Shirley Horn was born and raised in Washington, D.C.. Encouraged by her grandmother, an amateur organist, Horn began piano lessons at the age of four. Aged 12, she studied piano and composition at Howard University, later graduating from there in classical music. Horn was offered a place at the Juilliard School, but her family could not afford to send her there. Horn formed her first jazz piano trio when she was 20. Horn's early piano influences were Erroll Garner, Oscar Peterson and Ahmad Jamal, and moving away from her classical background, Horn later said that "Oscar Peterson became my Rachmaninov, and Ahmad Jamal became my Debussy." She then became enamored with the famous U Street jazz area of Washington (largely destroyed in the 1968 riots), sneaking into jazz clubs before she was of legal age.
Horn first achieved fame in 1960, through her association with Miles Davis. Davis' praise had particular resonance in two respects: because he was so highly respected as a musician, and because he rarely offered public praise for fellow musicians at that time. Horn had, though, recorded several songs with violinist Stuff Smith in 1959 both as a pianist and a singer. After her discovery by Davis, she recorded albums on different small labels in the early 1960s, eventually landing contracts with larger labels Mercury Records and Impulse Records. She was popular with jazz critics, but did not achieve significant popular success.
Quincy Jones attempted to make Horn into a pure vocalist in several recording sessions, something he later hinted may have been a mistake. Horn was also disturbed by the changes in popular music in the 1960s following the arrival of The Beatles. Largely rejecting efforts to remake her into a popular singer, she stated: "I will not stoop to conquer."[4] From the late-1960s, she concentrated on raising her daughter Rainy with her husband, Shepherd Deering (whom she had married in 1955), and largely limited her performances to her native Washington, D.C.
Miles Davis made a rare appearance as a sideman on Horn's 1991 album You Won't Forget Me. Although she preferred to perform in small settings, such as her trio, she also recorded with orchestras, as on the 1992 album Here's to Life, the title song (lyrics by Phyllis Molinary, music by Artie Butler) of which became her signature song. A video documentary of Horn's life and music was released at the same time as "Here's To Life" and shared its title. At the time, arranger Johnny Mandel commented that Horn's piano skill was comparable to that of the noted jazz great Bill Evans. A follow-up was made in 2001, named You're My Thrill.
Horn worked with the same rhythm section for 25 years: Charles Ables (bass) and Steve Williams (drums). Don Heckman wrote in the Los Angeles Times (February 2, 1995) about "the importance of bassist Charles Ables and drummer Steve Williams to Horn's sound. Working with boundless subtlety, following her every spontaneous twist and turn, they were the ideal accompanists for a performer who clearly will tolerate nothing less than perfection".
Her albums Here's to Life, Light Out of Darkness (A Tribute to Ray Charles) and I Love You, Paris all reached number one on the Billboard jazz charts.
Due to health problems in the early 2000s, Horn had to cut back on her performances. After 2002, a foot amputation (from complications of diabetes) led her to leave the piano playing to pianist George Mesterhazy. In late 2004, Horn felt able to play piano again, and recorded a live album for Verve, at Manhattan's Au Bar with trumpet player Roy Hargrove, which did not satisfy her.[citation needed] It remains unreleased except for tracks on But Beautiful - The Best of Shirley Horn.
A breast cancer survivor, she had been battling diabetes when she died of complications from the condition, aged 71. She is interred at Ft. Lincoln Cemetery in Washington, D.C.
Horn was nominated for nine Grammy Awards during her career, winning the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Performance at the 41st Grammy Awards for I Remember Miles, a tribute to her friend and mentor (the album's cover featuring a Miles Davis drawing of them both).
She was officially recognized by the 109th US Congress for "her many achievements and contributions to the world of jazz and American culture", and performed at The White House for several U.S. presidents. Horn was awarded an honorary Doctor of Music degree from the Berklee College of Music in 2002.
She was awarded the National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Masters Award in 2005 (the highest honors that the United States bestows upon jazz musicians).
I Guess I'll Hang My Tears Out to Dry
Shirley Horn Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm just as blue as the sky;
Since love is gone, can't pull myself together,
Guess I'll hang my tears out to dry.
Friends ask me out, I tell them I'm busy,
Must get a new alibi!
I stay at home and ask myself, "Where is he?",
Dry little teardrops,
My little teardrops,
Hangin' on a string of dreams.
Fly little memories,
My little memories,
Remind him of our crazy schemes.
Somebody said, "Just forget about him!",
I gave that treatment a try.
Strangely enough, I got along without him,
Then one day he passed me right by;
Oh, well, I guess I'll hang my tears out to dry.
Little teardrops,
Little teardrops, filled with dreams.
The opening verse of Shirley Horn’s "I Guess I'll Hang My Tears Out To Dry" is a vividly composed image that is filled with emotions. The singer longs for the rain, but what she gets is sunshine, which only make her feel worse. The metaphor of the blue sky reflects how she feels inside, and nothing else can cheer her up. Since her love is lost, she can’t seem to recover from the feeling of being broken-hearted. The decision to hang her tears out to dry is a way for her to express her feelings and let them go.
The second verse of the song shows Shirley Horn making up excuses to not hang out with her friends. She’s using the excuse of being busy to avoid anyone asking her about her love life. She’s stuck at home, thinking of her past lover and wondering where he is. In the chorus, she addresses her little teardrops and little memories, referring to them as things that she can’t get rid of, as they’re always reminding her of her past love. She realizes that even though it's hard to forget about him, there’s no other option left for her than to hang her tears out to dry.
In conclusion, the song "I Guess I'll Hang My Tears Out To Dry" is a beautifully composed and emotionally evocative song. Shirley Horn’s lyricism expresses well the pain of heartbreak, the struggle to move on, and the difficulty in letting go of love. The song is a timeless masterpiece that exemplifies the power of music in conveying human emotions in their truest form.
Line by Line Meaning
When I want rain, I get sunny weather,
I always seem to experience the opposite of what I desire, feeling as though I am lost and without hope.
I'm just as blue as the sky;
I feel just as empty and depleted as the vast, empty sky above.
Since love is gone, can't pull myself together,
Without love, I am left feeling broken and unable to pick up the pieces of my shattered heart.
Guess I'll hang my tears out to dry.
I will try to let go of my painful memories and move forward, despite how difficult it may be.
Friends ask me out, I tell them I'm busy,
Although my friends try to help me by inviting me out, I am too consumed by my pain to see the value in their companionship.
Must get a new alibi!
I need to find new excuses to avoid social situations, as I am not yet strong enough to face the world with my broken heart.
I stay at home and ask myself, "Where is he?",
I am left to wonder where my former love is and why he left me behind so ruthlessly.
Guess I'll hang my tears out to dry.
My only recourse is to move on and release the pain, even if it takes time and effort to do so.
Dry little teardrops,
My tears have dried up and no longer consume me with sadness.
My little teardrops,
The tears I once shed no longer define me, as I am emerging from my pain stronger than before.
Hangin' on a string of dreams.
My hopes and aspirations are what keep me going, despite the pain I have felt in the past.
Fly little memories,
My memories of our past love are no longer holding me down or causing me pain.
My little memories,
The memories I hold dear are no longer the source of my pain, but instead remind me of the happiness I once felt.
Remind him of our crazy schemes.
Although my past love is gone, my memories of our wild and adventurous past remind me of the good times we shared together.
Somebody said, "Just forget about him!",
Although some people may encourage me to forget my past love, it is not that easy to just let go of my emotions and memories.
I gave that treatment a try.
I attempted to forget my past love, but found it impossible to do so entirely.
Strangely enough, I got along without him,
In the end, I discovered that I no longer needed my past love to be happy, and was able to realize my true strength without him.
Then one day he passed me right by;
Despite my newfound strength, it was still difficult to see my past love without feeling some measure of pain.
Oh, well, I guess I'll hang my tears out to dry.
Although it hurts to see my past love, I will continue to move on and let go of the pain.
Little teardrops,
Although my tears once consumed me, they are no longer the defining feature of my life.
Little teardrops, filled with dreams.
Although tears once represented pain and sadness, I now see them as filled with hope and the power to overcome adversity.
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC
Written by: SAMMY CAHN, JULE STYNE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind