LISTEN: This dashing ’50s crooner’s swooning love song took on a new meaning after he came out
Us Weekly for an interview, and when the article came out, he was quoted as saying, “Homosexuality is a way of life I’ve become accustomed to.” In the aftermath of what was, at the time, a scandal of sorts, the singer stated that the comment was meant to be off the record, but once it was out, it—and Mathis, to an extent—was out.Mathis told The Washington Post back in 2018 that he was open about his sexuality with those close to him, but that didn’t apply to his adoring fans.
The world didn’t know he was gay, and if they had, his career surely would not have hit the highs that it did, so no one can blame him for remaining quiet.
In fact, he even refused to discuss the Us Weekly snafu—or his sexual orientation—for a long time afterward, as he claims he was subject to death threats after the first report came out.Knowing that Mathis was gay and singing a love song presumably written from the perspective of a man crooning to a woman, the lyrics of “Chances Are” take on new meaning.
They’re potentially not so much about one lover teasing another, but rather about one person feigning interest. Or about a female assuming she’s ensnared a man, but really he’s thinking of someone else… someone of the same sex.This is, of course, an interpretation. “Chances Are” was written by two straight men, Robert Allen and Al Stillman, but Mathis likely had a hand in picking it.
