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.
Nightmare #5
Al Kooper Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I was sixteen years of age when I fled my family's house
And I hitchhiked down the highway
Tryin' to make my way down South
It was in the dead of winter and it chilled me to the bone
But I was sixteen years of age
Just tryin to get a message home
It was cold & It was windy & I was two days in my flight
And my shoes were almost wore through
And the day was almost night
When the only car I saw that day came rollin into view
I just ran onto the highway for to see what I could do
I waved my arms & hollered and the car it did slow down
And I asked the man inside to help me
For to get to the very next town
He nodded yes & I jumped inside
I was thankful, safe & warm
But the stranger kept his eyes ahead
And drove straight into the storm
I guess I musta fell asleep but I couldn't tell how long
When I woke up in a hurry with the feel of something wrong
The stranger was still driving and he did not say a word
And I asked him many questions
But he seemed not to have heard
Then fear began to grab me & I reached out for the door
When I almost had it open
Well, the car began to soar
As it angled towards the heavens
I just tried to catch my breath
For it was then I knew what time it was
And the stranger's name was Death
The lyrics of Al Kooper's song "Nightmare #5" tell a haunting story of a sixteen-year-old boy who ran away from home and hitchhiked down South in the middle of winter. The boy was trying to get a message home, and he was already two days into his journey when a car was the only one that came his way. The boy flagged down the car, and the man inside nodded to let him jump in. The boy was grateful to be safe and warm, but the stranger drove straight into a storm without saying a word.
As the boy drifted in and out of sleep, he suddenly woke up with the sense that something was wrong. The stranger was still driving, and the boy asked him questions, but he got no response. Fear overtook the boy, and he tried to open the car's door. The car began to soar into the sky, and the boy realized that the stranger's name was Death.
The lyrics of "Nightmare #5" leave much open to interpretation. The story can be taken literally, but it can also be seen as a metaphor for the dangers that await young people who run away or seek adventure. The song's theme, along with Kooper's soulful voice and haunting piano melody, make it one of the standout tracks on his debut album, "I Stand Alone."
Line by Line Meaning
I was sixteen years of age when I fled my family's house
At 16, I ran away from my home due to some problems.
And I hitchhiked down the highway
I hitchhiked to go down South.
Tryin' to make my way down South
I was trying to make my way down to the South to deliver a message.
It was in the dead of winter and it chilled me to the bone
It was freezing cold in the winter, which had a terrible impact on me.
But I was sixteen years of age
I was too young to cope with this physical and emotional pain.
Just tryin to get a message home
I was trying my best to deliver the message no matter how difficult it was for me.
It was cold & It was windy & I was two days in my flight
During the escape, the weather was harsh, and I fled for two days.
And my shoes were almost wore through
My shoes were about to give up.
And the day was almost night
The day was almost over.
When the only car I saw that day came rollin into view
I saw only one car that day which came into my view.
I just ran onto the highway for to see what I could do
I ran onto the road to try to do something.
I waved my arms & hollered and the car it did slow down
I had to wave my arms and call out for the car to slow down.
And I asked the man inside to help me
I asked the driver for help.
For to get to the very next town
I needed a ride to go to the next town.
He nodded yes & I jumped inside
After nodding, the driver allowed me to enter the car.
I was thankful, safe & warm
I finally found a place for safety, and I was grateful for it.
But the stranger kept his eyes ahead
The driver did not look at me or talk to me.
And drove straight into the storm
Despite the terrible storm, the driver continued to drive straightforward.
I guess I musta fell asleep but I couldn't tell how long
I fell asleep and didn't know how long I was asleep.
When I woke up in a hurry with the feel of something wrong
I woke up suddenly and had a terrible feeling that something was wrong.
The stranger was still driving and he did not say a word
The driver did not speak or respond to my questions.
And I asked him many questions
I kept asking him questions.
But he seemed not to have heard
But he didn't seem to hear me.
Then fear began to grab me & I reached out for the door
I felt scared and tried to open the door.
When I almost had it open Well, the car began to soar
Just as I nearly opened the door, the car suddenly took flight.
As it angled towards the heavens
The car went up into the sky as if it was heading to the heavens.
I just tried to catch my breath
I struggled to breathe due to the shock and horror of the situation.
For it was then I knew what time it was
At the moment, I knew what was happening.
And the stranger's name was Death
I realized the driver's identity was the personification of Death.
Writer(s): A. Kooper
Contributed by Mackenzie W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.