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.
So You Don't Love Me
Curtis Mayfield Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
What can I say other than take care of yourself?
Till the ends of the earth, I suppose
There's everyone's worldly vow
But somehow it seems mine
Have seem to have stopped half way
Maybe I wanna let things just come with me
I am not accusing you
Do what you think you are oughta do
For it's just one thing and then another
Like you don't love me
So you don't love me
We'd given it all a final try
You've hurt me so bad I could have died
But ain't no hard feelings
I won't worry my mind with such dealings
So you don't love me
In a world already filled with misery
I have no intentions to let my spirit come right on me
Live on through the years, keep some proud on my face
The scar of the disgrace, I guess I got to find me a better place
Wherever you might be, keep yourself alright
Every heart I suppose got to slip out little light
Hope the other cares as much I used to do
Keep your love life true, keep your love life true
You don't love me
In a world already filled with misery
I have no intentions to let my spirit come right on me
Live on through the years and keep some proud on my face
The scar of the disgrace, I guess I got to find me a better place
So I am not accusing you
Do what you think you oughta do
For it's just one thing and then another
So you don't love me
So you don't love me
So you don't love me
You don't love me
You don't love me
So you don't love me
So you don't love me
You don't love me
You don't love me
You don't love me
So you don't love me
You don't love me
So you don't love me
Curtis Mayfield's "So You Don't Love Me" is a song about the end of a relationship. The lyrics express the singer's feelings of hurt and disappointment, but also his determination to move on with his life. He acknowledges that his partner no longer loves him and encourages them to do what they think is best for them. He does not hold any hard feelings or animosity towards them, but instead chooses to focus on his own well-being and finding his own happiness.
The first verse sets the tone for the rest of the song, with the singer acknowledging that there is nothing left to say other than to wish his partner well. He recognizes that his partner's decision not to love him is just one in a long line of worldly vows that everyone makes. The second verse reveals that the singer's own vows seem to have stalled midway, suggesting that he may have been holding on to hope for the relationship even though it was clearly over.
The chorus then repeats the title phrase "So you don't love me" several times, emphasizing the singer's feeling of rejection. However, he quickly follows this up with the assertion that he is not accusing his partner of anything and that they should do what they think is best. He acknowledges that relationships can be complicated and that things don't always work out, but emphasizes that he won't hold a grudge or dwell on the past.
The final verse addresses his partner directly, telling them to take care of themselves and to keep their own love life true. The singer makes a clear decision to focus on his own well-being and to find a better place for himself. The song ends with a final repetition of the title phrase, as if to affirm that the relationship is truly over and it's time to move on.
Line by Line Meaning
So there's nothing left
There's nothing left in the relationship, it has ended.
What can I say other than take care of yourself?
There's nothing left to say but wishing the other person well.
Till the ends of the earth, I suppose
Even though the relationship has ended, the promise of love will last forever.
There's everyone's worldly vow
Everyone promises to love forever, but it rarely lasts.
But somehow it seems mine
Even though it was promised, the love felt is no longer there.
Have seem to have stopped half way
The love once felt has stopped prematurely instead of continuing until the end.
Maybe I wanna let things just come with me
The singer could let the hurt and pain consume them, but they choose to let it pass by them.
So you don't love me
The other person no longer loves the artist and the relationship has ended.
I am not accusing you
The artist is not placing blame on the other person for the end of the relationship.
Do what you think you are oughta do
The other person should follow their own path and do what they believe is right for them.
For it's just one thing and then another
Things happen, relationships end for various reasons, and life moves on.
Like you don't love me
The other person's lack of love is just one of many factors that led to the end of the relationship.
We'd given it all a final try
The relationship had been tested multiple times, and this was the final attempt to make it work.
You've hurt me so bad I could have died
The pain caused by the other person's actions was so intense that the singer felt like they could have died.
But ain't no hard feelings
Despite the hurt, the singer does not hold any grudges.
I won't worry my mind with such dealings
The artist will not let the past consume them and instead chooses to move on.
In a world already filled with misery
The world is already a difficult place to live in, and additional heartache is not needed.
I have no intentions to let my spirit come right on me
The singer does not want to let the pain and hurt affect their spirit and well-being.
Live on through the years, keep some proud on my face
The singer will continue to live with dignity and pride, despite the end of the relationship.
The scar of the disgrace, I guess I got to find me a better place
The emotional pain caused by the end of the relationship needs to be healed, and the artist needs to find a new place in life.
Wherever you might be, keep yourself alright
The artist wishes the other person well, and hopes that they are doing well.
Every heart I suppose got to slip out little light
Every person has moments of vulnerability and weakness, and it is okay to let others see that.
Hope the other cares as much I used to do
The singer hopes that the other person cares about themselves as much as they used to care about them.
Keep your love life true, keep your love life true
The artist hopes that the other person will stay true to themselves and their feelings in future relationships.
You don't love me
The other person no longer loves the singer and the relationship has ended.
You don't love me
The other person no longer loves the singer and the relationship has ended.
You don't love me
The other person no longer loves the singer and the relationship has ended.
You don't love me
The other person no longer loves the artist and the relationship has ended.
So you don't love me
The other person no longer loves the artist and the relationship has ended.
So you don't love me
The other person no longer loves the singer and the relationship has ended.
You don't love me
The other person no longer loves the singer and the relationship has ended.
So you don't love me
The other person no longer loves the artist and the relationship has ended.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: CURTIS MAYFIELD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind