BILLIE HOLIDAY - THEM THERE EYES

THEM THERE EYES

BILLIE HOLIDAY

SONGWRITERS: DORIS TAUBER; MACEO PINKARD & WILLIAM TRACEY

COUNTRY: U. S. A.

ALBUM: THE UNFORGETTABLE

LABEL: VOCATION RECORDS

GENRE: JAZZ

YEAR: 1939

 

           Eleanora Fagan (April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959), known professionally as Billie Holiday, was an American jazz and swing music singer with a career spanning 26 years. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner Lester Young, Holiday had an innovative influence on jazz music and pop singing. Her vocal style, strongly inspired by jazz instrumentalists, pioneered a new way of manipulating phrasing and tempo. She was known for her vocal delivery and improvisational skills.

          After a turbulent childhood, Holiday began singing in nightclubs in Harlem, where she was heard by producer John Hammond, who commended her voice. She signed a recording contract with Brunswick in 1935. Collaborations with Teddy Wilson yielded the hit "What a Little Moonlight Can Do", which became a jazz standard. Throughout the 1930s and 1940s, Holiday had mainstream success on labels such as Columbia and Decca. By the late 1940s, however, she was beset with legal troubles and drug abuse. After a short prison sentence, she performed at a sold-out concert at Carnegie Hall, but her reputation deteriorated because of her drug and alcohol problems.

        She was a successful concert performer throughout the 1950s with two further sold-out shows at Carnegie Hall. Because of personal struggles and an altered voice, her final recordings were met with mixed reaction but were mild commercial successes. Her final album, Lady in Satin, was released in 1958. Holiday died of cirrhosis on July 17, 1959. She won four Grammy Awards, all of them posthumously, for Best Historical Album. She was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1973. Lady Sings the Blues, a film about her life, starring Diana Ross, was released in 1972. She is the primary character in the play (later made into a film) Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill; the role was originated by Reenie Upchurch in 1986 and was played by Audra McDonald on Broadway and in the film. In 2017, Holiday was inducted into the National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame.

          "Them There Eyes" is a jazz song written by Maceo Pinkard, Doris Tauber, and William Tracey that was published in 1930. One of the early recorded versions was performed by Louis Armstrong in 1931. It was made famous by Billie Holiday, who recorded her version in 1939 for Vocalion Records. A version by Emile Ford & The Checkmates reached number 18 on the UK Singles Chart in 1960.

I fell in love with you first time I looked into

Them there eyes

You've got a certain lil' cute way of flirtin' with

Them there eyes

They make me feel happy

They make me feel blue

No stallin'

I'm fallin'

Going in a big way for sweet little you

My heart is jumpin'

Sure started somethin with

Them there eyes

You'de better watch them if you're wise

They sparkle

They bubble

They're gonna get you in a whole lot of trouble

You're overworkin' them

There's danger lurkin' in

Them there eyes

 

Maybe you think I'm just flirtin'

Maybe you think I'm all lies

Just because I get romantic when I gaze in

Them there eyes.