Justine Washington, 13 November 1940, Bamberg, South Carolina, USA. Washing… Read Full Bio ↴Justine Washington, 13 November 1940, Bamberg, South Carolina, USA. Washington's (aka Jeanette Washington) tremendously moving voice, earthy but sophisticated, perfectly epitomized uptown soul. Yet unlike her southern counterparts she has never experienced great crossover recognition, although once cited by Dusty Springfield as her all-time favourite singer. Washington was raised in Harlem, singing first in a vocal group, the Hearts, in 1956 and becoming a solo artist the following year. She built a career with 16 chart entries during a decade and a half, most of them during the 60s, recording in New York first for Donald Shaw's Neptune label and then for Juggy Murray's Sue label. She established herself as a major soul singer recording "The Time" (US R&B Top 30) and "The Bells" (US R&B Top 20), both in 1959, and "Nobody Cares" (US R&B Top 20) in 1961. Moving to Sue Records in 1962, Washington hit the US national Top 40 with the sublime "That's How Heartaches Are Made" (1963) and the US R&B Top 10 with "Only Those In Love" (1965). Washington revived her career in the early 70s, recording in Philadelphia a duet with Don Gardner, a revival of the Marvelettes' "Forever", (number 30 R&B), a solo release "I've Got To Break Away" (number 73 R&B), and a well-received album. The coming of disco in the mid-70s effectively killed her career, as it did those of many soul artists

The Clock
Baby Washington Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Tick tock, tick tock
Tick tock, tick tock

The clock up against the wall
Tells me our love
Will not last at all

With every beat of the

Minute hand that goes around
Tells me our love
Is just beaten down

Tick tock, tick tock
Tick tock, tick tock

My love for you was growing old
Oh, I tried and tried
Before it turned cold

Just like a clock
Bringing to wake the sleepy soul
To get ready to strive for his goal

Tick tock, tick tock
Tick tock, tick tock

Oh, when I felt
My love and yours was not true
Well, right then I knew
I stopped loving you

And with every beat of that
Minute hand that goes around
Just like an old clock
Our love had run down

Tick tock, tick tock
Tick tock, tick tock

Oh, when I felt
My love and yours was not true
Well, right then I knew, I knew
I had stopped loving you

And with every beat of that
Minute hand that goes around
Just like an old clock
Our love had run down

Tick tock, tick tock
Tick tock, tick tock
Tick tock, tick tock
Tick tock, tick tock

I said just like an old clock
Our love had run down

Overall Meaning

In Baby Washington's song "The Clock," the lyrics describe a failing relationship through the metaphor of a clock. The repeating phrase "tick tock" serves as both a sonic and thematic motif that underscores the inevitability of time passing and the impending end of the relationship. The clock, as an object, serves as a stark symbol for the passage of time and the finite nature of love. The singer laments that the clock "tells me our love will not last at all" and "is just beaten down," which highlights the sense of resignation and defeat in the song.

The verses detail the singer's attempts to salvage the relationship, but ultimately realizing that their love had "run down" like an old clock. The line "Just like a clock bringing to wake the sleepy soul to get ready to strive for his goal" offers a glimmer of hope and motivation, but ultimately falls flat as the repetition of "tick tock" underscores the feeling of finality. The final repetition of "tick tock" serves as an eerie coda, further emphasizing the theme of time and the inevitability of the end of the relationship.

Line by Line Meaning

Tick tock, tick tock
The sound of a clock ticking

The clock up against the wall
The physical clock that is hanging on the wall

Tells me our love
The clock symbolizes the state of their love

Will not last at all
Their love is doomed to end soon

With every beat of the
Each time the minute hand moves

Minute hand that goes around
The hand on the clock that indicates minutes

Tells me our love
The state of their love is shown by the clock

Is just beaten down
Their love is in a bad state

My love for you was growing old
Her love for him was fading

Oh, I tried and tried
She attempted to hold on to their relationship

Before it turned cold
Before the love completely disappeared

Just like a clock
Their love is mechanical and without feeling

Bringing to wake the sleepy soul
The clock serves to awaken people who are asleep

To get ready to strive for his goal
By waking up, people can prepare themselves to work towards their goals

Oh, when I felt
When she realized

My love and yours was not true
Their love was not genuine

Well, right then I knew
She came to the realization at that moment

I stopped loving you
She no longer had feelings for him

And with every beat of that
Each time the minute hand moved

Minute hand that goes around
The hand on the clock that indicates minutes

Just like an old clock
Their love had become stagnant and stopped moving forward

Our love had run down
Their love had ended

I said just like an old clock
Repeating the comparison of their love to an old clock

Our love had run down
Their love had become stagnant and stopped moving forward

Contributed by Kylie P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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Comments from YouTube:

boomerang905

12y↑5

She was my favorite singer when I was teen. No one really compared with vocal power like Baby. We loved her. There was nothing she dropped that we didn't love. the sound of my life! :) Hang in there girl, I hear you're still performing.

madminute

15y↑2

Nice arrangement,excellent studio musicians!

musicteachjw

13y↑2

I saw her last night in the DMV. Even at her age, she has more style, humor and earthiness that most singers today. She did this with the Velons. It was a standing room only crowd.

Jamar Sawyer

6y↑1

i love her voice

berlynn sparks

16y↑4

boy, where in the world do all these great song writers and artist hide themselves, brilliant just brilliant.

lfcurtis1

13y↑2

Love it, Love it, Love it, so many good memories, go girl.

mrob75

4y↑1

Justine Washington...I never quite understood how Baby Washington for the most part was restricted to success only on the R & B charts. She could have easily been a crossover artist like Mary Wells (and others). I've always she was mismanaged over at "Sue" records.