Percy Sledge
Percy Sledge (born 25 November 1941 in Leighton, Alabama; died 14 April 2015 in Baton Rouge) was an American R&B and soul performer who most notably recorded the single "When a Man Loves a Woman" in 1966, an international top 40 hit that the RIAA has certified as gold. Having achieved his best successes in the mid-to-late 60s and early 70s with a series of emotional soul songs, in his later years he received the Rhythm and Blues Foundation's Career Achievement Award and was inducted in 2005 into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Percy Sledge worked in the Read Full BioPercy Sledge (born 25 November 1941 in Leighton, Alabama; died 14 April 2015 in Baton Rouge) was an American R&B and soul performer who most notably recorded the single "When a Man Loves a Woman" in 1966, an international top 40 hit that the RIAA has certified as gold. Having achieved his best successes in the mid-to-late 60s and early 70s with a series of emotional soul songs, in his later years he received the Rhythm and Blues Foundation's Career Achievement Award and was inducted in 2005 into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Percy Sledge worked in the fields in Leighton before he worked as an orderly at Colbert County Hospital in Sheffield. By the mid-1960s, Sledge was touring the Southeast with the Esquires Combo on weekends and working at the hospital. A former patient who was a friend of producer Quin Ivy introduced the two, an audition followed, and Sledge was signed to a recording contract.
Sledge's smooth voice was perfect for the series of soul ballads produced by Ivy and Marlin Greene, which rock critic Dave Marsh called "emotional classics for romantics of all ages."
"When a Man Loves a Woman" was the first song recorded under the contract (released in 1966), and it became not only an international hit (it reached #1 in the US) but was also the first gold record released by Atlantic Records. The magnificent soul anthem became the cornerstone of Sledge's career and was followed by "Warm and Tender Love," "Take Time to Know Her," and "Cover Me."
Sledge charted with "I'll Be Your Everything" and "Sunshine" during the 1970s, and has become an international concert favorite throughout the world, especially in the Netherlands, Germany, and on the African continent.
His career enjoyed a renaissance in the 1980s when "When a Man Loves a Woman" re-entered the Top 10 in the UK after being used in a Levi's commercial.
Sledge was an inaugural Rhythm and Blues Foundation Pioneer Award honoree in 1989. In 2005, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Percy Sledge worked in the fields in Leighton before he worked as an orderly at Colbert County Hospital in Sheffield. By the mid-1960s, Sledge was touring the Southeast with the Esquires Combo on weekends and working at the hospital. A former patient who was a friend of producer Quin Ivy introduced the two, an audition followed, and Sledge was signed to a recording contract.
Sledge's smooth voice was perfect for the series of soul ballads produced by Ivy and Marlin Greene, which rock critic Dave Marsh called "emotional classics for romantics of all ages."
"When a Man Loves a Woman" was the first song recorded under the contract (released in 1966), and it became not only an international hit (it reached #1 in the US) but was also the first gold record released by Atlantic Records. The magnificent soul anthem became the cornerstone of Sledge's career and was followed by "Warm and Tender Love," "Take Time to Know Her," and "Cover Me."
Sledge charted with "I'll Be Your Everything" and "Sunshine" during the 1970s, and has become an international concert favorite throughout the world, especially in the Netherlands, Germany, and on the African continent.
His career enjoyed a renaissance in the 1980s when "When a Man Loves a Woman" re-entered the Top 10 in the UK after being used in a Levi's commercial.
Sledge was an inaugural Rhythm and Blues Foundation Pioneer Award honoree in 1989. In 2005, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
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When A Man Loves A Woman
Percy Sledge Lyrics
When a man loves a woman
Can't keep his mind on nothing else
He'd change the world
For the good thing he's found
If she's bad, he can't see it
She can do no wrong
Turn his back on his best friend
If he put her down
When a man loves a woman
Spend his very last dime
Trying to hold on to what he needs
He'd give up all his comforts
And sleep out in the rain
If she said that's the way it ought to be
Well, this man loves you, woman
I gave you everything I had
Trying to hold on to your heartless love
Baby, please don't treat me bad
When a man loves a woman
Down deep in his soul
She can bring him such misery
If she plays him for a fool
He's the last one to know
Loving eyes can't ever see
When a man loves a woman
He can do her no wrong
He can never want some other girl
Yes, when a man loves a woman
I know exactly how he feels
'Cause baby, baby, you're my world
When a man loves a woman
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Calvin Houston Lewis, Andrew James Wright
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
To comment on specific lyrics, highlight them
Levent Trolley
When a man loves a woman
Can't keep his mind on nothin' else
He'd change the world for the good thing he's found
If she is bad, he can't see it
She can do no wrong
Turn his back on his best friend if he put her down
When a man loves a woman
He'll spend his very last dime
Tryin' to hold on to what he needs
He'd give up all his comforts
And sleep out in the rain
If she said that's the way
It ought to be
Well, this man loves you, woman
I gave you everything I had
Tryin' to hold on to your heartless love
Baby, please don't treat me bad
When a man loves a woman
Down deep in his soul
She can bring him such misery
If she is playin' him for a fool
He's the last one to know
Lovin' eyes can never see
When a man loves a woman
He can do her no wrong
He can never want
Some other girl
Yes when a man loves a woman
I know exactly how he feels
Cause baby, baby, you're my world
When a man loves a woman...
Mª José C
Cuando un hombre ama a una mujer
No puede mantener su mente en nada más
Cambiaría el mundo
Por algo bueno que ha encontrado
Si ella es mala, él no puede verlo
Ella no puede hacer nada mal
Daría la espalda a su mejor amigo
Si la menospreciara
Cuando un hombre ama a una mujer
Gasta su última moneda
Intentando mantener lo que necesita
Él renunciaría a todo su comfort
Y dormiría afuera bajo la lluvia
Si ella dijera que es la forma
como debe ser
Cuando un hombre ama a una mujer
Te doy todo lo que tengo, sí
Intentando mantener
Tu precioso amor
Nena, por favor no me trates mal
Cuando un hombre ama a una mujer
Profundamente en su alma
Ella puede traerle tanta miseria
Si ella está jugando para engañarlo
Él es el último en saberlo
Los ojos del amor nunca pueden ver
Sí, cuando un hombre ama a una mujer
Yo sé exactamente cómo se siente
Porque nena, nena, nena
Yo soy un hombre
Cuando un hombre ama a una mujer
Darn Right
It's really a shame how this man - arguably the greatest natural tenor soul balladeer of all time - was so underrated by his peers. No Grammy (not even a nomination) no Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The only known singer to attend his funeral was Dorothy Moore. RIP Percy. You will always be a legend to your fans.
Subtoartts
O
Darn Right
@RERE Q RACISM IS A FACT = However. it was not his white peers who didn't honor him by attending his funeral. It was his BLACK peers. Except for Dorithy Moore, NO OTHER known black singer was at his interment.
RERE Q
Please stop saying "he was not appreciated by his peers" That is not true he was a "Black" man and the white man made the decisions. It was RACISM as it still is today. Let's be honest about America and its systemic racism in every area of Black people's lives.
His Black people knew and know of his greatness that is why the song is still going strong today! You will find this song in our art, music used for rap, poems, etc. So let us be honest here. During this time there were many, many actors, singers, harpists, piano players, musicals written, plays, movie scripts..etc. by Black males and females. But they had to FIGHT RACISM and the battle for most was lost.
Be Mad
Lmao you dont need all that when the raza keeping your music alive
betty g
what a shame, only dorothy moore was only singer to attend his funeral!! you had a beautiful voice during my youth.
betty gordon, ames, iowa
David P.
The way he sings this, you can tell he has loved a woman.
Billbert Boyce
That's how it's meant to be
Brian Elliott
👌❤️
Steve B
He who loves one woman has loved them all. He who loves many women has loved none. Old Spanish proverb