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.
Just for Me
Al Green Lyrics
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Its just for me
Its just for me, for me, for me
Its just for me
I stepped out to say,
That I love you more each day
And you turned around, and you knocked me down
Why cant you tell that I love you
By the way, that I smile
Oh why can't you bring more love to the table
You drive me wild
[Chorus]
Your love is just for me for me
I can tell, oh for nobody but me
Your love for me its for me
I can tell
Its just for me
Just stepped out to say
We'd make our love worth living
And by now I think our love is more
Its more than giving, hey, hey,
Why can't you tell that I love you
By the way, that I smile
Why can't you bring more love to the table
You drive me wild
[Chorus]
Singing 'bout you everyday this way
Singing 'bout you what can I say
Hanging by you is more for me
Ah
Your love is just for me, its for me, its just for me
Your love is for me, for me, for me, just for me
Your love is for me, for me, for me, just for me
Your love is for me, for me, for me, just for me
Your love is for me, for me, for me, just for me
Your love is for me, for me, for me, just for me
In “Just For Me” by Al Green, the singer expresses his devotion to his lover, insisting that her love belongs solely to him. The repeated phrase “it’s just for me” reinforces this idea, highlighting the exclusivity of their relationship. The singer confesses his love to his partner, but feels knocked down by her lack of recognition of his devotion. He desires more effort from his partner in their relationship, hoping that she can bring more love to the table. Despite these difficulties, the singer acknowledges that their love has grown stronger over time.
The repetition of the phrase “why can’t you tell that I love you by the way that I smile” emphasizes the singer’s frustration with his partner’s inability to recognize his feelings. The chorus reinforces the idea that the singer’s lover’s love is only for him, with the lines “I can tell, oh for nobody but me.” The final lines of the song repeat the phrase “your love is for me” to solidify this sentiment and conclude the song on a note of devotion and exclusivity.
Line by Line Meaning
Your love is just for me, for me
The love that you have for me is exclusive and only meant for me
Its just for me
Your love is solely for me and no one else
Its just for me, for me, for me
Your love is all mine and doesn't belong to anyone else
I stepped out to say, That I love you more each day
I expressed my love for you and it continues to grow every day
And you turned around, and you knocked me down
You rejected my love and it hurt me deeply
But I love you still baby, baby
Despite being hurt, I still love you with all of my heart
Why cant you tell that I love you
I wish you could see how much I love you
By the way, that I smile
I try to show my love through my actions and happiness
Oh why can't you bring more love to the table
I want you to reciprocate my love and show me more affection
You drive me wild
Your lack of reciprocation frustrates and upsets me
Singing 'bout you everyday this way
I spend my days singing about my love for you
Singing 'bout you what can I say
I can't help but sing and express my love for you
Hanging by you is more for me
Being with you brings me immense happiness and satisfaction
Lyrics © JELLYBEAN MUSIC GROUP, Universal Music Publishing Group, Missing Link Music, Peermusic Publishing, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Al Green, Ahmir Thompson, Neal Andrew Sugarman, Ian Smith, James Poyser, Adam Blackstone, Alfred Spanky Chalmers, David Anthony Guy
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind