Scott Hamilton is a jazz tenor saxophonist associated with swing (music) an… Read Full Bio ↴Scott Hamilton is a jazz tenor saxophonist associated with swing (music) and mainstream jazz.

He emerged in the 1970s and at the time he was considered to be one of the few musicians of real talent who carried the tradition of the classic jazz tenor saxophone in the style of Ben Webster, Coleman Hawkins as well as Zoot Sims and Don Byas forward. He began playing in various rhythm & blues outfits in Providence (Rhode Island), but subsequently shifted to jazz and the tenor saxophone. In 1976 he moved to New York City at, in part the recommendation of Roy Eldridge. He there joined Benny Goodman for a period of time. During this time, he also developed an alcohol problem.,[1] In the early 1980's he had formed his own quintet and toured all over the world. By then free from his drinking habit, in 1982 he had matured sufficiently to be able to break away from the spell of mainly Ben Webster and Zoot Sims, of whom he had been criticized of imitating. From this point on both his playing and his tone was very much his own.

Living in New York City, he toured all around the world during the 1980's, playing Japan and all over Europe. He was in particular a recurrent visitor to the UK, Sweden and the Grand Parade du Jazz, held in Nice, France. By the early 1990's he was ready for a next step and by 1994 when he released Organic Duke, he had developed a quite singular style: a large, well rounded but still focused tone and improvising, ostensibly still based on the swing idiom (especially Ellington), but incorporating more modern elements. During this period, he relocated to London, and formed his current quartet, featuring John Pearce (p), Dave Green (b) and Steve Brown (dr). He is currently active touring all over Europe.

He has had over forty albums as a lead most on the Concord Records label.

Young And Foolish
Scott Hamilton Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Young and foolish
Why is it wrong to be
Young and foolish
We haven't long to be

Soon enough the carefree days
The sunlit days go by
Soon enough the bluebird has to fly

We were foolish
One day we fell in love
Now we wonder
What were we dreaming of

Smiling in the sunlight
Laughing in the rain
I wish that we were
Young and foolish again

Smiling in the sunlight
Laughing in the rain

I wish that we were
Young and foolish again

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of the song "Young and Foolish" by Scott Hamilton depict the nostalgia of youth and love. The song starts with "Young and foolish, why is it wrong to be?" which frames the modern world's perception towards youthful ideas and emotions that are often misconstrued as immature or impractical. The lyrics move on to express the fleeting nature of youthful days, "We haven't long to be, soon enough the carefree days, the sunlit days go by," and how time is like a bluebird that eventually has to fly away.

"We were foolish, one day we fell in love, now we wonder, what were we dreaming of" is an expression that acknowledges the immaturity of youthful love and how it is often idealistic, shown by wondering about what they were dreaming of. The last two verses of the song convey how the singer misses those days of being young and foolish, "smiling in the sunlight, laughing in the rain, I wish that we were young and foolish again." The song expresses how the carefree, foolish nature of youth often gets lost with time.

Line by Line Meaning

Young and foolish
Being young and naive

Why is it wrong to be
Questioning why society sees youth as something negative

Young and foolish
Being young and naive, again

We haven't long to be
Not having much time to be young and naive before adulthood sets in

Soon enough the carefree days
Acknowledging that carefree youthful days are temporary

The sunlit days go by
The happy days of youth pass quickly

Soon enough the bluebird has to fly
The time comes when the young must leave the nest and take on adult responsibilities

We were foolish
Reflecting on past mistakes made in youth

One day we fell in love
Recalling the first time they fell in love as young people

Now we wonder
Reflecting on how naive they were when they first fell in love

What were we dreaming of
Questioning the unrealistic expectations they had in youth about what love and life would be like