Throughout the years, and changing line-ups, the group maintained a strong fan-base among jazz fans of all ages.
When You're Smiling
The Dave Brubeck Quartet Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
He was a kind man,
Helping a fellow along,
One could not see,
One could not walk,
But they both were humming this song;
When you're smiling, When you're smiling,
When you're laughing, When you're laughing,
The sun comes shining through,
But when you're crying you bring on the rain,
So stop your sighing be happy again,
Keep on smiling 'cause when you're smiling,
The whole world smiles with you.
I used to worry,
I used to hurry,
Each time it started to rain,
Now I see light,
Learned wrong from right,
And you'll never hear me complain;
When you're smiling, When you're smiling,
The whole world smiles with you,
When you're laughing, When you're laughing,
The sun comes shining through,
But when you're crying you bring on the rain,
So stop your sighing be happy again,
Keep on smiling 'cause when you're smiling,
The whole world smiles with you.
The lyrics of this song revolve around the idea that when we are happy and smiling, the world around us responds in kind. The first stanza describes a heartwarming encounter between a blind man and a fellow who couldn't walk. Despite their respective disabilities, they both were humming this tune and singing its praises. The message here is that even in difficult circumstances, happiness can be found if we choose to see the good in life and remain positive.
The second stanza then moves to the singer's personal experience, where he used to worry and hurry whenever it rained. But now, having learned from his mistakes, he sees the light and knows when to appreciate the good things in life. The message here is that the singer has grown and learned from his past struggles, and now he embraces a happier outlook.
Line by Line Meaning
I saw a blind man,
I saw a man who was blind
He was a kind man,
He was a good-hearted individual
Helping a fellow along,
He was assisting someone else
One could not see,
One person was visually impaired
One could not walk,
Another person was unable to walk
But they both were humming this song;
Despite their disabilities, they were both singing and happy
When you're smiling, When you're smiling,
Happiness is contagious
The whole world smiles with you,
People around you respond positively to your happiness
When you're laughing, When you're laughing,
Laughing brings joy to oneself and others
The sun comes shining through,
When you're happy, the world seems brighter
But when you're crying you bring on the rain,
Your sadness can affect those around you
So stop your sighing be happy again,
Choose happiness instead of sadness
Keep on smiling 'cause when you're smiling,
Being happy has positive effects on those around you
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Joe Goodwin, Larry Shay, Mark Fisher
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind