Green wrote "Here I Am (Come and Take Me)" with Teenie Hodges, with whom he also collaborated in writing "Take Me to the River," "Love and Happiness," "Full of Fire," and other songs. It was produced by Willie Mitchell in the 1972 recording session for the album Call Me.
Hi Records released the song as a single in June 1973, with "I'm Glad You're Mine" on the B-side. It was the second single from Call Me, after the title track. The record received a gold certification, having sold more than 500,000 copies.
The song has been covered by such performers as Michael Jackson, Etta James, and Seal. Several reggae versions have been recorded, including by Marcia Griffiths, Pluto Shervington, Owen Gray, and Inner Circle. A version by Al Brown, a founding member of The Paragons, served as the basis for another cover by UB40, included on their 1989 album, Labour of Love II. Released as a single in 1990, the song was an international hit, reaching #7 on the US charts and #3 on the Australian charts in 1991.
Here I Am
Al Green Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The way that you make me feel.
A burning deep down inside,
A love that I cannot hide.
Our love is you and me baby,
That make the world go round.
And if you've been doin' lovin' with me,
Layin' all my troubles down,
Here I am, baby,
Come and take me.
Here I am, baby,
Come and take me,
Take me by the hand, oh
Show me,
Here I am, baby.
It always ends up this way,
Me begging you every day.
A love that I cannot have,
You broke my heart into half.
Our love is you and me baby, yeah, yeah
That make's the world go round.
And if you've been doin' lovin' with me,
Layin' all my troubles down
Here I am, baby,
Come and take me,
Here I am, baby,
Come and take me,
Take me by the hand, yeah
Squeeze it
Here I am, baby.
When I'm down I can always call you,
For a helpin' hand.
I know you'll do the best you can.
But it don't take much from me,
Just for my cup of Joe.
Oh there's love inside me,
I believe there's going to be an explosion,
It's tough for me, oh baby,
I can do worry,
Tell me all your troubles, yeah
You won't ever have to worry no,
One more thing, you just can't trust everybody,
Everybody you see, oh no, no
You'll find yourselves lost and alone on a dark end of the street,
Here I am, baby,
Come and take me.
Here I am, baby,
Come and take me,
Take me by the hand.
Show me, take me, won't ya
Show me
Here I am, baby
Take me
Teach me, baby
Won't you take me by the hand
Teach me
Here I am baby
The lyrics to Al Green's song "Here I Am" explore the feelings of a man who is deeply in love and willing to do anything to be with the woman he loves. He cannot believe the intensity of the feelings she inspires in him and how in love he truly is. The lyrics describe a burning passion and love that he feels he cannot hide. The love is mutual and they make the world go round together. They have been doing love together and she has been laying all his troubles down. Therefore he urges her to come and take him by the hand, and show him the way. This is because he knows that when he is down he can always call her and she'll be there to lift him up.
However, he confesses that their relationship can be tumultuous and he ends up begging her every day for her love. He is hopelessly in love and knows that he can never have this kind of love with anyone else but her. He believes that their love is so intense that it could explode at any moment. They share an unconditional love that is not based on circumstances or his cup of joe, and he is willing to take all her troubles away.
In essence, the song is a love letter to his beloved partner. He is open about his feelings and is ready to give everything for their love.
Line by Line Meaning
I can't believe that it's real,
I am in disbelief that this feeling I have is real.
The way that you make me feel.
You make me feel a certain way that is indescribable.
A burning deep down inside,
I have a burning feeling that comes from within.
A love that I cannot hide.
My love for you is so immense that I cannot conceal it.
Our love is you and me baby,
Our love is solely between you and me.
That make the world go round.
Our love is what brings meaning and purpose to the world.
And if you've been doin' lovin' with me,
If you've been showing me love,
Layin' all my troubles down,
Making all my worries disappear.
Here I am, baby,
I am here, ready for you.
Come and take me.
Take me in and let me be with you.
Take me by the hand, oh
Take me gently and lead me.
Show me,
Show me how you love me.
It always ends up this way,
It always ends with me wanting you.
Me begging you every day.
I plead with you every day to be mine.
A love that I cannot have,
The love I desire is not available to me.
You broke my heart into half.
You shattered my heart into two pieces.
Squeeze it
Hold me tight.
When I'm down I can always call you,
When I am feeling low, I know I can rely on you for support.
For a helpin' hand.
For someone to help me when I need it.
I know you'll do the best you can.
I am confident that you will try your hardest to help me.
But it don't take much from me,
You do not need much from me.
Just for my cup of Joe.
Just for a simple gesture of kindness from me.
Oh there's love inside me,
I have so much love inside of me.
I believe there's going to be an explosion,
I feel like all the love inside of me will soon burst out.
It's tough for me, oh baby,
It is difficult for me to handle all this overwhelming love.
I can do worry,
I can be anxious and nervous about our relationship.
Tell me all your troubles, yeah
Share with me all that is on your mind and troubling you.
You won't ever have to worry no,
You will never have to worry about facing your troubles alone.
One more thing, you just can't trust everybody,
Not everyone can be trusted, and it is important to be cautious.
Everybody you see, oh no, no
Not every person you encounter will have your best interests at heart.
You'll find yourselves lost and alone on a dark end of the street,
If you trust the wrong people, you may end up in a dangerous or lonely situation.
Take me
Choose me and let us be together.
Teach me, baby
Teach me how to love and be loved by you.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Royalty Network, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Capitol CMG Publishing, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Al Green, Mabon Hodges
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@sauquoit13456
On this day in 1973 {June 19th} Al Green was a guest on the nationally syndicated weekday-afternoon television program, 'The Mike Douglas Show'...
Eleven days later on July 1st, 1973 his "Here I Am"* entered Billboard's Best-Selling Soul Singles chart at position #59, six weeks later it would peak at #2 {for 3 weeks}, for the three weeks it was at #2, the #1 record for those three weeks was "Let's Get It On" by Marvin Gaye...
"Here I Am" reached #10 on Billboard's Top 100 chart...
Between 1967 and 2008 the Forrest City, Arkansas had thirty-six records on the R&B Singles chart, sixteen made the Top 10 with six reaching #1, "Let's Stay Together" {1971}, "I'm Still in Love with You" {1972}, "You Ought to Be with Me" {1972}, "Livin' for You" {1973}, "L-O-V-E (Love)" {1975}, and "Full of Fire" {1975}...
Reverend Al celebrated his 74th birthday two months ago on April 13th, 2020...
* "Here I Am" was Al Green's third of four of his records to peak at #2, his three other #2 records were "Look What You Done To Me" {1972}, "Call Me (Come Back Home)" {1973}, and "Sha-La-La (Make Me Happy)" {1974}...
And from the 'For What It's Worth' department, the week "Here I Am" peaked at #2 the remainder of the Best-Selling Soul Singles Top 10:
At #3. "Angel" by Aretha Franklin
#4. "Nobody Wants You When You're Down and Out" by Bobby Womack
#5. "Are You Man Enough" by The Four Tops
#6. "If You Want Me To Stay" by Sly and the Family Stone
#7. "Baby I've Been Missing You" by The Independents
#8. "I Was Checkin' Out, She Was Checkin' In" by Don Covay
#9. "Meet That Lady" by The Isley Brothers
#10. "Where Peaceful Waters Flow" by Gladys Knight and the Pips
@ottomarcos
I can't believe that it's real
The way that you make me feel
A burning deep down inside
A love that I cannot hide
Our love is you and me, baby
That make the world go round
And if keeping you and loving you means
Layin' all my troubles down
Here I am, baby, come and take me
Here I am, baby, won't you come and take me
Take me by the hand, yeah
Show me
Here I am, baby
It always ends up this way
Me begging you every day
A love that I cannot have
You broke my heart into half
Our love is you and me, baby
That make the world go round
Keeping you and loving you means
Laying all my troubles down
Here I am, baby, come and take me
Here I am, baby, won't you come and take me
Take me by the hand, yeah
Squeeze it
Here I am, baby
When I'm down I can always call you
For a helpin' hand
I know you'll do the best you can
But it don't take much for me
Before my cup runs over
All this love inside of me
I believe there's going to be an explosion, yeah
You can talk to me, oh baby
I'm in no hurry
Tell me all your troubles yeah
And you won't ever have to worry, no
And one more thing
You just can't trust everybody
Everybody you see, no no
You'll find yourself lost and alone
On a darkened street
Here I am, baby, come and take me
Here I am, baby, won't you come and take me
Take me by the hand
Show me, hey hey
Take me, hey hey
Show me, won't you?
Here I am, baby, hey hey
Take me, won't you?
Teach me
Baby, won't you take me by the hand?
Teach me
Here I am, baby
@Pride317
Lyrics
I can't believe that it's real
The way that you make me feel
A burning deep down inside
A love that I cannot hide
Our love is you and me, baby
Ha-ha
That make the world go round
And if keeping you and loving you means
Laying all my troubles down
Here I am, baby,
Come and take me
Here I am, baby,
Won't you come and take me
Take me by the hand, yeah
Show me
Here I am, baby
It always ends up this way
Me begging you every day
A love that I cannot have
You broke my heart into half
Our love is you and me, baby
That make the world go round
Keeping you and loving you means
Laying all my troubles down
Here I am, baby,
Come and take me
Here I am, baby,
Won't you come and take me
Take me by the hand, yeah
Squeeze it
Here I am, baby
When I'm down I can always call you
For a helping hand
I know you'll do the best you can
But it don't take much for me
Before my cup runs over
All this love's inside of me
I believe there's going
To be an explosion, yeah
You can talk to me, oh baby
I'm in no hurry
Tell me all your troubles
And you won't ever have to worry, no
And one more thing
You just can't trust everybody
Everybody you see, no no
You'll find yourself lost and alone
On a darkened street
Here I am, baby,
Come and take me
Here I am, baby,
Would you come and take me
Take me by the hand
Show me, hey hey
Take me, hey hey
Show me, won't you?
Here I am, baby, hey hey
Take me, won't you?
Teach me
Baby, won't you take me by the hand?
Teach me
Here I am, baby
@MichaelROBINSON-xf2hs
I'm dedicating this song to my one and only Messiah Yeshua Ha Mashiach I love deeply ❤❤❤❤❤
@marziacarrozza2505
He's so good, this is so good... This is my kind of music, the kind of music I want to live by... I'm so thankful for this... Love. 🙏❤️
@KathyHaddonheights
❤
@netcrawler24
So Blessed To Been Growing Up In This Era
@trishbrown6582
I agree with you.
@mewatley
the ease and flow of his delivery is amazing
@ImmaculateM1Garand
It’s there already, no delivery. Al Green real, real!
@mariellegrant6248
When I listen to Al Green , I absolutely love his "less is more " Voice, he 's got that feeling, and he is so classy !
@francistilford3100
Al was truly the Man for a few years.
@tammysmith1580
@@francistilford3100 .