A jazz standard by Toots Thielemans is "Bluesette," where he used whistling and guitar in unison. He worked both as a bandleader and as a sideman, including many projects with composer/arranger Quincy Jones. He performed on many film soundtracks, such as Midnight Cowboy, Cinderella Liberty, Jean de Florette, The Sugarland Express, The Yakuza, Turkish Delight, the 1972 version of The Getaway, French Kiss, Dunderklumpen!, and in various television programs, including Sesame Street, whose closing credits (which did not list him accordingly) featured his performance, on harmonica, of the show's theme, the Belgian television series Witse, and in the Netherlands, for the Baantjer series.
Thielemans started his career as a guitar player. In 1949 he joined a jam session in Paris with Sidney Bechet, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Max Roach and others. In 1951 he went on tour with Bobbejaan Schoepen.
He moved to the United States in 1952 where he was a member of Charlie Parker's All-Stars. He played and recorded with names like Ella Fitzgerald, The George Shearing Quintet, Quincy Jones, Bill Evans, Paul Simon, Billy Joel, Astrud Gilberto, Elis Regina and others.
A jazz standard by Toots Thielemans is "Bluesette" where he used whistling and guitar in unison. Bluesette became a major 1962 world-wide hit for him and this still much beloved and requested piece has been re-recorded by him and commercially released on records/CDs many times over both in various studio versions and live on-stage performances performed in several different countries. His trademark harmonica playing can also be heard in movie scores such as Breakfast at Tiffany's (where his plaintive "Moon River" solo in the opening scene brilliantly establishes the film's mood of romance noir), Midnight Cowboy, Bagdad Café, French Kiss, and in various TV programs like Sesame Street, the Belgian TV series Witse and the Dutch TV series Baantjer. His professional whistling and harmonica playing can be heard on Old Spice radio and TV commercials that have been made over the years. In 1983 he contributed to Billy Joel's album An Innocent Man, and his trademark harmonica can be heard on "Leave a Tender Moment Alone."
In the 90s Thielemans embarked on theme projects that included world music. In 1998 he released the a French flavoured album titled "Chez Toots" that included the Les Moulins De Mon Coeur (The Windmills of My Heart) featuring guest singer Johnny Mathis. This CD continues to sell well.
Today Jean "Toots" Thielemans remains a strong favorite among jazz aficionados and professional critics alike. His music CDs continue to delight (many of which were recorded in the 2000s) and have introduced him to entire new generations of keen fans.
Apart from his popularity as an accomplished musician, he is well liked for his modesty and kind demeanor. In his native Belgium, he is also popular for describing himself as a Brussels "ket", which means "street kid" in old Brussels slang. He received a joint honorary doctorate from the Vrije Universiteit Brussel and the Université Libre de Bruxelles (Belgium) and in 2001 Thielemans was ennobled a baron by King Albert II of Belgium.
In 2005 he was nominated for the title of De Grootste Belg (The Greatest Belgian). In the Flemish version he ended 20th place, in the Walloon version he ended 44th place.
Thielemans may have had a significant impact on The Beatles, (John Lennon in particular), during the group's pre-fame formative years. When performing in a 1959 Hamburg Germany with the pre-fame Beatles, John Lennon (sometimes with fellow Beatle George Harrison in tow) would often go over to the club where Toots was performing (at a noontime venue) as a member of The George Shearing Quintet. Lennon evidently was taken with Toot's harmonica playing and also for the guitar Toots was playing, an electric American made Rickenbacker with a short play neck. Based on the sound Lennon heard, he decided to purchase a natural alder wood "alderglo" colored three pickup Rickenbacker 1958 model 325 Capri guitar with a short scale as former Beatle and friend, George Harrison would recall to various interviewers many years later. (This iconic famous guitar often fondly referred to as the "Holy Grail" of all guitars, which was customized and tinkered with many times over the years by Lennon including being re-painted to jetglo black in September 1962, is the very same guitar that he played on The Beatles first and third appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show during February 1964).
Toots Thielemans died peacefully in his sleep on August 22, 2016 after being hospitalized for a fall a month earlier.
All The Way
Toots Thielemans Lyrics
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It's no good unless he loves you, all the way
Happy to be near you
When you need someone to cheer you, all the way
Taller than the tallest tree is
That's how it's got to feel
Deeper than the deep blue see is
When somebody needs you
It's no good unless he needs you, all the way
Through the good or lean years
And for all the in between years, come what may
Who know where the road will lead us
Only a fool would say
But if you'll let me love you
It's for sure I'm gonna love you, all the way
All the way
The lyrics of the song All the Way by Toots Thielemans speak to the depth and intensity of true love. The opening lines suggest that simply loving someone is not enough, it needs to be all-encompassing, it needs to be "all the way." It's not just about being happy with someone, but being there for them through thick and thin. The lyrics describe a love that is taller than the tallest tree and deeper than the deepest sea. The message is that true love is something that cannot be measured or quantified, it's a feeling that one just knows when it's real.
The second verse speaks of the importance of being needed by someone you love. It's not enough to just love someone, you have to be an essential part of their life. You have to be there for them through the good times and the bad, and everything in between. The lyrics communicate that the future is uncertain, and nobody knows where the road of life will lead you. However, if you allow someone to love you, you can be sure that they will love you unconditionally, "all the way." The song's final words suggest a love that never fades - it is eternal and infinite, continuing "all the way" until the end of time.
Line by Line Meaning
When somebody loves you
If someone truly loves you
It's no good unless he loves you, all the way
It is not sufficient if he doesn't love you in all situations and emotions.
Happy to be near you
Feeling pleased to be in your vicinity
When you need someone to cheer you, all the way
When you require someone to support you in every crucial moment.
Taller than the tallest tree is
Exaggerated measure to express the intensity of love.
That's how it's got to feel
Emphasizing the nature of love to be intense and infinite.
Deeper than the deep blue see is
Saying the love is formless and more profound than any known entities (here, deep blue sea).
That's how deep it goes, if its real
Being real, the love is bottomless and perpetual.
When somebody needs you
When one desires your presence.
It's no good unless he needs you, all the way
It is not sufficient if he doesn't need you in every condition and circumstance.
Through the good or lean years
Irrespective of moments of merriment or difficulty
And for all the in between years, come what may
In all times in between, no matter what happens
Who know where the road will lead us
Nobody can predict the journey's destination.
Only a fool would say
Only an absurd person would make such claims.
But if you'll let me love you
But if you allow me to love you in every possible manner.
It's for sure I'm gonna love you, all the way
It's my promise that I will love you completely and indefinitely.
All the way
In all scenarios and forever.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
fosbury68
Heard Toots play this in person at Jazz Alley in Seattle. Heart-rending.