Mayfield is probably best known for his anthemic music with The Impressions and for the soundtrack to the blaxploitation film Superfly.
Perhaps because he didn't cross over to the pop audience as heavily as Motown's stars, it may be that the scope of Curtis Mayfield's talents and contributions have yet to be fully recognized. Judged merely by his records alone, the man's legacy is enormous. As the leader of the Impressions, he recorded some of the finest soul vocal group music of the 1960s. As a solo artist in the 1970s, he helped pioneer funk and helped introduce hard-hitting urban commentary into soul music. "Gypsy Woman," "It's All Right," "People Get Ready," "Freddie's Dead," and "Superfly" are merely the most famous of his many hit records.
But Curtis Mayfield wasn't just a singer. Born in in Chicago, IL, he wrote most of his material at a time when that was not the norm for soul performers. He was among the first -- if not the very first -- to speak openly about African-American pride and community struggle in his compositions. As a songwriter and a producer, he was a key architect of Chicago Soul, penning material and working on sessions by notable Windy City soulsters like Gene Chandler, Jerry Butler, Major Lance, and Billy Butler. In this sense, he can be compared to Smokey Robinson, who also managed to find time to write and produce many classics for other soul stars. Mayfield was also an excellent guitarist, and his rolling, Latin-influenced lines were highlights of the Impressions' recordings in the '60s. During the next decade, he would toughen up his guitar work and production, incorporating some of the best features of psychedelic rock and funk.
Mayfield began his career as an associate of Jerry Butler, with whom he formed the Impressions in the late '50s. After the Impressions had a big hit in 1958 with "For Your Precious Love," Butler, who had sung lead on the record, split to start a solo career. Mayfield, while keeping the Impressions together, continued to write for and tour with Butler before the Impressions got their first Top 20 hit in 1961, "Gypsy Woman."
Mayfield was heavily steeped in gospel music before he entered the pop arena, and gospel, as well as doo wop, influences would figure prominently in most of his '60s work. Mayfield wasn't a staunch traditionalist, however. He and the Impressions may have often worked the call-and-response gospel style, but his songs (romantic and otherwise) were often veiled or unveiled messages of black pride, reflecting the increased confidence and self-determination of the African-American community. Musically he was an innovator as well, using arrangements that employed the punchy, blaring horns and Latin-influenced rhythms that came to be trademark flourishes of Chicago soul. As the staff producer for the OKeh label, Mayfield was also instrumental in lending his talents to the work of other Chi-town soul singers who went on to national success. With Mayfield singing lead and playing guitar, the Impressions had 14 Top 40 hits in the 1960s (five made the Top 20 in 1964 alone), and released some above-average albums during that period as well.
Given Mayfield's prodigious talents, it was perhaps inevitable that he would eventually leave the Impressions to begin a solo career, as he did in 1970. His first few singles boasted a harder, more funk-driven sound; singles like "(Don't Worry) If There's a Hell Below, We're All Gonna Go" found him confronting ghetto life with a realism that had rarely been heard on record. He really didn't hit his artistic or commercial stride as a solo artist, though, until Superfly, his soundtrack to a 1972 blaxploitation film. Drug deals, ghetto shootings, the death of young black men before their time: all were described in penetrating detail. Yet Mayfield's irrepressible falsetto vocals, uplifting melodies, and fabulous funk pop arrangements gave the oft-moralizing material a graceful strength that few others could have achieved. For all the glory of his past work, Superfly stands as his crowning achievement, not to mention a much-needed counterpoint to the sensationalistic portrayals of the film itself.
At this point Mayfield, along with Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gaye, was the foremost exponent of a new level of compelling auteurism in soul. His failure to maintain the standards of Superfly qualifies as one of the great disappointments in the history of black popular music. Perhaps he'd simply reached his peak after a long climb, but the rest of his '70s work didn't match the musical brilliance and lyrical subtleties of Superfly, although he had a few large R&B hits in a much more conventional vein, such as "Kung Fu," "So in Love," and "Only You Babe."
Mayfield had a couple of hits in the early '80s, but the decade generally found his commercial fortunes in a steady downward spiral, despite some intermittent albums.
On August 14, 1990, he became paralyzed from the neck down when a lighting rig fell on top of him at a concert in Brooklyn, NY. In 1993, three years after the accident which caused Mayfield's paralysis, Shanachie records released the album People Get Ready: A Tribute to Curtis Mayfield featuring a.o. Jerry Butler, Don Covay and Steve Cropper.
Mayfield received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1995.
Curtis Mayfield died December 26, 1999 at the North Fulton Regional Hospital in Roswell, Georgia.
02. Keep On Keeping On
Curtis Mayfield Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I've only got one
We who are young, should now take a stand
Don't run from the burdens of women and men
Continue to give, continue to live
For what you know is right
Withdraw from the darkness and look to the light
Where everyone's free
At least that's the way it's supposed to be
We just keep on keeping on
We just keep on keeping on
Many think that we have blown it
But they too will soon admit
That there's still a lot of love among us
And there's still a lot of faith and warmth and trust
When we keep on keeping on
Before we dismiss, one thing I insist
When you have your young, remember this song
And our world surroundings, its leaps and bounds
Ups and downs, is reality
Teach them to be strong, and when they are grown
They can proudly imply that we were an alright guy
For all the wrong now is right
This nation's people are now united as one
And we just keep on keeping on
We just keep on keeping on
Many think that we have blown it
But they too will soon admit
That there's still a lot of love among us
And there's still a lot of faith, warmth, and trust
When we keep on keeping on
Keep on keeping on, y'all
Keep on, keep on, keep on, keep on
Keep on, keeping on
(Keep on, keeping on)
We got to move on up, y'all
(We got to move on up)
Keep on, keep on, keep on, keep on, keep on
Some years back I remember
Still in my mind so well
My mama made this ?
And I found it never fails
Never worry too long
(Worry too long)
About what goes on
(About what goes on)
Today it's sorrow
(Today it's sorrow)
Look like joy tomorrow
(Look like joy tomorrow)
Keep on keeping on
(Keep on keeping on)
Keep on, keep on
(Keep on, keep on)
We just keep on keeping on
We just keep on keeping on
Many think that we have blown it
But they too will soon admit
That there's still a lot of love among us
And there's still a lot of faith, warmth, and trust
When we keep on keeping on
Ooh ooh ooh ooh
(Ooh ooh ooh ooh)
We're gonna move on up
(We're gonna move on up)
Keep on keeping on
(Keep on keeping on)
Move on, move now
(Move on, move now)
Keep on keeping on
(Keep on keeping on)
The song "Keep On Keeping On" by Curtis Mayfield is a motivational song that encourages listeners to persevere despite the challenges they may face. It begins by acknowledging that the world can be a difficult and burdensome place, but urges young listeners to stand up for what is right and continue to give and live their lives with purpose. Mayfield encourages his audience to focus on the positive aspects of life and the light present in the world instead of dwelling on the darkness. The chorus emphasizes that one should keep moving forward, keep striving, and keep persevering in the face of adversity.
Mayfield also emphasizes that the key to a better future is to teach the next generation to be strong and to stand up for what they believe in. He emphasizes that the actions of the present generation will influence and shape the world of the future. The song ends with a call to action, encouraging listeners to "move on up" and continue progressing toward a better life.
Overall, "Keep On Keeping On" is an empowering and motivating song that encourages the listener to face life's challenges with resilience and determination.
Line by Line Meaning
Everybody gather round and listen to my song
I've only got one
Gather together, listen to my music and hear me out, because I only have one song to share with you.
We who are young, should now take a stand
Don't run from the burdens of women and men
Continue to give, continue to live
For what you know is right
As young people, we need to stand strong, stand up for what's right, and not avoid the responsibilities and problems of society. We need to keep giving and living according to our beliefs.
Most of your life can be out of sight
Withdraw from the darkness and look to the light
Where everyone's free
At least that's the way it's supposed to be
You can go through life unnoticed, but don't get caught up in dark things. Instead, choose to seek out the light where everyone should be free and equal.
We just keep on keeping on
We just keep on keeping on
We need to keep going, keep pushing forward and persevering.
Many think that we have blown it
But they too will soon admit
That there's still a lot of love among us
And there's still a lot of faith and warmth and trust
When we keep on keeping on
Some people may think we've failed, but they'll soon realize that love, faith, and trust still exist among us when we keep on going and not give up.
Before we dismiss, one thing I insist
When you have your young, remember this song
And our world surroundings, its leaps and bounds
Ups and downs, is reality
Teach them to be strong, and when they are grown
They can proudly imply that we were an alright guy
For all the wrong now is right
This nation's people are now united as one
Before you leave, I ask that you remember this song and your reality. Teach your children to be strong in the face of adversity, and when they grow up, they can acknowledge our resilience. Even if everything seems wrong, we can still come together as one nation.
Keep on keeping on, y'all
Keep on, keep on, keep on, keep on
Keep on, keeping on
(Keep on, keeping on)
We got to move on up, y'all
(We got to move on up)
Keep on, keep on, keep on, keep on, keep on
We need to keep moving forward and persevering. We have to keep pushing towards success in life.
Some years back I remember
Still in my mind so well
My mama made this ?
And I found it never fails
Never worry too long
(Worry too long)
About what goes on
(About what goes on)
Today it's sorrow
(Today it's sorrow)
Look like joy tomorrow
(Look like joy tomorrow)
I remember my mother taught me something important that has always stayed with me. She taught me to not worry too long about things going on in our lives, because things can always change and what seems like sadness today could be happiness tomorrow.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: CURTIS MAYFIELD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Dan Whitehurst
Watch and listen to Curtis’ guitar. Without him Hendrix would not have developed his rhythm/lead combo style he had. And I’m a huge Hendrix fan. This guy has always been overlooked in my opinion as a major innovator.
Pablo Leira
@Richard Branton sure, i aint saying it had no influence, but hendrix surely came from a place of his own, we can all trace where everything comes from but certainly hendrix seemed to pull out things from thin air
Richard Branton
Tis so,but it influences work every which way,listen to Freddie's dead;where you think that came from? Band of Gypsys Who Knows.....
Pablo Leira
If you really look, his guitar has a little volume. The guitar you’re really hearing is the one in the back, thats the one thats the loudest
Richard Branton
True too a point ,everyone has there influences but as much as I love Buddy I also think he gilds the liley somewhat
Jaleb Jaba
Curtis sound was who Don Corvay wanted Hendrix to emulate on Have Mercy”. Hendrix smoked the beginning with that Curtis groove.
charleslongshanks
back in 72 i recorded this from the tv speaker with a microphone onto a cassette recorder. stayed with me for years
Alan O'Neill
well done!
Paulie2real Everyday
Lol if I were alive I would of done the same shit
1960gal
What a sweet voice. I love this version.....just listening to the instruments, you can really HEAR them. Not over-produced, nothing OTT. Bare and lovely.