Joseph Raymond Conniff (November 6, 1916 - October 12, 2002) was an America… Read Full Bio ↴Joseph Raymond Conniff (November 6, 1916 - October 12, 2002) was an American musician. He was born in Attleboro, Massachusetts, and learned to play the trombone from his father. He studied music arranging from a course book.

After serving in the U.S. Army in World War II (where he worked under Walter Schumann), he was hired by Mitch Miller, then head of A & R at Columbia Records as their home arranger, and he worked with several artists, including Rosemary Clooney, Marty Robbins, Frankie Laine, Johnny Mathis, Guy Mitchell and Johnnie Ray. He wrote a top 10 arrangement for Don Cherry's "Band of Gold" in 1955, a single that sold more than a million copies.

Amongst the hit singles he backed with his orchestra (and eventually with a male chorus) were "Yes Tonight Josephine" and "Just Walkin' in the Rain" by Johnnie Ray; "Chances Are" and "It's Not for Me to Say" by Johnny Mathis; "A White Sport Coat" and "The Hanging Tree" by Marty Robbins; "Up Above My Head," a duet by Frankie Laine and Johnnie Ray, and "Pet Me, Poppa" by Rosemary Clooney. He also backed up the albums "Tony" by Tony Bennett, "Blue Swing" by Eileen Rodgers, "Swingin' for Two" by Don Cherry. and half the tracks of "The Big Beat" by Johnnie Ray.

In these early years he also produced some similar sounding records for Columbia's Epic label under the name of Jay Raye (which stands for "Joseph Raymond") amongst them a backing album and singles with Somethin' Smith & The Redheads, an American male vocal group.

Because of the success of his backings Mitch Miller allowed him to make his own record, and this became the successful "'S Wonderful", a collection of standards that were recorded with an orchestra and a wordless singing chorus (four men, four women). He released many more albums in the same vein, including "Dance The Bop" (1957), "'S Marvelous" (1957, gold album), "'S Awful Nice" (1958), "Concert in Rhythm" (1958, gold album), "Hollywood in Rhythm" (1958), "Broadway in Rhythm" (1959), and "Concert in Rhythm, Volume II" (1959, gold album).

In 1959 he started the Ray Conniff Singers (12 women and 13 men) and released the album "It's the Talk of the Town. This group of word— not just syllable — singing singers brought him the biggest hit he ever had in his career: "Somewhere My Love" (1966). The title track of the album was written to the music of Lara's Theme from the film Doctor Zhivago (1965), and was a top 10 single in the US. The album also reached the US top 20 and went platinum, and Conniff won a Grammy. The single and album reached high positions in the international charts (a.o. Australia, Germany, Great Britain, Japan) as well. Also extraordinarily successful was the first of four Christmas albums by the Singers, "Christmas with Conniff" (1959). Nearly fifty years after its release, in 2004, Conniff posthumously was awarded with a platinum album/CD.

Musically different highlights in Conniff's career are two albums he produced in cooperation with Billy Butterfield, an old buddy from earlier swing days. "Conniff Meets Butterfield" (1960) featured Butterfield's solo trumpet and a small rhythm group; "Just Kiddin' Around" (after a Conniff original composition from the 1940's), released 1963, featured additional trombone solos by Ray himself. Both albums are pure light jazz and did not feature any vocals.

Later in the 1960's he produced an average of two instrumental and one vocal album a year. Among these are (Original albums only):

* "'s Wonderful" (1956)
* "Dance the Bop!" (1957)
* "'s Marvelous" (1957)
* "'s Awful Nice" (1958)
* "Concert in Rhythm, Vol.1" (1958)
* "Broadway in Rhythm" (1958)
* "Hollywood in Rhythm" (1958)
* "It's The Talk of the Town" (1959)
* "Conniff Meets Butterfield" (1959)
* "Christmas with Conniff" (1959)
* "Concert in Rhythm, Vol.2" (1959)
* "Young at Heart" (1960)
* "Say It with Music (A Touch of Latin)" (1960)
* "Memories Are Made of This" (1960, gold album)
* "Somebody Loves Me" (1961)
* "'S Continental" (1961)
* "So Much in Love" (1962, gold album)
* "Rhapsody in Rhythm" (1962)
* "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" (1962, gold album)
* "The Happy Beat" (1962)
* "You Make Me Feel So Young" (1963)
* "Speak to Me of Love" (1963)
* "Friendly Persuasion" (1964)
* "Invisible Tears" (1964)
* "Love Affair" (1965)
* "Music From 'Mary Poppins', 'The Sound of Music', 'My Fair Lady' & Other Great Movie Themes" (1965)
* "Here We Come A-Caroling" (1965)
* "Happiness Is" (1965)
* "Ray Conniff's World of Hits" (1966)
* "En Español (The Ray Conniff Singers Sing It in Spanish)" (1966)
* "This Is My Song" (1967)
* "Ray Conniff's Hawaiian Album" (1967)
* "It Must Be Him" (1967, gold album)
* "Honey" (1968, gold album)
* "Turn Around Look at Me" (1968)
* "I Love How You Love Me" (1968)
* "Live Europa Tournee 1969/Concert in Stereo" (1969)
* "Jean" (1969)
* "Concert In Stereo: Live At 'The Sahara Tahoe'" (1969)
* "Bridge Over Troubled Water" (1970)
* "We've Only Just Begun" (1970)
* "Love Story" (1970)
* "Great Contemporary Instrumental Hits" (1971)
* "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing" (1971)
* "Love Theme from "The Godfather" (1972)
* "Alone Again (Naturally)" (1972)
* "I Can See Clearly Now" (1972)
* "Ray Conniff in Britain" (1973)
* "You Are the Sunshine of My Life" (1973)
* "Harmony" (1973)
* "The Way We Were" (1973)
* "The Happy Sound of Ray Conniff" (1974)
* "Ray Conniff In Moscow" (1974)
* "Laughter in the Rain" (1975)
* "Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song" (1975)
* "Love Will Keep Us Together" (1975)
* "I Write the Songs" (1975)
* "Live in Japan" (1975)
* "Send in the Clowns" (1976)
* "Theme from 'SWAT' and Other TV Themes" (1976)
* "After the Lovin'" (1976)
* "Exitos Latinos" (1977)
* "Ray Conniff Plays the Bee Gees and Other Great Hits" (1978)
* "I Will Survive" (1979)
* "The Perfect '10' Classics" (1980)
* "Exclusivamente Latino" (1980)
* "Siempre Latino" (1981)
* "The Nashville Connection" (1982)
* "Musik für Millionen" (partly produced for a German TV show in 1982)
* "Amor Amor" (1982)
* "Fantastico" (1983)
* "Supersonico" (1984)
* "Campeones" (1985)
* "Say You Say Me" (1986)
* "30th Anniversary Edition" (1986)
* "Always in My Heart" (1987)
* "Interpreta 16 Exitos De Manuel Alejandro" (1988)
* "Ray Conniff Plays Broadway" (1990)
* "'S Always Conniff" (1991)
* "Latinisimo" (1993)
* "40th Anniversary" (1995)
* "Live in Rio (aka Mi Historia)" (1997)
* "I Love Movies" (1997)
* "My Way" (1998)
* "'S Country" (1999)
* "'S Christmas" (1999)
* "Do Ray Para O Rei" (2000).

Between 1957 and 1968, he had 28 albums in the American Top 40, the most famous one being "Somewhere My Love" (1966). He topped the album list in Britain in 1969 with "His Orchestra, His Chorus, His Singers, His Sound". He also was the first American popular artist to record in Russia—in 1974 he recorded "Ray Conniff in Moscow" with the help of a local choir. His later albums like "Exclusivamente Latino", "Amor Amor" and "Latinisimo" made him very popular in Latin-American countries, even more so after performing in the Viña del Mar International Song Festival. In Brazil and Chile he was treated like a young pop superstar in the 1980s and 1990s when he was in his 70s and 80s. He even played live with his orchestra and eight-person chorus in large football stadiums as well as in Viña del Mar.

Ray Conniff was a quiet, modest sympathetic artist. He always worked in the background so that in the fifties there were rumours that this man didn't even exist and his name was just a name fake as then his orchestral sound was so sensational. Nevertheless he sold about 70 million albums world-wide and continued recording and performing until his death in 2002.

He died in Escondido, California, and is interred in the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles, California.

In 2004, a memorial two-CD compilation set, "The Essential Ray Conniff", was released, featuring many rare and previously unreleased tracks. "The Singles Collection, Vol.1" was released on the Collectables label in 2005. This also features many rare tracks.

Summer Breeze
Ray Conniff Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

See the curtains hangin' in the window, in the evenin' on
A Friday night.
A little light a-shinin' through the window, lets me know
Everything is alright.
Summer breeze, makes me feel fine, blowing through the
Jasmine in my mind.
Summer breeze, makes me feel fine, blowing through the
Jasmine of my mind.

See the paper layin' on the sidewalk, a little music from
The house next door.
So I walked on up to the doorstep, through the screen and
Across the floor.
Summer breeze, makes me feel fine, blowing through the
Jasmine in my mind.
Summer breeze, makes me feel fine, blowing through the

Jasmine of my mind.

Sweet days of summer, the jasmine's in bloom. July is
Dressed up and playing her tune.
And I come home from a hard day's work, and you're
Waiting there, not a care in the world.
See the smile a-waitin' in the kitchen, food cookin' and
The plates for two.
Feel the arms that reach out to hold me, in the evening
When the day is through.
Summer breeze, makes me feel fine, blowing through the
Jasmine in my mind.

Summer breeze, makes me feel fine, blowing through the
Jasmine of my mind.

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Ray Conniff's "Summer Breeze" evoke the nostalgic feeling of summer nights, a time where simple pleasures and comforting routines bring happiness. The song starts by describing a scene from a window on a Friday evening. The curtains hang, and a little light shines through, reassuring the singer that everything is alright. The summer breeze then enters the picture, blowing through the jasmine in their mind, and making them feel fine. The scent of jasmine has a calming effect, and the wind carries it, bringing a sense of peace and contentment.

The second verse continues the story, with the singer walking up to the doorstep of the house next door, attracted by the music playing from within. They enter the house, and the same summer breeze follows them, carrying the scent of jasmine on its currents. The chorus repeats the same feelings of tranquillity that one might experience when feeling the summer breeze and smelling the jasmine flowers, which make them feel fine.

The third verse expresses the singer's personal experience of summer evenings. They've had a difficult day at work, but when they return home, they find their partner waiting for them in the kitchen, cooking food for two. The sense of comfort and security fills him, and he feels like they have no care in the world. The summer breeze and jasmine that the singer feels and smells in their mind now have physical manifestations, with their partner holding them in their arms, and the sweet aroma of the meal they’ve cooked filling the air.

Line by Line Meaning

See the curtains hangin' in the window, in the evenin' on A Friday night.
As the night falls on a Friday, I see the curtains hanging in the window, indicating someone's inside, welcoming the weekend.

A little light a-shinin' through the window, lets me know Everything is alright.
The small light peeking through the window assures me that everything is alright and that I should feel safe and comfortable.

Summer breeze, makes me feel fine, blowing through the Jasmine in my mind.
The gentle summer breeze that carries the fragrance of jasmine flowers in my mind makes me feel content and satisfied with everything around me.

See the paper layin' on the sidewalk, a little music from The house next door.
As I walk down the sidewalk, I notice a newspaper lying and some music coming from the house next door, making me feel like there's a community around me.

So I walked on up to the doorstep, through the screen and Across the floor.
I took a walk and reached the front entrance, walked through the screen door, and entered the room.

Summer breeze, makes me feel fine, blowing through the Jasmine in my mind.
The serene summer breeze with the delicate jasmine aroma refreshes my senses and helps me to be present in the moment.

Sweet days of summer, the jasmine's in bloom. July is Dressed up and playing her tune.
Summer feels delightful, with the blooming of jasmine flowers and July representing the epitome of summer and its beauty.

And I come home from a hard day's work, and you're Waiting there, not a care in the world.
After a challenging day at work, I come home to a partner who's entirely relaxed, and their presence alone lifts my mood.

See the smile a-waitin' in the kitchen, food cookin' and The plates for two.
As I enter the kitchen, I'm greeted with a warm, welcoming smile and the sight of food being cooked and plates set for two, signifying that we'll share a meal together.

Feel the arms that reach out to hold me, in the evening When the day is through.
At the end of a long day, I feel the embrace of arms that hold me and make me feel loved, signifying that I have someone to come home to, making everything alright.

Summer breeze, makes me feel fine, blowing through the Jasmine in my mind.
The gentle summer breeze blowing the jasmine fragrance stays with me, filling me with contentment and feelings of peace.

Summer breeze, makes me feel fine, blowing through the Jasmine of my mind.
The soft summer breeze carrying the fragrance of jasmine flowers that I've always associated with happy memories makes me feel content and peaceful.

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Darrell Crofts, Jimmy Seals

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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