In 1928 (on his 25th birthday) Hines began leading his own big band. For over 10 years his was "The Band" in Al Capone's Grand Terrace Cafe — Hines was Capone's "Mr Piano Man". Hines recorded for Victor in 1929, then after a gap for Brunswick from 1932-1934, Decca from 1934-1935, then after another gap, Vocalion from 1937-1938 and Bluebird from 1939-1942 (nearly all among the best Black Jazz of the era). From the Grand Terrace, The Earl Hines Orchestra (or "Organization" as he more happily referred to it) broadcast on "open mikes", sometimes five nights a week and over many years, coast to coast across America — Chicago being well placed to deal with the U.S. live-broadcasting time-zone problem. Hines's band became the most broadcast band in America. Sometimes Nat "King" Cole was Hines's relief pianist (though Cliff Smalls was his favorite) and it was here with Hines that Charlie Parker got his first professional job...until he was fired for his time-keeping — by which Hines meant Parker's inability to show up on time despite Parker resorting to sleeping under the Grand Terrace stage in his attempts to do so. Hines led his big band until 1947, taking time out to front the Duke Ellington orchestra in 1944 while Duke was ill...but the big-band era was over. (Thirty years later, Hines's 20 solo "transformative versions" of his "Earl Hines Plays Duke Ellington" recorded in the 1970s were described by Ben Ratliff in the "New York Times" as "as good an example of the jazz process as anything out there".)
At the start of 1949 Hines rejoined Armstrong in the latter's "All Stars" "small band", where Hines stayed through 1951. He then led his own small combo around the States and Europe. At the start of the jazz-lean 1960s he settled in Oakland, California, opened a tobacconist's, and came close to giving up the profession. Then, in 1964 Hines was "suddenly rediscovered" following a series of concerts in New York. He was the 1965 "Critics' Choice" for Down Beat Magazine's "Hall of Fame". From then till he died he recorded endlessly both solo and with jazz notables like Cat Anderson, Buck Clayton, Roy Eldridge, Ella Fitzgerald, Paul Gonsalves, Sonny Greer, Lionel Hampton, Coleman Hawkins, Johnny Hodges, Budd Johnson, Jimmy Rushing, Stuff Smith, Sarah Vaughan, Joe Venuti and Ben Webster. Possibly more surprising were Elvin Jones, Peggy Lee, Charles Mingus, Dinah Washington — and Ry Cooder. But his most acclaimed recordings of this period were his dazzling and endlessly inventive solo performances, which could show him at his very best, "a whole orchestra by himself".[12] Solo tributes to Louis Armstrong, Hoagy Carmichael, Duke Ellington, Cole Porter, and George Gershwin were all put on record in the 1970s. Hines also toured Europe again regularly at this time, and added Asia, Australia and the Soviet Union to his list of State Department–funded destinations. At the top of his form, Hines also displayed his endearing quirks (not to say grunts) in these performances. Sometimes he sang as he played, especially his own "They Never Believed I Could Do It - Neither Did I". In 1975 he made an hour-long "solo" film for British TV out-of-hours in a Washington nightclub: the "New York Herald Tribune" described it as "The greatest jazz-film ever made". He played solo in The White House and played solo for the Pope — and played (and sang) his last job a few days before he died in Oakland, quite likely somewhat older than he had always maintained.
I Got It Bad
Earl Hines Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Tell me to save my tears
Well I'm so mad about him
I can't live without him
Never treats me sweet and gentle
The way he should
I've got it bad
My poor heart is so sentimental
Not made of wood
I've got it so bad
And that ain't good
But when the fish are jumpin'
And Friday rolls around
My man an' I, we gin some
We pray some, and sin some
He don't love me like I love him
The way he should
I've got it bad
And that ain't good
Yes I've got it bad
And that ain't good
The lyrics of Earl Hines and His Orchestra's "I Got It Bad And That Ain’t Good" describe the singer's deep love for someone who doesn't treat them the way they deserve. Despite the advice of well-meaning friends to move on and forget about this person, the singer cannot help but feel "so mad about him" and unable to live without him. The lyrics suggest a level of deep emotional attachment that is impossible to break free from, despite the pain that it causes.
The lyrics go on to describe the intensity of the singer's feelings, using metaphors like a "sentimental" heart that is "not made of wood." They describe moments of happiness with the man in question, like when they go fishing and pray together, but ultimately acknowledge that the man doesn't love them back the same way. The lyrics end on the bittersweet realization that the singer is stuck with these intense feelings that are difficult to bear, no matter how much they might want to let go and move on.
Overall, "I Got It Bad And That Ain't Good" is a song about the complexities of love and the way that it can trap us in intense emotional states, even when we know that it might not be healthy for us. It's a song that many people can relate to, as we have all experienced the pain of being in love with someone who doesn't treat us the way we deserve.
Line by Line Meaning
Though folks with good intentions Tell me to save my tears
Though people who care about me tell me to stop crying
Well I'm so mad about him I can't live without him
I love him so much that I can't imagine living without him
Never treats me sweet and gentle The way he should
He doesn't treat me with the kindness and tenderness I deserve
I've got it bad And that ain't good
I'm deeply in love with him, but that's not good because he doesn't treat me right
My poor heart is so sentimental Not made of wood
My heart is very emotional and sensitive, it's not like an object made of wood
I've got it so bad And that ain't good
I'm deeply in love with him, but that's not good because it hurts me
But when the fish are jumpin' And Friday rolls around My man an' I, we gin some We pray some, and sin some
But sometimes when we're together, we drink, pray and do things we shouldn't
He don't love me like I love him The way he should
He doesn't love me as much as I love him, he doesn't treat me right
Yes I've got it bad And that ain't good
I'm still deeply in love with him, but it's not good for me
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: KEITH EDWARD CROUCH, KEVIN T. JONES, TEVIN JERMOD CAMPBELL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind