how deep is the ocean song
How Deep Is the Ocean Song
"How Deep Is the Ocean?" is a timeless jazz standard penned by legendary composer Irving Berlin back in 1932. The song emerged during a particularly challenging period in Berlin's career and personal life, coinciding with the depths of the Great Depression, yet it became one of his most enduring and beloved compositions.
The Song's Origins and Comeback Story
The composition has an interesting backstory that makes it even more special. Berlin actually developed "How Deep Is the Ocean?" from an earlier song called "To My Mammy," which was performed by Al Jolson in the 1930 film Mammy. The earlier song contained the questioning lines "How deep is the ocean? / How high is the sky?" which became the foundation for this new masterpiece.
What's particularly fascinating is that this song, along with "Say It Isn't So," was introduced on the radio rather than on stage or in film—a departure from Berlin's usual approach. Both songs became massive hits in 1932 and successfully brought Berlin back to the top of the music world after a professional slump.
The Lyrical Magic
The song opens with the question "How much do I love you?" followed by the promise "I'll tell you no lie"—notably the only line in the entire song that doesn't pose a question. From there, the lyrics unfold as a beautiful series of rhetorical questions that implicitly answer just how much the singer loves someone. The questions include:
- How deep is the ocean?
- How high is the sky?
- How many times a day do I think of you?
- How many roses are sprinkled with dew?
- How far would I travel to be where you are?
- How far is the journey from here to a star?
- And if I ever lost you, how much would I cry?
Notable Recordings and Performers
The song has been recorded by countless artists over the decades, cementing its status as a jazz standard. Paul Whiteman and His Orchestra with vocalist Jack Fulton were the first to chart with the song in 1932. Since then, music legends have made it their own, including Frank Sinatra (who recorded it in 1946 with Axel Stordahl and again in 1960 with Nelson Riddle), Barbra Streisand (who performed it with Jason Gould), and Norah Jones (who delivered a beautiful live-from-home version in 2020).
TLDR
"How Deep Is the Ocean?" is an Irving Berlin classic from 1932 that saved his career during the Great Depression. The song's romantic lyrics consist entirely of rhetorical questions comparing love's depth to the ocean and sky, and it has been recorded by countless artists including Frank Sinatra, Barbra Streisand, and Norah Jones, making it one of the most enduring jazz standards of all time. Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.
