In 1958, Ben Nelson joined a doo wop group, The Five Crowns. Later that same year, The Drifters' manager fired the members of the group and replaced them with The Five Crowns, who had performed several engagements with The Drifters. He co-wrote the first hit by the new version of The Drifters, "There Goes My Baby" (1959). He also sang lead, using his birth name, on "Save the Last Dance for Me," a song written by Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman, "Dance With Me," "This Magic Moment," "I Count the Tears," and other The Drifters hits.
In 1960 he left the group after failing to gain a salary increase and a fairer share of the group's royalties. At this point he assumed the more memorable stage name Ben E. King in preparation for a solo career. Remaining on Atlantic, King scored his first solo hit with the stylish, Latin-tinged ballad "Spanish Harlem" (1961). "Stand by Me" was his next recording. "Stand by Me", written by King along with Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller was voted one of the Songs of the Century by the Recording Industry Association of America. "Stand by Me" and "Spanish Harlem" were named as two of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll and were both also given a Grammy Hall of Fame Award.
King's records continued to place well on the pop charts until 1963, when British pop bands began to dominate the popular music scene. His hits after 1963 were "What is Soul?" (1967), "Supernatural Thing, part 1" (1975), and the re-issue in 1986 of "Stand by Me" following the song's use as the theme music to the movie of the same name.
What Now My Love
Ben E. King Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Now that you left me
How can I live through another day
Watching my dreams turn into ashes
And all my hopes into bits of clay
Once I could see, once I could feel
Now I am numb
I've become unreal
I walk the night, oh, without a goal
Stripped of my heart, my soul
What now my love
Now that it's over
I feel the world closing in on me
Here come the stars
Tumbling around me
And there's the sky where the sea should be
What now my love
Now that you're gone
I'd be a fool to go on and on
No one would care, no one would cry
If I should live or die
What now my love
Now there is nothing
Only my last goodbye
Only my last goodbye
Ben E. King's song "What Now My Love" is a heartbreaking exploration of the aftermath of losing someone you love. The song begins with the question "What now my love, now that you left me?" - a question that plagues the singer throughout the entire song. He wonders how he can go on living, watching his dreams crumble before him and feeling "numb" and "unreal." The singer is lost and aimless, "walking the night" with "no goal" and feeling "stripped" of both his heart and soul.
Throughout the song, the singer is grappling with the pain of being alone, without the one he loves. He can't make sense of the world around him, as he sees "the stars tumbling around" and finds himself in a place where "there's the sky where the sea should be."
As the song progresses, the singer comes to a painful realization: "now there is nothing, only my last goodbye." He understands that he has lost the person he loved and that there is nothing left for him but to say goodbye.
Overall, "What Now My Love" is a poignant and devastating exploration of heartbreak and loss, portrayed through soulful vocals and powerful lyrics.
Line by Line Meaning
What now my love
Asking the question of what to do now that the love has ended
Now that you left me
Acknowledging the departure of the person who used to provide love
How can I live through another day
Expressing the struggle of living without the person
Watching my dreams turn into ashes
Referring to the loss of the future hopes and aspirations
And all my hopes into bits of clay
Expressing the level of despair that all potential future possibilities have been destroyed
Once I could see, once I could feel
Reminiscing of the time when life was full of emotions and sensations
Now I am numb
Referring to the current emotional state of being devoid of feeling
I've become unreal
Acknowledging the difference in one's perception of self, life and reality as a result of the pain
I walk the night, oh, without a goal
Expressing feelings of aimlessness and the act of wandering without destination
Stripped of my heart, my soul
Referring to feeling empty inside due to the loss of love that was once at the center of one's existence
Now that it's over
Reiterating that the love relationship has indeed ended
I feel the world closing in on me
Expressing the feeling of being very alone and the entire world seems to be against you
Here come the stars
Referring to the onset of tears and the feeling of hopelessness
Tumbling around me
Describing the feeling of being lost and disoriented
And there's the sky where the sea should be
Describing the feeling of life now being upside down and everything out of place
Now that you're gone
Affirming the fact that the person who provided love is truly gone
I'd be a fool to go on and on
Expressing the perception that carrying on with life is futile without the person of love
No one would care, no one would cry
Expressing the perception of being very insignificant and meaningless to the world
If I should live or die
Acknowledging the loss of self-worth and suicide seems to be a viable option
Now there is nothing
Suggesting that the current state of existence is now empty of the love that was once there
Only my last goodbye
Acknowledging that the love represented by the person is truly over
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: CARL SIGMAN, GILBERT BECAUD, PIERRE DELANOE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind