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.
I Don't Know Why I Love You
Al Kooper Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I don’t know why I love you
I don’t know why I love you
I don’t know why I love you
But I love you
Always treat me like a fool
I don’t know why I love you
But I love you
Oh you never stop your
Cheatin ways with another guy
You laugh in my face
Lord how long must I be disgraced
Cause I love you
Oh baby, baby, baby
I don’t know why I love you
I don’t know
You and me baby, oh
I don’t know why I love you baby
But I love you baby
Oh darlin, darlin, darlin
You throw my heart down in the dirt
You made me crawl on
This cold black earth, baby
No I never, I never knew
How much love could hurt
Until I loved you baby
Till I loved you baby, baby
Oh baby, I can?t stop
I can’t stop crying can?t you see
Here I’m pleadin on my knees
I’m on my knees
Won’t you help me, help me please
Cause I love you, I love you baby
Sure enough, baby, yeah
I don’t know, you don’t know
We don’t know none of us
Can’t do nothing about it
I don’t know, I don’t know
Oh baby, I don’t know, I don’t know
Nobody can do nothing about it
The lyrics of "I Don't Know Why I Love You" by Al Kooper are about a person who is in a dysfunctional and toxic relationship. The person singing the song is aware that the other person is treating them poorly, including cheating on them with another person, but they cannot help but continue loving them. The lyrics convey a sense of confusion and helplessness, as the singer questions why they continue to stay in a relationship that causes them pain.
The chorus of the song, "I don't know why I love you, but I love you," highlights the contradiction of the situation. The singer cannot explain why they continue to love someone who treats them poorly, but they cannot deny that they do love them. The lyrics also mention the physical and emotional pain caused by the relationship, such as the other person "kick[ing] me when I'm down" and "throw[ing] my heart down in the dirt."
Overall, the lyrics of "I Don't Know Why I Love You" explore the complexities of love and relationships, as well as the internal struggles that come with staying in a relationship that is not healthy.
Line by Line Meaning
I don’t know why I love you
The singer is unsure about what draws them to the person they love.
But I love you
Despite not understanding their feelings, the singer is certain that they love the person.
Always treat me like a fool
The person the singer loves consistently makes them feel foolish.
Kick me when I’m down that’s your rule
The person the artist loves takes pleasure in hurting them when they are vulnerable.
Oh you never stop your
The person the artist loves is unfaithful and continues to cheat with other partners.
Cheatin ways with another guy
The person the singer loves is having an affair with another man.
You laugh in my face
The person the singer loves mocks them openly.
Lord how long must I be disgraced
The artist is tired of feeling humiliated and ashamed by their love for someone who treats them poorly.
Cause I love you
Despite the pain they endure, the artist cannot help their love for the other person.
You throw my heart down in the dirt
The person the artist loves has caused them extreme emotional pain.
You made me crawl on
The pain caused by the person the singer loves has brought them to their knees.
This cold black earth, baby
The situation is bleak and desolate, much like the earth itself.
No I never, I never knew
The singer was unaware of just how much love could hurt until they fell in love with this person.
How much love could hurt
The pain caused by the person the singer loves has been profound and unexpected.
Until I loved you baby
The singer's love for this person revealed how much love can also cause pain.
Oh baby, I can’t stop
The artist is consumed by their emotions and can't control their feelings.
I can’t stop crying can’t you see
The artist is so overwhelmed with emotion that they are constantly crying.
Here I’m pleadin on my knees
The singer is begging for the other person's help or attention.
Won’t you help me, help me please
The singer is pleading for the other person's aid or affection.
Sure enough, baby, yeah
The artist is certain of their love, despite the hardships it brings.
We don’t know none of us
Neither the artist nor anyone else understands why the artist loves the other person.
Can’t do nothing about it
Despite not understanding their feelings or the situation, the artist cannot stop loving the other person.
Contributed by Grayson R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.