Drink to Me Only With Thine Eyes - Song From Shakespeare's Era - Sung By Marc Berman, Bass-Baritone

Drink to Me Only With Thine Eyes is perhaps the most enduring song ever composed in the English Language. The words are from a poem by Ben Jonson.

An all-time favorite of opera singers, the song has been recorded in the past by the greatest voices in classical music , such as Robert Merrill, John McCormack, Jeanette MacDonald, Lotte Lehmann and Paul Robeson.

Drink to Me Only With Thine Eyes is also sometimes referred to as an "air" (aria). The song remains a staple of opera singing. It is a favorite recital piece for opera singers the world over. It is also widely assigned by many voice teachers to their vocal students. It's limited range renders it ideal for use in voice lessons that teach classical vocal music technique.

Non-classical singers such as Johnny Cash and Aretha Franklin have recorded the song too.

Here are the words, as sung on this recording:

Drink to me only with thine eyes,
And I will pledge with mine;
Or leave a kiss within the cup,
And I'll not ask for wine.
The thirst that from the soul doth rise
Doth ask a drink divine;
But might I of Jove's nectar sip,
I would not change for thine.

I sent thee late a rosy wreath,
Not so much honoring thee
As giving it a hope, that there
It could not withered be.
But thou thereon didst only breathe,
And sent'st it back to me;
Since when it grows, and smells, I swear,
Not of itself, but thee.