streets
He tempted her with treats
But nobody stopped to taste them
Some are in his pocket
Some are in a locket
He couldn't bring himself to waste them
Ever since she's gone
Some days he can't go on
She runined for another
Pressed up against the glass
He prays that she will pass
Now he's living with his mother
Lilly comes when you stop to call her
Lilly runs when you look away
Lilly leaves kisses on your collar
Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, stay!
Lilly comes when you stop to call her
Lilly runs when you look away
Lilly leaves kisses on your collar
Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, stay!
Stay, stay, stay, stay
@gutts4208
When I was younger my grandma bought this album and played it for us whenever we went out on short trips in the car. I love this song and it reminds me of her whenever I hear it.
@seandude129
I heard this song in the radio of the car then opened it in youtube lol.
@wulandoja
THE LITERAL SAME WITH MY GRANDPA
@lingyunyang5184
this song reminds me of passed times. so many unforgetable moments with tears.
@rmp7400
My mother was named "Lilly" and the "Oma" who raised me (while all other family adults were away at work),
was also named "Lily" (One "l" mid-name).
"My Two Lilies❤❤"
Thank you for uploading this song 🎉
@jamesmelillo823
Our dog we call Miss Lilly and she always comes, what a beautiful song.
@msr48
My dog is also named Lily and she is a terrier mix - or as I like to say, she is a Terror-ier!! Very smart and very stubborn - not the greatest combo in a dog. But the "Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, Lilly, stay" line gets me every time.
@nasimiana6161
My daughter’s name is Lily, she’s 2/5 yrs, she loves this song and every time in the car she wants it and sings along with
@BunnieSecrets
my mum would always have this playing in the car and i loved it omg, that was like 8 years ago though. aaah memories
@EyesOfaDoll
My cat is named Lily! This song so reminds me of her...I'm her favorite out my parents and sister and I. This song is spot ON!