Mason initially focused on songwriting when she entered the music industry in her teens. As a performer, though, she had a major hit single with her third release in 1965, "Yes, I'm Ready" (#5 pop, #2 R&B). She had modest success throughout the rest of the decade on the small Arctic label, run by her manager, top Philadelphia disc-jockey, Jimmy Bishop. She reached the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Top 40 again in 1965 with "Sad, Sad Girl", and "Oh How It Hurts" in 1967. A two-year stay with National General Records, run by a film production company, produced one album and four singles which failed to find success.[citation needed]
In the 1970s, Mason signed to Buddah Records and toughened her persona, singing about sexual love and infidelity with an uncommon frankness at the time in songs like "Bed and Board", "From His Woman to You", and "Shackin' Up" and would interrupt her singing to deliver straight-talking 'raps' about romance. She also continued to write some of her new material. Curtis Mayfield produced her on a cover version of Mayfield's own "Give Me Your Love", which restored her to the pop Top 40 and R&B Top Ten in 1973; "From His Woman to You" (the response to Shirley Brown's single "Woman to Woman") and "Shackin' Up", produced by former Stax producer Don Davis in Detroit were also solid soul sellers in the mid-1970s.
Mason also sang vocals on the tracks "Sheba Baby," "I'm In Love With You," "A Good Man Is Gone," and "She Did It" on the soundtrack for the 1975 Pam Grier film, Sheba, Baby.[2]
After leaving Buddah Records in 1975 after two top ten R&B hits, she only dented the charts periodically on small labels. They included "I Am Your Woman, She Is Your Wife", which was produced in 1978 by Weldon McDougal who had produced her first major success, "Yes I'm Ready", and later in 1984, "Another Man" on West End Records.
Mason started to concentrate on running her own publishing company in the late 1980s, but continues to perform occasionally. She released a new CD, Feeling Blue, in September 2007. Mason was still performing to sold-out audiences in 2016. Her most recent show was at the Terrance Theater in Long Beach, California. Mason was inducted into the Soul Music Hall of Fame on March 1, 2016.
Shackin' Up
Barbara Mason Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I can't even go outside
To hang up clothes
(Everybody's talking 'bout me)
Or go to the grocery store
Unless I see some of them
Out there pointing
Yeah, there she is, that's her
There's who
I ain't bothering nobody
(Everybody's talking 'bout me)
I ain't done nothing
I wish they'd mind their own business
(Everybody's talking 'bout me)
Yeah, I know you know
But I wish they'd stop talking
(Everybody's talking 'bout me)
Yeah, I guess life is funny that way
Yeah, I understand that
People are people and all
(Everybody's talking 'bout me)
But I just wonder why people
(Everybody's talking 'bout me)
Don't understand that I'm me
Mmm hmm, living together
Perfectly happy, yeah
My man and me
Mmm hmm, people call me dirty
If true love is dirty
Then throw some water on me
Guess it would be all right
If we were married
And we wasn't in love
Like the girl who lives next door
Feel sorry for her
She got papers on her man
That she hardly ever sees
I ain't got no papers on no man
But I got a man here with me
I'm talking about
Shackin' up, shackin' up
We're in love with each other
If we ever want our freedom
We don't have to pay to be free
What's wrong with
Shackin' up, shackin' up
We're perfectly happy
I only wish that people
Would just let us be
Yeah, mmm hmm
Why don't they leave us alone
Guess it would be all right
If we were married
And we wasn't in love
Like the girl who lives next door
Feel sorry for her
She got papers on her man
That she hardly ever sees
Thank you for using
I ain't got no papers on no man
But I got a man here with me
Shackin' up, shackin' up
We're in love with each other
If we ever want our freedom
We don't have to pay to be free
What's wrong with
Shackin' up, shackin' up
It's better than being like
My next door neighboor
She's paying within
What's wrong with
Shackin' up, shackin' up
It's been good to me
I might not be married
But I'm never lonely
What's wrong with
Shackin' up, shackin' up
We're in love with each other
It's getting better and better
The song "Shackin' Up" by Barbara Mason speaks about how the singer's life is being constantly talked about by others in the community because she is living with her partner without being married. The singer expresses her frustration at the constant gossip and scrutiny she faces, even while carrying out mundane activities like going grocery shopping, and asserts her right to live her life as she wants. She is perfectly happy with her partner, and if they ever decide they want their freedom, they don't have to go through the hassle of paying for a divorce.
The song highlights the societal pressure to conform to traditional relationship norms, and the stigma attached to choosing an alternative lifestyle. The singer is willing to defy societal norms and live on her own terms, but is frustrated by the judgment she faces. The song implies that true love is not restricted to societal constructs such as marriage and that relationships should be judged based on the happiness and fulfillment they bring to the individuals involved.
Overall, "Shackin' Up" is a powerful and straightforward song that speaks to the societal pressure to conform and the importance of choosing our own path in life, regardless of the opinions of others.
Line by Line Meaning
Baby, they're at it again
People are talking about the singer's decision to live with her man outside of marriage again
I can't even go outside
To hang up clothes
The singer feels suffocated as people are constantly talking negatively about her decision to shack up
(Everybody's talking 'bout me)
Or go to the grocery store
People are gossiping about the singer's life and it's making it hard for her to do simple things
Unless I see some of them
Out there pointing
Whenever the singer steps outside, she feels like people are gossiping and pointing fingers at her
(Everybody's talking 'bout me)
Yeah, there she is, that's her
There's who
People are clearly talking about the singer and pointing her out when she goes outside
I ain't bothering nobody
(Everybody's talking 'bout me)
The singer is frustrated because she hasn't done anything wrong and yet people continue to gossip about her
I ain't done nothing
I wish they'd mind their own business
(Everybody's talking 'bout me)
The singer wishes people would leave her alone because she's not doing anything wrong and she just wants to live her life in peace
Yeah, I know you know
But I wish they'd stop talking
(Everybody's talking 'bout me)
While the singer knows people are talking about her decision to shack up, she wishes they would stop because it's making her life difficult
Yeah, I guess life is funny that way
The singer recognizes that life can be unpredictable and things don't always go as planned
Yeah, I understand that
People are people and all
(Everybody's talking 'bout me)
Although the singer understands that people will talk, she wishes they would understand that her decision to shack up is her own business
But I just wonder why people
(Everybody's talking 'bout me)
Don't understand that I'm me
The singer is frustrated because people are judging her without understanding who she is as a person
Mmm, hmm, living together
Perfectly happy, yeah
My man and me
The singer and her man are happily living together outside of marriage
Mmm, hmm, people call me dirty
If true love is dirty
Then throw some water on me
The singer knows that people may judge her decision to shack up but as long as she and her man are in love, that's all that matters
Guess it would be all right
If we were married
And we wasn't in love
Like the girl who lives next door
Feel sorry for her
The singer believes that people would judge her less if she were married, but she's not interested in getting married simply for society's approval
She got papers on her man
That she hardly ever sees
I ain't got no papers on no man
But I got a man here with me
The singer's neighbor is married but still doesn't have her man around, while the singer has her man with her despite not being married
Shackin' up, shackin' up
We're in love with each other
If we ever want our freedom
We don't have to pay to be free
The singer is happy living with her man and they don't have to pay to live the way they want because they're not bound by marriage laws
What's wrong with
Shackin' up, shackin' up
We're perfectly happy
I only wish that people
Would just let us be
The singer sees nothing wrong with living together and wishes people would stop judging her and just let her be happy
It's better than being like
My next door neighbor
She's paying within
The singer believes that her decision to shack up is better than her neighbor's decision to pay within a loveless marriage
We're in love with each other
It's getting better and better
The singer and her man's love is only growing stronger and they're happy with their decision to shack up
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: JACKIE AVERY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Penny Garcia
i love barbra and all the changes in her music all the way till now.. her voice is soulful and dainty.
DAVID WOLF
~ Much love to Barbara Mason, one of the wonderful most early purveyors of the classic Philly sound. R.I.P. icon Curtis Mayfield. Classic and all good: still fresh 2019. Kudos also to the Arctic, Buddah & all associated labels as Pavilion, Curtom, Kama Sutra, T-Neck, Sussex, Hot Wax: essential to American musical history, & M.F.S.B., Hall & Oates, & Harold Melvin & the BlueNotes featuring Teddy Pendergrass! Cheers, DAVEDJ ~
xXluvxdiamondXx
grew up listening to her love her music.
Penny Garcia
i love barbra and all the changes in her music all the way till the new.. her voice and different way of singing. Caught. me
Kimberly Williams
My mama had this record. I used to sing it word for word not knowing the meaning.
Terrie Steward
Kimberly Williams 😂🎶🎤
Belinda Booker
This is a bad ass song
Ra-mel Milton
Love hearing the scratches at the beginning...i miss listening to real records!
J j601
I like play this around all the people who think they been living right all their life 😢😊
Cleo Fuqua
I love this so much! I remember singing it as a girl I shacked up with my now husband it's going on 41years