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.
Tripping Out
Curtis Mayfield Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm tripping out, tripping out over you babe - over you babe
I'm tripping out, tripping out over you babe over you
Each day I'm not with you, is like a day without sunshine,
I'm the whole of you babe, You've become a part of me - ooowee
You're not like other girls, or is it my imagination
This pounding in my heart, is all because of you
I'm tripping out, tripping out over you babe ? yeah mama
I'm tripping out, tripping out over you ? come on
Instrumental [16 bars]
(Its a good feeling)
(All over you)
Let me be your slave, because I've learnt to worship you
I'll do anything you say, anything you want me to
To me you are my queen, and I'm your knight in shining armour
Standing guard over your love, the love you've given me
You've got me...
Tripping out, tripping out, over you babe ? your so good to me mama
Tripping out, tripping out, tripping out, over you ? I love you baby
Your so good to me little mama
Curtis Mayfield's "Tripping Out" is a love song that speaks to the power of infatuation that can become all-consuming. The singer claims that with each day he is not with his beloved, he feels like he is living without sunshine. He is tripping out over her, as she has become a part of him, and he can't stop thinking about her. He goes on to say that he will do anything she wants him to do because she's all he wants in the world. He sees himself as her knight in shining armor, guarding their love, which she has given him. The song speaks to the powerful emotions of infatuation and love that can at times be overwhelming.
Mayfield's careful arrangement of the verses and the chorus, accents the powerful emotions experienced by the singer. The chorus repeats the phrase "tripping out" and amplifies the intensity of these sentiments through its repetition. The extended instrumental break adds to the spacey and psychedelic undertones of the song. While the lyrics are fairly straightforward and simple, the song takes on a dream-like quality, using metaphors to draw attention to the intoxicating sensations of love.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm tripping out, tripping out over you babe - over you babe
I can't stop thinking about you, you're always on my mind
I'm tripping out, tripping out over you babe over you
My infatuation with you is taking over my thoughts and emotions
Each day I'm not with you, is like a day without sunshine,
I miss you so much when you're not here, it feels like the world is darker
I'm the whole of you babe, You've become a part of me - ooowee
You've influenced my life in such a big way, I feel like we're one person
You're not like other girls, or is it my imagination
I see you as unique and special, but I wonder if it's just my perception
This pounding in my heart, is all because of you
You make my heart race and I'm filled with intense emotions for you
Let me be your slave, because I've learnt to worship you
I'm willing to do anything for you because I adore and admire you
I'll do anything you say, anything you want me to
I'm completely devoted to you and will fulfill your every desire
To me you are my queen, and I'm your knight in shining armour
I see you as royalty and I'm here to protect and serve you
Standing guard over your love, the love you've given me
I'm grateful for your love and I'll make sure to protect it
You've got me...
You have complete control over my heart and soul
Tripping out, tripping out, over you babe ? yeah mama
My infatuation with you is making me dizzy with love and excitement
Tripping out, tripping out, tripping out, over you ? I love you baby
I'm completely in love with you and can't get enough of you
Your so good to me little mama
You treat me so well and I appreciate all that you do
Contributed by Allison I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.