“WHEN I LOST YOU” AND THE MUSE OF FRIENDSHIP

Abstract

This concludes the series of six chapters tracing how waltzes often became performed as duple-meter tunes, inflected with jazz style, via the collective innovation of performance tradition. Irving Berlin wrote “When I Lost You” (1912) after his first wife’s death, encouraged by his brother-in-law, E. Ray Goetz. This chapter clarifies the chronology of that year’s events and refutes claims about the song’s uniqueness in Berlin’s early career. The tune foreshadowed his famous series of 1920s waltzes starting with “What’ll I Do,” also written while vacationing with Goetz. These, with their intensified intimacy and ready adaptation to four-four jazzy treatment, in turn foreshadowed the famous later waltzes of Richard Rodgers and the modern jazz era. This discussion analyzes the song’s elements, the influences on Berlin, and how his waltz melodies often start with upward moving intervals. One, “Always” (1925) is analyzed as used in the film noir Christmas Holiday (1944).