His first musical success was as a 14-year-old guitarist in the Royal Teens, best known for their novelty blues riff, "Short Shorts". In 1960, he joined the song-writing team of Bob Brass and Irwin Levine, who wrote the hit, "This Diamond Ring", for Gary Lewis and the Playboys. When he was 21, he moved to Greenwich Village.
He performed with Bob Dylan in concert in 1965 and in the studio in 1965 and 1966, including playing Hammond organ with Dylan at the (in)famous Newport Folk Festival of 1965. He worked extensively with Mike Bloomfield for a number of years after the two met as studio musicians on Dylan's legendary Highway 61 Revisited album.
In 1965, he co-formed The Blues Project and played their most famous gig at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967. He formed Blood, Sweat & Tears in the same year, leaving after the group's first album, Child is Father to the Man, in 1968.
Kooper played on hundreds of records, including The Rolling Stones, B.B. King, The Who and Cream. On occasion, he has even overdubbed on his own efforts, as on The Live Adventures Of Mike Bloomfield and Al Kooper album, as Roosevelt Gook. He discovered the band Lynyrd Skynyrd, and produced their first three albums, including the single Sweet Home Alabama. Kooper also wrote the score for the TV series, Crime Story, and has also written music for several made-for-television movies. Kooper also produced a now rare album by a group called Appaloosa.
Al Kooper has published a memoir, Backstage Passes: Rock 'n' Roll Life In The Sixties (1977), now available in revised form as Backstage Passes & Backstabbing Bastards: Memoirs of a Rock 'N' Roll Survivor 2007
Kooper currently teaches songwriting and production at Berklee College of Music in Boston and plays weekend concerts with his band Jimmy Vivino and The ReKooperators.
Coloured Rain
Al Kooper Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Yesterday I was a young boy searching for my way
Not knowing what I wanted living life from day to day.
Till you came along, there was nothing but an empty space and a pain.
Feels like coloured rain
Bring on coloured rain
Yeah!
I can see a sail of changing filling with surprise
United with a feeling, bringing love into my eyes.
Till you came along, there was nothing but an empty space and a pain.
Feels like coloured rain
Tastes like coloured rain
Bring on coloured rain
Yeah!
The lyrics to Al Kooper's song "Coloured Rain" talk about a young man who was lost and searching for his purpose in life. He was living day to day without any clear direction until he meets someone who changes everything. This person brings color to his life and with their presence, he finally feels complete. The lyrics express how this newfound love is like a refreshing rain that brings color and flavor to his life. It's like seeing a sail of change that is filled with surprises and brings a new sense of fulfillment. The lyrics capture the feeling of love, hope, and rejuvenation that come with the presence of someone who changes your life for the better.
The lyrics also suggest that before meeting this person, the man had been experiencing emptiness and pain. This line suggests that he had been struggling to find meaning in his life and was lacking connections with others. The arrival of this new person brought him out of his lonely state and into a world of vibrant emotions.
The overall message of the song seems to be about the transformative power of love and how it can change a person's life. It can bring color, meaning, and fulfillment to an otherwise empty existence.
Line by Line Meaning
Yesterday I was a young boy searching for my way
When I was younger, I didn't know what I wanted and was lost in life.
Not knowing what I wanted living life from day to day.
I was just living life with no direction or purpose.
Till you came along, there was nothing but an empty space and a pain.
But then you appeared in my life, and it filled the emptiness and took away the pain I was feeling.
Feels like coloured rain
With you by my side, it feels like everything is vivid and colorful, like rainbows falling from the sky.
Tastes like coloured rain
Being with you is a tangy and sweet sensation, like the taste of colored rain in my mouth.
Bring on coloured rain
I want more of this feeling, I want more of this vibrant and exciting life that you have brought me.
I can see a sail of changing filling with surprise
I can see my life taking a new direction, and it feels like anything is possible with you beside me.
United with a feeling, bringing love into my eyes.
Together, we are filled with a deep feeling of love and affection that shines through our eyes.
Yeah!
And I am grateful for this wonderful feeling, yeah!
Contributed by Claire T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.