One of the "Three Kings of the Blues Guitar" (along with B.B. King and Freddie King), Albert King stood 6' 4", weighed 250 lbs and was known as "The Velvet Bulldozer". He was born Albert Nelson on a cotton plantation in Indianola, Mississippi. During his childhood he would sing at a family gospel group at a church. One of 13 children, King grew up picking cotton on plantations near Forrest City, Arkansas where the family moved when he was eight years old. He began his professional work as a musician with a group called In The Groove Boys in Osceola, Arkansas. He had also briefly played drums for Jimmy Reed's band and on several early Reed recordings. Influenced by blues musicians Blind Lemon Jefferson and Lonnie Johnson, but also interestingly Hawaiian music, the electric guitar became his signature instrument, his preference being the Gibson Flying V, which he named "Lucy".
King was a left-handed "upside-down/backwards" guitarist. He was left-handed, but usually played right-handed guitars flipped over upside-down so the low E string was on the bottom. In later years he played a custom-made guitar that was basically left-handed, but had the strings reversed (as he was used to playing). He also used very unorthodox tunings (i.e., tuning as low as C to allow him to make sweeping string bends). Some believe that he was using open E minor tuning (C-B-E-G-B-E) or open F tuning (C-F-C-F-A-D). A "less is more" type blues player, he was known for his expressive "bending" of notes, a technique characteristic of blues guitarists.
He recorded his first record in 1953 for Parrot Records in Chicago, but it had no impact. His first minor hit came in 1959 with Lonely Man written by Bobbin Records A&R man and fellow guitar hero Little Milton, responsible for King's signing with the label. However, it was not until his 1961 release Don't Throw Your Love on Me So Strong that he had a major hit, reaching number fourteen on the U.S. Billboard R&B chart. In 1966 he signed with the Stax record label. Produced by Al Jackson, Jr., King with Booker T. & the MG's recorded dozens of influential sides, such as Crosscut Saw and As The Years Go Passing By, and in 1967 Stax released the album, Born Under a Bad Sign. The title track of that album (written by Booker T. Jones and William Bell) became King's best known songs and has been covered by many other artists.
Another landmark album followed in Live Wire/Blues Power from one of many dates King played at promoter Bill Graham's Fillmore venues. It had a wide and long-term influence on Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Robbie Robertson, and later Gary Moore and Stevie Ray Vaughan (Criminal World, on David Bowie's 1983 release Let's Dance, features a guitar solo copied note-for-note from his hero Albert King by young session musician Stevie Ray Vaughan).
In the 1970s, King was teamed with members of The Bar-Kays and The Movement (Isaac Hayes's backing group), including bassist James Alexander and drummer Willie Hall adding strong funk elements to his music. Adding strings and multiple rhythm guitarists, producers Allen Jones and Henry Bush created a wall of sound that contrasted the sparse, punchy records King made with Booker T. & the MG's. Among these was another of King's signature tunes with I'll Play the Blues For You in 1972.
Recorded in December 1983, In Session captures an in-concert jam between Albert King and Stevie Ray Vaughan
As he hit his mid-sixties King began to muse about retirement, not unreasonable given that he had health problems. Nevertheless, when near to death, he was planning yet another overseas tour.
King died on December 21, 1992 from a heart attack in Memphis, Tennessee.
Good Time Charlie
Albert King Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
To you, that's what I'm all about
The only time you wanna see me, girl
Is when you want me to take you out
I wined and dined you,
And kept you well dressed
I spent my hard earned money
The only reward from you
Was a goodnight kiss or two
But I got news for you,
All your good times are through
You better find yourself another good time Charlie
Do you hear me, child
You can go and find yourself another good time Charlie
Cause all of those good days from me is through
It's a bitter pill to swallow,
That thing they call pride
But you can't understand,
The hurt I feel inside
Like the old sayin' goes,
Girl you took me for a ride
You can go and find yourself another good time Charlie
Go ahead and find yourself, baby, mmm
Another good time Charlie
I'm tired of being, your good time Charlie
To you, that's what I'm all about
The only time you wanna see me, girl
Is when you want me to take you out
You keep on tellin' me, it's your social standin'
I can't afford your lifestyle, it's just too demandin'
Maybe someday you'll change, until this comes about
I got news for you girl, right now I'm checkin' out
You better find yourself another good time Charlie
Do you hear me darlin', yeah
I'm tired of bein' your good time Charlie
That's why I'm checkin' out, today
The song "Good Time Charlie" by Albert King is a tale about a man who is fed up with being used as a mere source of entertainment by his lover. The singer expresses that he is tired of being referred to as a ‘good time Charlie’ since he is only used for taking his lady out when she desires so. He has spent his hard-earned money, wined, and dined her but in return, she only gives him a goodnight kiss or two. The singer implies that the lady has taken him for a ride, which is evident from his bitterness and the feeling of hurt he's experiencing. However, he identifies his self-worth and declares that he will not take it anymore. He advises her to find herself ‘another good time Charlie' now that he’s had enough.
This song is a classic blues number with a poignant message about love, relationships, and self-worth. It's suggestive of how some relationships can be one-sided, and one person can be used for their resources, which can be emotionally devastating for the other. The song succeeds in conveying the message of standing up for oneself and recognizing the importance of self-respect in a relationship.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm tired of being, your good time Charlie
I am exhausted of being just a casual fling to you.
To you, that's what I'm all about
You only see me as a source of entertainment.
The only time you wanna see me, girl
Is when you want me to take you out
You only want me when you need to go out somewhere.
I wined and dined you,
And kept you well dressed
I spent my hard earned money
To try to keep you impressed
I put in a lot of effort and money to make you happy and give you a good time.
The only reward from you
Was a goodnight kiss or two
But I got news for you,
All your good times are through
But all I got in return was a few kisses. Well, now your carefree days with me are over.
You better find yourself another good time Charlie
Do you hear me, child
You can go and find yourself another good time Charlie
Cause all of those good days from me is through
You should find someone else to entertain you. You won't be having good times with me anymore.
It's a bitter pill to swallow,
That thing they call pride
But you can't understand,
The hurt I feel inside
Like the old sayin' goes,
Girl you took me for a ride
It's hard to accept what happened because I'm feeling ashamed and hurt. You played me.
You can go and find yourself another good time Charlie
Go ahead and find yourself, baby, mmm
Another good time Charlie
You can find someone else to be your entertainment.
You keep on tellin' me, it's your social standin'
I can't afford your lifestyle, it's just too demandin'
Maybe someday you'll change, until this comes about
I got news for you girl, right now I'm checkin' out
You keep telling me that you have a certain social status and that I can't keep up. Maybe one day you'll change your mind, but I'm not waiting around for that day.
You better find yourself another good time Charlie
Do you hear me darlin', yeah
I'm tired of bein' your good time Charlie
That's why I'm checkin' out, today
You should find someone else to entertain you. I am done being your casual fling and am leaving today.
Contributed by John P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.