Born in South Memphis, Tennessee, Jones was a child prodigy, playing the oboe, saxophone, trombone, and piano at school and serving as organist at his church. He attended Booker T. Washington High School, the alma mater of Rufus Thomas and shared the hallowed halls with future stars like Isaac Hayes's writing partner David Porter; saxophonist Andrew Love of The Memphis Horns; soul singer/songwriter William Bell and Earth, Wind, and Fire's Maurice White.
Jones's first entry into professional music came at age sixteen, when he played baritone saxophone on Satellite (soon to be Stax) Records' first hit, "Cause I Love You", by Rufus Thomas and Carla Thomas.
While hanging around the Satellite Record Shop run by Estelle Axton, co-owner of Satellite Records with her brother Jim Stewart, Jones met record clerk Steve Cropper, who would become one of the MGs when the group formed in 1962. Besides Jones on organ and Cropper on guitar, Booker T. and the MGs featured Lewie Steinberg on bass guitar and Al Jackson, Jr. on drums (Donald "Duck" Dunn eventually replacing Steinberg). While still in high school, Jones wrote the group's instrumental "Green Onions", which not only became a hit in 1962, but remains an enduring classic more than 40 years later.
Over the next few years, Jones would divide his time between studying classical music composition, composing and transposition at Indiana University, playing with the MGs on the weekends back in Memphis[1], serving as a session musician with other Stax acts, and writing songs that would become classics. He wrote, with Eddie Floyd, "I've Never Found a Girl (To Love Me Like You Do)", Otis Redding's "I Love You More Than Words Can Say", and, with William Bell, Albert King's "Born Under a Bad Sign." The latter would later be popularized in the cover version by power trio Cream.
In 1970, Jones moved to California and stopped playing sessions for Stax, after becoming frustrated with Stax's treatment of the MGs as employees rather than musicians. While still under contract to Stax, he appeared on Stephen Stills' eponymous album (1970). The 1971 album, Melting Pot would be the last Booker T. & the MGs album issued on Stax.
Jones produced three albums with his former wife, under the name Booker T. & Priscilla, as well as making the charts as a solo artist in 1981 with "I Want You". He produced Priscilla's sister Rita Coolidge, Bill Withers's debut album Just As I Am (on which he also played several instruments), and Willie Nelson's album Stardust. He has also lent his trademark keyboards to everyone from Ray Charles to Neil Young to Natalie Merchant. Jones currently still plays with Booker T. & the MGs and his own Booker T. Jones Band.
Jones was inducted into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992, and was honored with a Grammy award for lifetime achievement on February 11, 2007.
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Pound It Out
Booker T. Jones Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
When I'm close to you
I just can't find the words
To tell you how I feel, this thing sho' nuff seems so real
I just can't find the nerve
But every time that we're leaving and
Everything's still the same
"Lord, won't you come through
But nothing ever seems to change
It's like taking all of the love I have
And then putting it in a bucket
I just keep on filling it up
And when I leave you I'm just
Pouring it out again
It's just like I keep on filling it up
And pouring it out again
This "whoso findeth a wife" thing
Can keep me backing up and hiding
Look, I'm not trying to buy you a ring
But can I say anything to share what my heart is feeling.
I wanna trust in the Father
But scripture gives me no rules, I need a checklist
Of how to handle my heart
The only place I can start
Is telling God so I don't get reckless, reckless
It's like taking all of my expectations
And pouring them in a bucket
I just keep on filling it up
And when I see you I'm just pouring it out again
It's just like I keep on filling it up
And pouring it out again
Have you ever felt like this
Fill up and then I'm pouring it out again
You keep on waiting, anticipating for somebody to say it first
I'm still waiting, filling it up again
I'm just waiting for someone to tell me something
You make the first move, I'll take the second one, COME ON
But nothing ever happens, I'm still here waiting
It's like taking all of my hope, all of my hope
And pouring it in a bucket
I just keep on filling it up
And when I leave you, I'm just pouring it out again
It's just like I keep on filling it up and pouring it out again.
Pouring it out again
Pouring it out again
"Pound It Out" by Booker T. Jones is a song about the frustration of not being able to express one's feelings to a significant other, despite the deep sense of love and commitment they feel on the inside. The persona is often lost for words when they are near their lover, and the situation remains the same even when they part ways. The incapacity to express their affection leads to a constant cycle of emotional buildup and pouring out, with no end in sight. The persona is searching for guidance in the contemplation of "whoso findeth a wife" and other biblical scriptures, as they yearn for a checklist to help them handle their heart and trust in God's plans. But despite the spiritual search, they remain in a state of waiting, hoping for a verbal declaration of love.
Line by Line Meaning
Every time I see your face, boy
Whenever I look at you
When I'm close to you
Whenever we're near each other
I just can't find the words
I struggle to express my feelings
To tell you how I feel, this thing sho' nuff seems so real
To let you know how strongly I feel about you
I just can't find the nerve
I am too afraid to speak up
But every time that we're leaving and
But whenever we are parting ways
Everything's still the same
My feelings remain unchanged
"Lord, won't you come through
I pray to God
You know I'm asking and begging You"
To help me express my emotions
But nothing ever seems to change
But nothing seems to improve
It's like taking all of the love I have
It feels as if I am pouring all my love
And then putting it in a bucket
Into a container
I just keep on filling it up
I keep adding more love
And when I leave you I'm just
But when we part ways, I end up
Pouring it out again
Emptying the container once more
This "whoso findeth a wife" thing
This saying about finding a spouse
Can keep me backing up and hiding
Makes me feel hesitant and want to avoid the situation
Look, I'm not trying to buy you a ring
I am not trying to propose to you
But can I say anything to share what my heart is feeling.
But can I express my emotions to you
I wanna trust in the Father
I want to have faith in God
But scripture gives me no rules, I need a checklist
But the Bible doesn't provide clear guidance, I need a plan
Of how to handle my heart
On how to deal with my emotions
The only place I can start
My only option
Is telling God so I don't get reckless, reckless
Is to pray to God, so I don't act impulsively
It's like taking all of my expectations
It feels as though I am filling a container with all my hopes
And pouring them in a bucket
Pouring them into a container
And when I see you I'm just pouring it out again
But whenever I see you, I end up pouring them out once more
Have you ever felt like this
Have you experienced this before
Fill up and then I'm pouring it out again
The feeling of filling up and emptying the container repeatedly
You keep on waiting, anticipating for somebody to say it first
You continue to wait, hoping that someone will confess first
I'm still waiting, filling it up again
I'm still waiting, putting more emotions into it
I'm just waiting for someone to tell me something
I am waiting for the other person to say something
You make the first move, I'll take the second one, COME ON
If you initiate, I will follow
But nothing ever happens, I'm still here waiting
But nothing happens, and I remain waiting
It's like taking all of my hope, all of my hope
It feels like I am pouring all my hope
And pouring it in a bucket
Into another container
And when I leave you, I'm just pouring it out again
But when we part ways, I keep emptying it once more
Pouring it out again
Emptying it repeatedly
Lyrics © DistroKid
Written by: Jewell Booker
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind