Born in Pocahontas, Arkansas, the son of a sharecropper, Riley learned to play guitar from black farm workers. After 4 years in the Army, Riley first recorded in Memphis, Tennessee in 1955 before being lured to Sun Studios by Sam Phillips. He recorded "Trouble Bound" for Jack Clement and Slim Wallace. Sam Phillips obtained the rights and he released "Trouble Bound" b/w ""Rock With Me Baby" September 1,1956 (Sun 245). His first hit was "Flyin' Saucers Rock and Roll" b/w "I Want You Baby" released February 23,1957 (Sun 260) after which he recorded ""Red Hot" b/w "Pearly Lee" released September 30,1957 (Sun 277) both with backing piano by Jerry Lee Lewis.
Riley was drawn to the Memphis area in 1954 on the heels of Elvis Presley's success. Riley began performing on KWEM Radio Station in West Memphis, Arkansas along with another Arkansas native, Johnny Cash, who had his own show on KWEM in 1955.
"Red Hot" was showing a lot of promise as a big hit record, but Sam Phillips pulled the promotion and switched it to "Great Balls Of Fire" by Jerry Lee Lewis. The record was pulled without a lot of sales. He had other Sun recordings and they, likewise, did not have a lot of sales as his promotion had stopped.
Considered good looking and with wild stage moves, Riley had a brief solo career with his backing band "The Little Green Men". Riley and his Little Green Men were the main Sun studio band. They were Riley, Roland Janes, J.M. Van Eaton, Marvin Pepper, and Jimmy Wilson, later joined by Martin Willis.
In 1960, he left Sun, and started Rita Record label with Roland Janes. They produced the national hit record "Mountain Of Love" by Harold Dorman. He later started two other labels Nita and Mojo.
In 1962, he moved to Los Angeles and worked as a session musician with Dean Martin, the Beach Boys, Herb Alpert, Sammy Davis Jr. and others, as well as recording under various aliases.
In the early seventies, Riley quit music to return to Arkansas to begin his own construction business. In 1978 "Red Hot" and "Flyin' Saucers Rock 'n' Roll" were covered by Robert Gordon and Link Wray respectively, which led to a one-off performance in Memphis in 1979, the success of which led to further recording at Sun Studio and a full-time return to performing.
Rediscovered by Bob Dylan in 1992, who had been a fan since 1956, Riley plays Rock and Roll, Blues and Country-Blues.
His album Hot Damn! (Capricorn, 1997) was nominated for the Grammy.
He was injured falling on a slippery department store floor in 2005 and that has required two surgeries, but he still is performing successfully worldwide in 2007. In 2006, he released a country CD, Hillbilly Rockin' Man.
The sky grew dimmer on Sunday, as another great ray of light from the Sun Records roster, Billy Lee Riley, died. Riley, who'd been battling cancer since May, died August 2, 2009, at St. Bernards Medical Center in Jonesboro, Ark., after being admitted on Saturday. He was 75.
Rock with Me Baby
Billy Lee Riley Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Well rock bop-a-lu-bop, bop-a-lu-bop
Well rock bop-a-lu-bop, bop-a-lu-bop
Well rock bop-a-lu-bop, bop-a-lu-bop
Well rock with me baby, don't you know you're daddy wants to rock
Well I like the way my baby walks
I like the way she mumbles when she tries to talk
I like everything that I can see her do
Rock with me baby, yeah rock with me baby
Well rock with me baby, don't you know your daddy wants to rock
(Yeah, rock! Yeah, let's go)
Well when you get started, man you don't wanna stop
You know it drives you crazy but your baby says rock!
She said come on daddy let's have some fun
Give everyone a laugh, when you're dead you're done
Rock with me baby, yeah rock with me baby
Rock with me baby, don't you know your daddy wants to rock
(Yeah!)
Well rock bop-a-lu-bop, bop-a-lu-bop
Well rock bop-a-lu-bop, bop-a-lu-bop
Well rock bop-a-lu-bop, bop-a-lu-bop
Well rock bop-a-lu-bop, bop-a-lu-bop
Well rock with me baby, don't you know you're daddy wants to rock
The song "Rock with Me Baby" by Billy Lee Riley is a classic rock and roll tune that celebrates the energetic and exciting nature of the genre. The lyrics urge the listener - or more specifically, their baby - to rock with them and enjoy the music as it's meant to be enjoyed.
The repetition of the phrase "rock bop-a-lu-bop" throughout the song creates a sense of urgency and excitement, setting the tone for the rest of the song. The lyrics focus on the various things that the singer enjoys about their partner and their relationship, all while urging them to dance and have fun.
One line that stands out in particular is "give everyone a laugh, when you're dead you're done." This could be interpreted as a call to enjoy life and have fun while you can, which is a common theme in rock and roll music.
Line by Line Meaning
Well rock bop-a-lu-bop, bop-a-lu-bop
Let's rock and get boppin'
Well rock with me baby, don't you know you're daddy wants to rock
Come on and dance with me, baby. I want to rock with you
I like the way my baby walks
I love everything about the way my baby moves
I like the way she mumbles when she tries to talk
I love the way my baby talks, even if it's unclear
I like everything that I can see her do
I appreciate all the various things my baby does
Come on little mama, I wanna rock with you
Hey baby, let's dance together
Well when you get started, man you don't wanna stop
When you start dancing, it's hard to stop
You know it drives you crazy but your baby says rock!
You may feel crazy, but your baby wants to keep dancing
She said come on daddy let's have some fun
My baby wants us to have a good time dancing
Give everyone a laugh, when you're dead you're done
Let's have fun while we're young and make great memories
Well rock bop-a-lu-bop, bop-a-lu-bop
Let's keep dancing and having fun
Rock with me baby, yeah rock with me baby
Keep dancing with me, baby
Well rock with me baby, don't you know your daddy wants to rock
I love dancing with you, baby. Let's keep going
Contributed by Levi R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Serbian Werewolf
Real rockabilly sound.
Joe Beutner
one of the GREAT Sun cats....