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.
Sparkle
Curtis Mayfield Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Loving the way that I do
(It is true) I feel so good
Just having you
Breathlessly and eager
Submission isn't easy for me
(We were so loving wasn't we)
I always known it could be
Don't want to do nothing
Tied against your will
This ain't no cheap thrill
You got to know just how it feel
And if you think your going to fall
All you have to do is call
I have nothing in my self
And I give my self to you
Say child tingle sparkle
I hope the love never breaks away
Keep the fire burning everyday
Save all the warmth for you
Just want you to know
When your jealousy shows
Understand there will be no other man
But you, baby
You can believe
This love in me
As I believe in you
And when times are low
And I am really on your mind
Everybody needs some time
Something funky good and kind
And you always seem to please me
And you wear me down so easy
Good work is never done
'Til the morning comes
The opening lyrics to Curtis Mayfield's song "Sparkle" depict a person who is relishing in their love for their significant other, acknowledging that they "sparkle" because of the deep affection they feel. The singer goes on to state that they feel good just by having their partner near them, describing how the breathlessness and eagerness in their relationship is something that has not come easily to them in the past. In the chorus, the singer emphasizes that their partner's consent and comfort are essential to their relationship, refusing to engage in anything that would make their partner uncomfortable. The singer also promises not to entertain jealousy or be with anyone else but their current partner. The final lines of the song highlight the way that this love brings joy and happiness to the singer's life, ultimately bringing them to a state of creative and emotional fulfillment.
Line by Line Meaning
I sparkle
I am full of joy and happiness
Loving the way that I do
I love deeply and passionately
(It is true) I feel so good
I am genuinely happy
Just having you
I am grateful for your presence in my life
Breathlessly and eager
I am excited and eager to please you
Submission isn't easy for me
It is hard for me to submit and give control to someone else
(We were so loving wasn't we)
We were very much in love, weren't we?
I always known it could be
I always knew we had the potential to be this in love
Don't want to do nothing
I don't want to do anything
Tied against your will
Forced to do something you don't want to do
This ain't no cheap thrill
This isn't just some fleeting excitement
You got to know just how it feel
You need to understand how it feels
And if you think your going to fall
And if you feel like you're going to fail
All you have to do is call
Just reach out to me and I will help you
I have nothing in my self
I have given myself completely to you
And I give my self to you
I am yours entirely
Say child tingle sparkle
Feel the pleasure and joy of our love
I hope the love never breaks away
I hope our love never fades or disappears
Keep the fire burning everyday
We need to keep the passion and love alive
Save all the warmth for you
I will keep all of my love and passion just for you
Just want you to know
I want you to understand
When your jealousy shows
When you feel jealous
Understand there will be no other man
You are the only one for me
But you, baby
I only have eyes for you
You can believe
You can trust
This love in me
My love for you
As I believe in you
Just as I believe in you
And when times are low
When things are difficult
And I am really on your mind
And you are thinking of me
Everybody needs some time
We all need time for ourselves
Something funky good and kind
Something fun and enjoyable
And you always seem to please me
You always make me happy
And you wear me down so easy
You make me weak in the knees
Good work is never done
We always need to work on our relationship
'Til the morning comes
Until the end of time
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Curtis Mayfield
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
APTA
I sparkle
Loving the way that I do
It is true I feel so good
Just having you
Breathlessly and eager
Submission isn't easy for me
We were so loving wasn't we
I'd always known it could be
Don't want to do nothing
Girl against your will
This ain't no cheap thrill
I really mean it’s the way I feel
If ever you fall and you don’t know what to do
I have nothing but myself
And I give myself to you
Say child tingle sparkle
I hope the love never breaks away
Keep a little fire burning everyday
Save it all for you
Don’t want to feel misused
So let this love be true
Understand there will be no other woman but you baby
You can believe this love from me ‘Cause I believe in you
And when comes the need
And I’m really on your mind
Everybody needs some time
Something funky good and kind
I sparkle with the fire going higher higher higher
You always seem to please me
As you mellow me down so easy
Just want you to know
When your jealousy shows
Understand there will be no other woman but you baby
You can believe this love in me
As I believe in you
Don't want to do nothing
Girl against your will
This ain't no cheap thrill
You got to know just how I feel
If you think you’re going to fall
All you have to do is call
I have nothing but myself
And I give myself to you
Breathlessly and eager
You got me 'round your finger
I sparkle with the fire
Going higher higher higher
You always seem to please me
And you wear me down so easily
Good work is never done
Until the morning, until the morning until the morning comes baby
Baby baby baby
Forever you’re my greatest
That sparkle
CHILDOFGOD JESUS
I grew up listening to Cm & Aretha. They both sound good, straight from the heart. They're just feeling it from different sides of the fence
REAL SOUL MUSIC THAT WILL NEVER, EVER B DUPLICATED.
Beverly Newton
Love me some Curtis Mayfield, the greatest.
C Flow
I like the writer's interpretation of this. Aretha KILLS it but Curtis wrote it.
APTA
Had to send it again.
This.....
Terry Vaus
Never say you cant survive.The best album ever made!
james sholtz
Such an artist!
Nichole Royster
CM was a remarkable singer and songwriter
Navin Lamervich
Curtis Mayfield, straight out of the god of the spirit, the god of everything, of the worlds. IT conceived of him as a salve for humanity and sent him to us. and he did his work and left too early. but the work, the work, the body of it...so magnificent, beyond words.
Curtis Mayfield, the greatest poet who ever lived....the poet who saw into love, captured its fire and brought it out, hot and burning for us to see. hear Curtis speak love, from Lets Do it Again, to Claudine, to Sparkle, he rendered it from a Steeple. I hear it from on high, wafting down and filling my heart. Curtis fills me up. I never heard him and wasn't filled, sweetened and on my way for the day, longer, until I heard him again..hear him again for i listen to him often, once a month, 2 months, a sudden binge...
Curtis did not only speak softly but decisively of love but of all life. nothing he said mystified but clear up, painted pictures of truth in the mind. Curtis was Truth itself
but he is always there, here now, accessible for the world. now that he is gone he here forever. what truly special event...the life of Curtis Mayfield, a gentle giant..a poet for the ages. a thousand years form now I can see the people of that future day, disdainful of current humanity in all fields.. except among the exceptional nuggets of our day, remembered for all ages.. would be the art of Curtis Mayfield.
the future may be disdainful of GMO foods and capitalists, the whole mess of our futility, almost 100% of it. but not of Mayfield and some others, the salve that helped us through, saved the day for the future..gave them the chance to look back and be disdainful. they would know that without Curtis they may not be there at all
Marcus Levi
Navin Lamervich AMAZING!
Michelle Hunter
Wow what a awesome post. Deep and delightful. 👏 bravo