Added: 2 years ago
From: peggy4AL
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  • Digital television was so crude back then.

  • I would like to hear Bryan Ferry sing this...

  • JUST MISSED!!! "Is That All There Is" just missed making the Billboard's Hot Top 10 chart; it peaked at No. 11 and spent a total of 11 weeks in the Hot Top 100 in 1969!!!

  • Volume and beauty from a 50 year old woman.

    just great,........

  • This is class Total class

  • Many years ago I was backpacking in the Andes when a small bridge I was using to cross a stream broke. I hung to its remains as long as I could before I was swept downstream. Luckily for me, I washed up on a bank, even though I had a heavy backpack on which I couldn't shed. Somewhere during all this, this song came into my mind. Sounds corny, but it happened.

  • I played this for my father when he was dying. He always liked it and it seemed fitting he enjoyed music.

  • Interpretive singing at it's best. Something that used to be pop music is now only understood by Jazz singers. Sad that to day's young singers have no current role models to hear on the radio.

  • It seems to me that the song is basically uplifting... It seems to me to be saying "Well, if that's all there is to life, make the most of it, don't despair... Drink, dance, have a ball..."

  • I, too, was bothered by the lyrics of this song when I was young. But coming across it recently, it brought a prolonged smile. I'm not that existential, but I appreciate the viewpoint. I smile with pleasure! What a wonderful song--the composition; Peggy Lee's putting the song across; Randy Newman's orchestration. This is great art.

  • @7snider7 Yes the lyrics can be taken as a certain fatalism and hoplessness. But I've always loved this song and especially this particular performance by Miss Lee. But I find it upbeat, not at all a dirge. I think it may be Peggy Lee herself who ironically turns this song into one of hope and a calm contentment. Paradoxically it's in praise of life and, yes, even love itself. A retired Catholic priest in Canada. Thanks.

  • This is perfection, brilliance.

  • After Hours

  • It's good to go back in time to find a performer that was ahead of her time. Brilliant Peggy, just brilliant.

  • Superb - always leaves me wanting more. Always play it at least 3 times in a row! Is that all there is? Then let's keep dancing!

  • EddieLandsbreg you should have keep that one to yourself. LOL

  • This song has been with me since I was in my late teens. And I would like to dedicate it to Amy Winehouse. Unfortunately, breaking out the booze did give all of us that final disappointment, that that WAS all there is. RIP Amy.

  • classic. 

  • Peggy Lee, the one and only. I know of only one radio station that plays this song.

  • 5 people ask is that all there is to this song.

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  • I want this song played at my Funeral....

  • i was a kid when i 1st heard this song. at the time i thought it depressing, for old people & didn't like it at all. about a year ago i thought of this song out of the blue. now i think of it every day & feel it's a whimsical, dreamy song which portrays life in many ways. funny how getting older changes your perspective.

  • Ever notice in the original record version it sounds like she says she fell in love with the most wonderful woman in the world. My friend and I thought so when we where listning to the record. Any one else notice that on the record version ? She was f&$#ing cool any way you slice it.

  • i just heard this is at a funeral, spooked me out

  • Every time I'm on the phone with my cuz in NY and we get to talking about how the world is going crazy, the arrival of 2012 ... I always start singing this... my fave Peggy Lee song.

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  • I miss my friend Sasha, a Russian man who introduced me to this song.

  • LOL, great tune and it's what I do ...when the stuff hits the fan. Love you Peggy!

  • Maybe by now both Lee and Leiber have found the answer to "Is That Al There Is?" Whatever it is I thank them for all they gave us and wish them the very best. RIP Jerry Leiber.

  • New York Mets pitcher Tug McGraw nicknamed his fastball "Peggy Lee" because all the batters he threw it to asked "Is that all there is".

    Rest in Peace, Jerry Leiber.

  • 500 of peacefll neautrality @what did the Swiss ever give us cuocuo clocks

  • RIP Jerry Leiber...a rock and roll great...gone but not forgotten....

  • RIP Jerry Leiber.

  • R.I.P., Jerry Leiber, 4/25/1933-8/22/2011

  • Thanks to Julian Barrett (The Mighty Boosh) for playing this when he sat in for Jarvis Cocker on BBC 6 Music!

  • Really who the heck would dislike Peggy Lee??!!! She is great!

  • does anyone know if she was on heroin at this time?? just asking??

  • @LilIyJacksonVEVO she was never on herion. Where'd you come up with a silly idea like that.

  • Then let's keep dancing, break out the booze and have a ball.

  • Is that all there is? Perhaps the greatest question ever asked......as well as performed.

  • I've heard several remarkable and talented singers cover this song but the truth of the matter is, no one, and I do mean NO ONE, has, can or will EVER perform this song as well as Peggy Lee. She owns it--PERIOD!

  • I wonder if she really said to herself "if that's all there is" when she died...

    What a majestic song.

  • She is the one and only. So unique.

  • @1:52 "I thought I'd die...but I didn't."

    What a great line.

  • @YY4Me133 totally agree ...the most cynical(I mean that as a compliment) line ever sung.

  • @YY4Me133 Correction: @2:52.

  • When I was a kid I used to swing on vines, in the creek behind my parents' house.

  • What a beautiful sexy voice.

  • She has a Mae West look about her when this song hit # 11 on the charts in the fall of 1969. What a decade of music, movies and American history that was.

  • Wow... I had a girlfriend who used to hummmmm this song every time I pulled down my pants... Never understood why!!!

  • @EddieLandsberg  Hahahahaha!

  • @watchful38 Yes, I was thinking the same thing. The gestures and the sleeves you beat me to it.

  • Wow, I don't think anyone can top this! She is untouchable here, hands down.

  • Wow! A great actress and singer

  • A true Jem!

  • @homegrownpa "gem". Jem is a name.

  • Holy Sheeee-ite! Is that awesome or what?

  • Mama Cass sang this song and it will always stick in my mind as an ultimate "vanity is vanity" lesson in life. The chorus has a way of sneaking up on me when Life seems less traumatic then it should be~

  • absolutely wunderbar .....this is the best arrangement of this song by far ......one of my all time favourite numbers.... very atmospheric and Peggy sings it with great panache and feeling ......Thank you genuinely for uploading this classic .

    Al

  • Bad ass song. Bad ass singer.

  • have yourself a merry little doomsday!

  • What a performance! Such understatement, reflecting the ennui of the persona in the lyrics. Great arrangement sounding like a Weill song from the 1920's. Thanks for this unique clip.

  • This may have been her greatest version of this song on video, those eyes and the way she is reminicent of the great Mae West.

  • Ohm my. The kid must have been a real pain.

  • Don't ya think everyone feels like this song once in a while. Kinda like giving the middle finger to the world

  • I read that there was a second version to this song, that Peggy made in her later years. Does anyone know if this is true?

  • she makes it seem so easy- so effortless! mark of true talent

  • I love her gesturing with her arms and those wide sleeves. She was marvellous! I love this song.

  • Absolutely Fabulous!!! }:-)>SINNER!<(-:[

  • So simply done and with such elegance and feeling. These gals who try to cram forty notes where only one should go should learn something from this. Sometimes, less really IS more. For instance - her rendition of the song "Fever" is incredibly hot. Can anyone say it isn't? She had her very own style of soul. Great lady. Great talent. We won't be seeing her again.

  • @Anntelope I said the same thing about Christina Aguliera....she screams so much and tries to do tooooooo much that its not even enjoyable to hear her sing anymore!

  • God bless you Sergeant McGraph from Sybil Brand LA - you led me back to my music and saved my life. I think of you every time I hear this song.

  • What a song, what a performance

  • She was the picture of a real star!

  • When Peggy Lee was dying, I wonder if she was thinking of this song.

  • @owg59 lol, I wonder if she was thinking of this song as well...lol, it would be completely hilarious if she actually was, and in addition to that, she was playing this song.

  • PURE CLASS! there is not much "class" around these days- not to be confused with people who simply have "money"...nor is there "GRACE" ....

  • PURE CLASS! there is not muh "class" around these days- not to be confused with people who simply have "money"...nor is there "GRACE" ....

  • @kd3zz snap! I thought the same thing it's the voice!

  • Women with their huuuuuge expectations...Get real, girls!

  • @Oosusanna

    :) We are very much real, but the men have simply become male jokes. Apologies to the few exceptions whom we still adore!

  • They don't write 'em like this anymore! Outstanding!

  • Pure Magic!!! 

  • I think she got it wrong. No, that´s n o t all there is! It is e v e n worse!

  • This is my favorite Peggy Lee song!

  • I love this song, even though every time it came on the radio (when I was 7), my father would say it was my song because I was always disappointed.

  • Art caught in the act.

  • BRAVO! From an era when the DIVAS had class.

  • There will never be another one like her. Peggy sang like an angel... or devil, when the mood dictated.

  • Billy Joel must have had Peggy Lee in mind when he sang "She's got a way about her".  You really can't put a finger on it -- worldly, world-weary, sophisticated, sassy and supremely talented. And she remains intriguing and entertaining more than 40 years after the original release of this classic. Thanks for posting this, peggy4AL. Watching her perform live is mesmerizing!

  • chandler's dad?

  • Still asking this questions some 40 years later. Is that all there is?

    To Life?

    Thank you Randy Newman for your orchestration behind the original song!

    michael j

    Conshohocken, PA USA

  • Very sexy voice :)

  • Peggy Lee was a class act. She had style and grace.

  • What mastery from a great performer.

  • I've been asking myself this same questions for years!!! Finally someone said, there is a song about that, I found it and I love it!! Great song.

  • @walkerhoundgirl This Peggy Lee version is so memorable. I am 72 now and love the message of this beautifully performed song, may I say, a song of resignation! A retired Catholic priest. Life has been great, and I'm still enjoying it, but also I have a certain "resignation" as I approach the end of life here on earth. That sounds like a good drink: a combo of resignation & joy + a shot of "whatever". Thanks.

  • @watchful38 72 is still young i am sure you still have a good numbers of years ahead of you and retired i think you still a priest till you die its a life vocation God BLESS enjoy the music and keep singing

  • Vodka, love it!

  • this is my song

  • Peggy was the coolest! one of my favorites.

  • Love the way she sings. This is a great record my friend played it a lot in between Blind Faith , Cream and Spirit records and it fits right in some how.

  • @alexlancer11 Far more subversive than any other song in the Sixties

  • Is that all there is to Peggy Lee?

  • This is one of those songs you can't forget.

    I remember the first time I heard it back in the 1960's.

    A singing legend. Her autobiography is very interesting.

  • This song should be depressing but is so very funny!

  • The Authenticity has a perfume

  • Pure Art

  • I remember my mom used to listen and sing this song. I was only 6 or seven but this song has never lost its appeal to me

  • Is That All There Is? LOL

    She is a  sophisticated multi-faceted persona...

  • Classy, timeless, disturbing, liberating.

  • there is no better song

  • Very Existentialistic. Love it.

  • best. song. ever.

  • AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!­!!!!

  • Seems like that for a lot of ladies until children. At that point, it's, "Of course there's stuff, for f*ck's sake! Stuff all around! What the hell are you talking about?!!"

  • At the age of 14, I first heard this song, and decided to, "Keep on dancing, break out the booze, and have a ball."

    Not one regret.

    Peace.

    Rock

  • @intellibunny What about Norah Jones and Alicia Keys?

  • The song of life!So great!She was one of the most beautiful women to grace this planet!

  • Peggy Lee is so sexy singing this song; she makes me hot and depressed at the same time (*_~)

  • When I was a kid me and my sister got to pick out one box of old 45s and take them home. They were from an old jukebox, this was one of them. Wow the memories this song has for me...

  • we used to sing this in Viet Nam

  • This has to be the most depressing song ever written

  • Peggy is all there is!

  • A great song with  very profond meaning!

  • This is a good example demonstrating why some singers are also good actors. Ms. Lee's acting in this song is, to me, almost hypnotic. Barbra Streisand does it while singing "A Taste of Honey," and, especially in "Happy Days Are Here Again," in which her voice belies the meaning of the words, implying that these should be happy days, but aren't. A perfect theme for "W's" first "selection."

  • Peggy Lee on the way to rosarito!

  • Yes, I'm shivering in my pyjamas just listening to this. A truly amazing performance.

  • This is one of my favorite Leiber and Stoller tunes, and it's great to have the video of this well orchestrated rendition.

  • @yogione L&S are better known for their pop tunes

  • Oh...but she pleased so many over the years with that voice. NO one could flex a lyric like Miss Peggy. True art was her voice...too sophisticated now for this attention deficit world...Bette Midler's version of this song must be some kind of joke...like when Madonna performed "Fever."

  • Sounds like she's hard to please.

  • now THAT is a lady!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • Yeah, the song is a grown up song, it is essentially true that life is disappointing, it is however highly Ironic and is an example of 'gallows humour'-what is called in modern times: black humour,the world is full of pain and disillusion so why not have a ball while you can?

  • Peggy Lee may be a great singer, but her version of this song sounded more straight-laced, kinda like a singing conversation piece. It sounded negative in tone, but the song was written that way. Since I prefer a more uptempo interpretation such as Bette Midler's recording of this song, I can only say it was better than average for a timeless song.

  • @76659gll "uptempo interpretation"?? I don't think so -- upbeat (ever so slightly by Midler) , maybe, but the tempo's the same in both renditions.

  • @76659gll ... And, may I add, the times between the Lee and Midler versions have changed, and so have facial expressions.

  • What isn't the best thing for a mom to say to her kid? My mom said she disliked the song, because it was pessimistic, and the line "lets break out the booze" might encourage kids to drink. I hadn't heard the word "booze" before (I was 10 or 11), and I didn't know what it meant, so I asked for clarification, and she told me that it meant alcohol. She was worried that this song might encourage me to drink LOL. However, compared to some of today's music, "Is that all there is" is TAME

  • I remember asking for the single "Fever" by Peggy Lee as a kid. I had heard it on the radio and liked it. This song was on the reverse side, and my mom used to say she hated this song, because it was so pessimistic, and that it also encouraged excessive alcohol consumption with the line, "lets break out the booze and have a ball." When she says, "if thats the way she feels about it, why doesn't she just end it all" was that supposed to mean why doesn't she take her own life?????

  • @Jibjub80 I think so! Probably not the best thing for your mom to say to a kid but yeah she prob meant if shes that depressed whats the point for her?!

  • @Jibjub80 yes its meant to mean why doesnt she kill herself

  • Poignant, powerful performance.

  • What an incredible performer! In every way. Voice, maneurisms, dignity! I remember her as a CHILD! Underrated for sure!

  • What an incredible performer! In every way. Voice, maneurisms, dignity! I remember her as a CHILD! Underrated for sure!

  • I listened to this song. Is that all there is? Seriously, good sonlg.

  • one of my fav songs of all time.and compare this to all the cr ap that passes for music these days .i refere to x facter etc.

  • Yes, written by Leiber and Stoller, I just finished their book, "Hound Dog"

    I was referring to the arrangement on the studio version, They hired Randy to Arrange the orchestra. They often hired outside arrangers to do the horns, strings, etc. if you listen to the original recording, it's Randy all the way, the melancholy German Kurt Weil Caberet. they originally wanted Marlene Dietrich, but didn't happen.

  • i have loved this song for several years,my sentiments exactly

  • Whew! I never thought a woman could turn me on and make me want to slit my throat at the same time.

    This must be what it's like being married.

  • @logansGT That is a FUNNY statement! :D

  • now ... this is style

  • Cara Miss Peggy Lee!! Favolosa!!!

  • She had a few under her belt during this one. Still fabulous!

  • @conchaperez ... I think she did. Wasn't this at the old Basin Street East? I saw here there... Fabulous she certainly was....

  • Love me some Peggy! She was the bomb:)

  • just keep dancing .. timeless ...

  • A very special lady and performance.