Green was born in Forrest City, Arkansas. He started performing at age ten in a Forrest City quartet called the Greene Brothers; he dropped the final "E" from his last name years later as a solo artist. They toured extensively in the mid-1950s in the South until the Greenes moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan, when they began to tour around Michigan. His father kicked him out of the group because he caught Green listening to Jackie Wilson.
In 1967 at the age of 16, Al formed an R&B group, Al Green & the Creations, with several of his high-school friends. Two Creation members, Curtis Rogers and Palmer James, founded their own independent record company, Hot Line Music Journal, and had the group record for the label. By that time, the Creations had been re-named the Soul Mates. The group's first single, "Back Up Train," became a surprise hit, climbing to number five on the R&B charts early in 1968. The Soul Mates attempted to record another hit, but all of their subsequent singles failed to find an audience. In 1969, Al Green met bandleader and Hi Records vice president Willie Mitchell while on tour in Midland, Texas. Impressed with Green's voice, he signed the singer to Hi Records, and began collaborating with Al on his debut album
He was perhaps the ideal complement to the orchestral, syrupy, strong soul production work of Hi Records wizard Willie Mitchell, who also helmed 70s classics for Syl Johnson, Ann Peebles, and himself.
On October 18, 1974, Mary Woodson, a woman who was his longtime girlfriend, threw a large pot of sticky boiling grits on him as he was preparing to shower, because he didn't want to get married. She committed suicide in minutes, which deeply affected Green to turn to God and religion. This assault from behind caused third-degree burns on his back, stomach and arm. Deeply shaken, Green continued to reaffirm and grow closer to his deeply held love for God, and became an ordained pastor of the Full Gospel Tabernacle in Memphis in 1976.
Continuing to record R&B, Green saw his sales start to slip and drew mixed reviews from critics. 1977's The Belle Album was critically acclaimed but did not regain his former mass audience. In 1979 Green injured himself falling off the stage while performing in Cincinnati and interpreted this as a message from God. He then concentrated his energies towards pastoring his church and gospel singing, also appearing in 1982 with Patti Labelle in the Broadway musical Your Arms Too Short to Box with God. According to Glide Magazine, "by the late 70s, he had begun concentrating almost exclusively on gospel music." His first gospel album was The Lord Will Make a Way. From 1981 to 1989 Green recorded a series of gospel recordings, garnering eight "soul gospel performance" Grammys in that period. In 1985, he reunited with Willie Mitchell along with Angelo Earl for He Is the Light, his first album for A&M Records. In 1984, director Robert Mugge released a documentary film, Gospel According to Al Green, including interviews about his life and footage from his church. In 1989, Green released "I Get Joy", again with producer/guitarist Angelo Earl. In 2001, he appeared in the movie and soundtrack of On the Line featuring Lance Bass.
After spending several years exclusively performing gospel, Green began to return to Rhythm & Blues. First, he released a duet with Annie Lennox, "Put a Little Love in Your Heart" for Scrooged, a 1988 Bill Murray film. In 1989 Green worked with producer Arthur Baker writing and producing the international hit "The Message Is Love". In 1991 he created the introductory theme song for the short-lived television series Good Sports featuring Ryan O'Neal and Farrah Fawcett. In 1992, Green recorded again with Baker, the Fine Young Cannibals, and reunited with his former Memphis mix engineer (this time functioning as producer) Terry Manning, to release the album Don't Look Back. His 1994 duet with country music singer Lyle Lovett blended country with R&B, garnering him his ninth Grammy, this time in a pop music category. Green's first secular album in some time was Your Heart's In Good Hands (1995), released to positive reviews but disappointing sales, the same year Green was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
In 2000, Green published Take Me to the River, a book discussing his career. Green received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2002.
In 2001, Green's live cover of Sam Cooke's "A Change Is Gonna Come" was released on the soundtrack to Will Smith's film Ali (the song plays when Muhammad Ali learns of the death of close friend Malcolm X).
By 2003 Green released a non-religious (secular) album entitled I Can't Stop, his first collaboration with Willie Mitchell since 1985's He is the Light. In March 2005 he issued Everything's OK as the follow-up to I Can't Stop. Green also collaborated with Mitchell on this secular CD.
The title of Al Green's latest album Lay It Down released May, 2008, truly tells it like it is. Conceived as a collaboration between the soul legend and a handful of gifted young admirers from the worlds of contemporary R&B and hip hop, the album is drawn from a series of inspired sessions that yielded the most high-spirited, funky and often lushly romantic songs of Green's latter-day career.
The project features the sophisticated R&B voices of singer-songwriters John Legend, Anthony Hamilton and Corinne Bailey Rae, and it was co-produced with Green by two of hip-hop's most innovative players, drummer Ahmir "?uestlove" Thompson from the Roots and keyboardist James Poyser , the go-to guy for high-profile artists ranging from Erykah Badu to Common. Add in Brooklyn's celebrated Dap-King Horns (Sharon Jones, Amy Winehouse), guitarist Chalmers "Spanky" Alford (Mighty Clouds of Joy, Joss Stone) and bassist Adam Blackstone (Jill Scott, DJ Jazzy Jeff), among others, and you've got a modern soul-music dream team, fronted by the most expressive voice in the business.
Again
Al Green Lyrics
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To be full of Your conviction
Sometime temptation has its way
Will You hear my prayer
You don't owe me nothing
I need to feel You again and again
I hear You stray, yeah
And you're afraid to ask once more
Remember, child, that you are mine
I'll hear your prayer and take you back again
Sometimes I stumble, Lord
And sometimes I fall
But all my questions, Lord, You hear them all
Another day
With You by my side
I have nothing to hide from You
You help me through
(Come on, my)
When you think (when you think)
You stray too far (stray too far)
And you're afraid to ask once more (and you're afraid to ask once more)
Remember, child, that you are mine (remember, child, you are mine)
I'll hear your prayer and take you back again (I'll hear your prayer, take you back again)
Oh, hey, Lord
Only want Your deliverance
Only time will tell it well
You make me feel
You make me, yeah
When you think you stray too far (you stray)
And you're afraid to ask once more (afraid to ask once more)
Remember child that you are mine (remember, child, you are mine)
I'll hear your prayer (I'll hear your prayer yes, I will)
And take you back again (take, yeahh)
When you think you stray too far (stray too far you you you)
And you're afraid (you're afraid)
To ask once more (but that's alright I want you to)
Remember, child, that you are mine (oh, remember, remember, child, that you are mine)
I'll hear your prayer (I'll hear your prayer every time)
And take you back again (I'll take you ahh)
Again yeah yeah
Oh, Again, again, again (again, yeah yeah)
I will take you back
Oh, again
The lyrics to Al Green's song, "Again" are about the singer's struggle to walk the path of righteousness and avoid temptation. The lyrics reveal a plea for spiritual guidance and comfort, as well as an admission of vulnerability and human imperfection. The singer acknowledges that they stumble and fall, but expresses a deep desire to feel the presence of God again and again. The chorus echoes the promise of divine grace and mercy, suggesting that even when the singer strays from the path, God will hear their prayer and take them back.
The repeated refrain of "when you think you stray too far and you're afraid to ask once more, remember child that you are mine, I'll hear your prayer and take you back again" serves as both a comforting reminder of God's unwavering love and forgiveness, as well as a call to action to remember and seek that love and forgiveness when needed. The lines "only want your deliverance, only time will tell it well, you make me feel, you make me" convey a sense of surrender, trust, and deep emotional connection to God.
Overall, the lyrics of "Again" are a poignant expression of the human need for spiritual guidance and a reminder that even when we stumble and fall, we can always turn back to a higher power for redemption and grace.
Line by Line Meaning
Well, I'm trying, Lord
I'm doing my best to live my life according to your will
To be full of Your conviction
I want to have unwavering faith in you
Sometime temptation has its way
Occasionally, I give in to temptation
Will You hear my prayer
I am asking if you will listen to my plea
You don't owe me nothing
You don't have any obligation to me
I need to feel You again and again
I want to experience your presence over and over again
I hear You stray, yeah
I understand that sometimes I drift away from you
When you think you stray too far
When you feel like you've gone too far astray
And you're afraid to ask once more
And you're scared to ask for forgiveness
Remember, child, that you are mine
Remember that you belong to me
I'll hear your prayer and take you back again
I'll listen to your plea and forgive you once more
Sometimes I stumble, Lord
There are times when I make mistakes, God
And sometimes I fall
And sometimes I fail
But all my questions, Lord, You hear them all
You listen to all my doubts and concerns, God
Another day
Another day of living
With You by my side
With your guidance and support
I have nothing to hide from You
I am completely honest with you
You help me through
You assist me in getting over my struggles
(Come on, my)
Let's go
Oh, hey, Lord
Oh, hey, God
Only want Your deliverance
I only seek your salvation
Only time will tell it well
Only time will show the outcome
You make me feel
You bring out emotions in me
You make me, yeah
You make me who I am, God
I'll hear your prayer (I'll hear your prayer yes, I will)
I will listen to your plea
And take you back again (take, yeahh)
And forgive you once more
When you think you stray too far (you stray)
When you feel like you've gone too far astray
Remember child that you are mine (remember, child, you are mine)
Remember that you belong to me
And you're afraid (you're afraid)
And you're scared
To ask once more (but that's alright I want you to)
To ask for forgiveness again (but it's okay, I want you to)
Oh, remember, remember, child, that you are mine
Oh, remember that you belong to me
I'll take you ahh
I'll forgive you once again
Again yeah yeah
Once again, yeah, yeah
Oh, Again, again, again (again, yeah yeah)
Oh, once again, yeah, yeah
I will take you back
I will forgive you once more
Oh, again
Oh, once again
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Al Green, David Alan Ebensberger, Angie Alan Ebensberger
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind