After moving to New York in the early 1950s, she married Parker’s pianist, Duke Jordan, and studied with Lennie Tristano, but it was not until the early 1960s that she made her first recordings. One was under her name; the other was “The Outer View” with George Russell, which featured a famous 10-minute version of “You Are My Sunshine.”
In the mid-1960s, her work encompassed jazz liturgies sung in churches and extensive club work, but her appeal was narrow even within the confines of jazz. However, by the late 1970s, jazz audiences had begun to understand her uncompromising style a little more. As a result, her popularity increased - as did her appearances on record, which included albums with pianist Steve Kuhn, whose quartet she joined, and an album, Home, comprising a selection of Robert Creeley’s poems set to music and arranged by Steve Swallow.
A 1983 duo set with bassist Harvie Swartz, “Old Time Feeling” comprises several standards Jordan regularly features in her live repertoire, while the 1990s “Lost And Found” pays tribute to her bebop roots. Both sets display her unique musical trademarks, such as the frequent and unexpected sweeping changes of pitch, which still tend to confound an uninitiated audience. Her preference for the bass and voice set led to another remarkable collaboration with bassist Cameron Brown, who has been performing worldwide for more than ten years and has released the live albums “I’ve Grown Accustomed to the Bass” and “Celebration.” Entirely non-derivative, Jordan is one of only a tiny handful of jazz singers who fully deserve the appellation and for whom no other term will do.
Lush Life
Sheila Jordan Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Those come what may places
Where one relaxes on the axis of the wheel of life
To get the feel of life from jazz and cocktails
The girls I knew had sad and sullen grey faces
With distingue traces
That used to be there you could see where they'd been washed away
Then you came along with your siren song
To tempt me to madness
I thought for a while that your poignant smile
Was tinged with the sadness of a great love for me
Ah yes I was wrong, again I was wrong
Life is lonely again
And only last year everything seemed so sure
Now life is awful again
A trough full of hearts could only be a bore
A week in Paris could ease the bite of it
All I care is to smile in spite of it
I'll forget you, I will
While yet you are still burning inside my brain
Romance is mush, stifling those who strive
So I'll live a lush life in some small dive
And there I'll be
While I rot
With the rest of those whose lives are lonely too
In Sheila Jordan's song "Lush Life," the lyrics describe a narrator, who used to frequent the "gay places," where jazz and cocktails were always flowing. The people the singer knew in those days were sad and had sullen grey faces. They had traces of distinction that had been washed away from too many 12 o'clock tales. But then the singer meets someone who tempts them with their siren song. The singer thinks that this person's smile is tinged with the sadness of a great love for them, but they are wrong.
The song then shifts to a reflection of the present state of the singer's life, which is lonely again. The previous year life seemed so sure, but now it is awful, and the thought of being with others just seems like a bore. The singer suggests that a week in Paris could ease the bite of it, but ultimately, all they care to do is to smile in spite of the loneliness. The song ends by returning to the idea that the singer would rather live a lush life in some small dive and rot with the rest of those whose lives are as lonely as theirs.
Line by Line Meaning
I used to visit all the very gay places
I used to go to places that were full of life and energy
Those come what may places
No matter what happened in life, these places would always be there
Where one relaxes on the axis of the wheel of life
These places helped people to take a step back from their day-to-day lives and see the bigger picture
To get the feel of life from jazz and cocktails
These places were filled with the energy of jazz music and the comfort of drinking cocktails
The girls I knew had sad and sullen grey faces
The women in these places weren't happy, and their faces showed it
With distingue traces
They had a certain dignity about them
That used to be there you could see where they'd been washed away
But that dignity had been worn away by the hardships they had faced
By too many through the day twelve o'clock tales
They had been through too many meaningless experiences
Then you came along with your siren song
Then you appeared, with your seductive charm
To tempt me to madness
To push me to the point of losing my mind
I thought for a while that your poignant smile
For a brief moment, I believed that your sad smile
Was tinged with the sadness of a great love for me
Was a sign of your deep, passionate love for me
Ah yes I was wrong, again I was wrong
But I was mistaken, once again
Life is lonely again
Now that you're gone, my life feels empty once more
And only last year everything seemed so sure
Just a year ago, everything felt so stable and certain
Now life is awful again
But now, it feels unbearable once more
A trough full of hearts could only be a bore
Even if I had many suitors, it would be meaningless
A week in Paris could ease the bite of it
Even a trip to Paris couldn't take away the pain
All I care is to smile in spite of it
The only thing I can do is pretend to be happy
I'll forget you, I will
I'll try to forget you
While yet you are still burning inside my brain
Even though I can't get you out of my mind
Romance is mush, stifling those who strive
I've realized that romance is a trap that holds people back from achieving their goals
So I'll live a lush life in some small dive
Now, I'll try to live a life of pleasure, even though it's in a small, dingy place
And there I'll be
That's where I'll be spending my time
While I rot
Even though I'll be wasting away
With the rest of those whose lives are lonely too
I'll be surrounded by others who know what it's like to be lonely
Lyrics © RESERVOIR MEDIA MANAGEMENT INC
Written by: Billy Strayhorn
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind