Feathers was born in Holly Springs, Mississippi, and recorded a string of popular singles like "Peepin' Eyes," "Defrost Your Heart," "Tongue-Tied Jill," and "Bottle to the Baby" on Sun Records, Meteor and King Records in the 1950s.
Feathers was known for being a master of shifting emotional and sonic dynamics in his songs. His theatrical, hiccup-styled, energetic, rockabilly vocal style inspired a later generation of rock vocalists, including Lux Interior of The Cramps.
He studied and recorded several songs with Junior Kimbrough, whom he called "the beginning and end of all music". His childhood influences were reflected in his later music of the 1970s and 1980s, which had an easy-paced, sometimes sinister, country-blues tempo, as opposed to the frenetic fast-paced style favored by some of his rockabilly colleagues of the 1950s.
He started out as a session musician at Sun Studios, playing any side instrument he could in the hopes of someday making his own music there. He eventually played on a small label started by Sam Phillips called Flip records which got him enough attention to record a couple singles for Sun Records and Holiday Inn Records. By all accounts the singer was not held in much regard by Phillips, but Feathers often made the audacious claim that he had arranged "That's All Right" and "Blue Moon of Kentucky" for Elvis Presley and recorded "Good Rockin' Tonight" months before Presley. He also claimed that his "We're Getting Closer (To Being Apart)" had been intended to be Elvis' sixth single for Sun. He did, however, get his name on one of Elvis' Sun records, "I Forgot To Remember To Forget" when the writer Stan Kesler asked him to record a demo of the song.
He then moved on to Meteor Records and then King Records where he recorded his best-known work. When his King contract ran out he still continued to perform, although Feathers—perhaps typically—thought there was a conspiracy to keep his music from gaining the popularity it deserved.
In the mid-1980s, he performed at times at new music nightclubs like the Antenna Club in Memphis, Tennessee, sharing the bill with rock-and-roll bands like Tav Falco's Panther Burns, who, as devoted fans of Feathers, had introduced him to their label's president. During this time, rockabilly icon Colonel Robert Morris played drums for Charlie. Charlie said "Robert tore up a brand new set of drums, but the crowd was dancing on the tables".
He released his New Jungle Fever album in 1987 and Honkey Tonk Man in 1988, featuring the lead guitar work of his son, Bubba Feathers. These later albums of original songs penned by Feathers were released on the French label New Rose Records, whose other 1980s releases included albums by cult music heroes like Johnny Thunders, Alex Chilton, Roky Erickson, The Cramps, The Gun Club, and others.
Charlie Feathers died on August 29, 1998.
Feathers' song, "That Certain Female" was featured on the soundtrack to Quentin Tarantino's 2003 film, Kill Bill Vol. 1. His "Can't Hardly Stand It" was featured on the follow-up Kill Bill Vol. 2 soundtrack.
Charlie Feathers' pioneering contribution to the genre has been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame. Bob Dylan has featured Charlie Feathers on the second season of his XM satellite radio show Theme Time Radio Hour, playing Feathers' records "One Hand Loose" (on the "Countdown" show, Dec. 12, 2007) and "Defrost Your Heart" (on the "Cold" show, April 2, 2008).
Defrost Your Heart
Charlie Feathers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Want you please defrost your heart?
Fill it′s trays with love sweet and warm rm-rm
Melt the ice and snow away
Let the sun shine in to stay
And mend the love that is tattered and torn
I love you more than I can tell
Help a heart that is dying for you ou-ou
Cause your driving me insane
To much load upon my brain
Defrost your heart
And prove your love for me is true
I been walkin', I been cryin′
Don't know why I keep on tryin'
To win you back and make you feel
The same-ame-ame
Like you did not long ago
When I know you loved me so
But I can see
That my hopes are all in vain.a-ain-a-ain
The lyrics to Charlie Feathers's song Defrost Your Heart are a plea to a lover to melt their icy heart and thaw the frost that has settled between them. The singer begins by addressing their lover as cold and aloof, and begs them to soften their demeanor and fill their heart's trays with the warmth of love. The singer alludes to the fact that their love has frozen over, and asks their partner to let the sun shine in and mend their love that has become tattered and torn. The singer is deeply invested in their love, and confesses that they are dying for their lover's affections.
The chorus is an appeal for the lover to release the singer from the "spell" that they have been placed under. The singer acknowledges that their pursuit of their cold-hearted lover has driven them insane, and asks them to prove their love for them is true. The bridge of the song adds to the emotional depth by revealing the singer's desperation and their futile attempts to win back their lover - they have been walking and crying, and despite their efforts, they know that their hopes are in vain.
Overall, the lyrics to Defrost Your Heart have a melancholic yet hopeful tone, and paint a vivid picture of the struggles of love when faced with coldness and indifference.
Line by Line Meaning
You grew cold and acted smart
Your behavior has changed and you've become distant
Want you please defrost your heart?
Please open up to me again and show me your love
Fill its trays with love sweet and warm rm-rm
Let your heart be filled with emotions of love and warmth
Melt the ice and snow away
Let go of your coldness and come back to me emotionally
Let the sun shine in to stay
Let happiness and joy come back into our relationship
And mend the love that is tattered and torn
Fix the broken love that we once had
I love you more than I can tell
My feelings of affection for you are beyond expression
So please release me from this spell
Please let me go from this unrequited love
Help a heart that is dying for you ou-ou
My heart is yearning for your love and attention
Cause your driving me insane
Your actions are hurting me emotionally
To much load upon my brain
I am burdened by the weight of this unrequited love
Defrost your heart
Open up to me emotionally and show me your love
And prove your love for me is true
Demonstrate your affection for me and show that it is genuine
I been walkin', I been cryin'
I have been wandering and shedding tears
Don't know why I keep on tryin'
I am not sure why I continue to strive for your love
To win you back and make you feel
I am attempting to regain your love and affection
The same-ame-ame
The way you once felt about me
Like you did not long ago
The time when you loved me deeply and warmly
When I know you loved me so
When I am certain that you once had strong feelings for me
But I can see
Unfortunately, I am able to perceive
That my hopes are all in vain.a-ain-a-ain
That my wishes for our relationship are unlikely to come true
Writer(s): Q. Claunch, W. Cantrell
Contributed by Blake B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Ian Zulick
Charlie Feathers had one of the most unique voices in country music and later in rockabilly.
Loekie Kanters
Beautiful.
Joel Howard
Hillbilly country music