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.
IMAGINATION
Toots Thielemans Lyrics
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Can you tell me what you see
There's a thousand voices whispering
Songs and you're the melody
So I imagine my heart with you
See what imagination can do
It's not hard to conceive
Many, many days our shadows passed
Seeing visions of a new bright horizon
Set the morning light
And that morning light is you
So I imagine my heart with you
See what imagination can do
It's not hard to conceive
love ecstasy imagining you, imagining me
The beauty we both can see
You're the dream I prayed would come along
To make my fantasy
Day and night you live inside my heart
You're the flame of love to me
The opening lines of Toots Thielemans's "Imagination" set the tone for the entire song. The singer calls upon "magic mirror" to search his heart and reveal what it sees. There are "a thousand voices whispering," but one voice stands out: "you're the melody." The singer's heart is filled with the desire to be with this person, and that desire fuels his imagination.
As the song progresses, the singer describes the power of imagination to transform his world. He imagines his heart with the person he desires and sees how imagination can bring them together. It's not hard to conceive of this love, he insists. Imagination is what creates the joy and ecstasy of love.
The singer recalls how he and his beloved have passed many days together, seeing visions of a bright horizon. The morning light is their love, and he imagines his heart beating with hers. The beauty they can both see is the product of their combined imaginations.
The singer closes by telling his beloved that she is the dream he has been waiting for. She is the flame of his love, and he cannot imagine a world without her. "Imagination" is a song that celebrates the transformative power of love and the imagination, showing how they can come together to create an ecstatic experience.
Line by Line Meaning
Magic mirror come and search my heart
The singer is asking a 'magic mirror' to look inside his heart and reveal what it sees.
Can you tell me what you see
A continuation of the previous line, the singer is asking the 'magic mirror' what it sees in his heart.
There's a thousand voices whispering
There are many thoughts and feelings the singer is experiencing.
Songs and you're the melody
Among the many thoughts and feelings of the singer, there is a love for someone special and they are the center of it all.
So I imagine my heart with you
The singer is using his imagination to picture himself being in love with the person he desires.
See what imagination can do
The singer is acknowledging the power of imagination and how it can bring him joy.
It's not hard to conceive
It is easy to imagine this person in his heart because he feels so strongly for them.
Love ecstasy imagining you with me
The singer is filled with happiness when he thinks of being in love with this person.
Many, many days our shadows passed
The singer and his love interest have known each other for a long time and have been together for many days.
Seeing visions of a new bright horizon
Together, they have dreamed of a future filled with hope and happiness.
Set the morning light
This new future they envision is like a bright morning light for them.
And that morning light is you
The person the singer desires is the one who makes this bright future possible for them.
It's not hard to conceive
It is easy to picture this bright future because he knows they will be happy together.
love ecstasy imagining you, imagining me
The singer is filled with love and happiness when he thinks of himself and his love being together in this bright future.
The beauty we both can see
In this envisioned future, they will both experience a beauty that they can only see together.
You're the dream I prayed would come along
This person he desires is the one he has always dreamed of and prayed for.
To make my fantasy
This person has made his dreams and fantasies come true by returning his love.
Day and night you live inside my heart
The singer's love for this person is constant, always with him day and night.
You're the flame of love to me
This person is like a flame igniting the singer's love and passion for them.
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: ANKA WOLBERT, RONNIE MOERINGS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind