After The Merry-Go-Round, who had a recording contract with A&M Records, disbanded in 1969, Rhodes recorded songs at A&M to fulfill that contract, but A&M decided to not release them at the time. Rhodes then decided to go out on his own and bought equipment to make a recording studio in his parents' garage. Rhodes recorded his first album (Emitt Rhodes) in that home studio. He got a recording contract with ABC/Dunhill Records, who released his album, as well as the next two albums he recorded (Mirror and Farewell to Paradise). Rhodes got a $5,000 advance for Emitt Rhodes, which he spent on recording equipment. His first album was a critical success – Billboard called Rhodes "one of the finest artists on the music scene today" and later called his first album one of the "best albums of the decade". The album reached number 29 on the Billboard charts. The single "Fresh as a Daisy" reached number 54 on the pop chart. Meanwhile, shortly after Emitt Rhodes was released by Dunhill, A&M decided to release their old recordings of The American Dream, which confused record buyers. Mirror was released in 1971 and did reach the top 200 on Billboard's album chart. In 1973 Dunhill released Rhodes' final album, Farewell to Paradise.
Rhodes wrote all of the songs on his albums. On Emitt Rhodes, Mirror, and Farewell to Paradise, he played all of the instruments and sang all of the vocals while recording himself in his home recording studio. He used a four-track recorder for the instruments for Emitt Rhodes and transferred those to an eight-track recorder to add the vocals. He used an eight-track recorder for Mirror, and Farewell to Paradise. The mixdown engineer on Farewell to Paradise was Curt Boettcher, the producer and musician who is best remembered for his work on the "soft pop" albums by Sagittarius and The Millennium.
Rhodes' contract with Dunhill called for an album every six months (six albums over three years) – a schedule that was impossible for Rhodes to meet, due to writing all of the songs and recording each instrument and vocal individually by himself.
Dunhill sued Rhodes for $250,000 and withheld royalties because of his failure to deliver albums on the timescale required by the contract. Emitt Rhodes took nearly a year to record, the album Mirror took nine months, and Farewell to Paradise took over a year.
After Farewell to Paradise, Rhodes stopped performing and released no more material, except on compilations. He continued to record his songs in his studio, but they were unreleased except for one song on Listen, Listen. He worked as a recording engineer and record producer for Elektra Records.
Rhodes' song "Lullabye" (from Emitt Rhodes) was featured in the 2001 Wes Anderson film The Royal Tenenbaums.
In January and February 2009, Italian director Cosimo Messeri shot a documentary movie about Rhodes's vicissitudes: life, past, present, troubles and hopes. The movie, entitled The One Man Beatles, was selected for the International Rome Film Festival 2009, and received standing ovations. In 2010 "The One Man Beatles" was nominated for David di Donatello Award as Best Documentary of 2010. Its US Screening took place in May 2010 at the Rhino Records Pop Up Store in Westwood, California.
Also in 2009, after many years of rumors as to the possibility of a new CD, Rhodes once again entered the recording studios with a new band and all-new material, joined by the co-founder of The Grass Roots and The Merry-Go-Round drummer Joel Larson, co-founder and former bassist for Counting Crows, Matt Malley, and guitarists Jim Rolfe and Dan Mayer. Also participating on three of Emitt's new songs is legendary guitarist Richard Thompson, whose band Fairport Convention covered Emitt's song "Time Will Show the Wiser" in 1967. Bangles' members Vicki Peterson and Debbi Peterson, who covered Emitt's song "Live" on their debut album, also make an appearance.
In 2010, Rhodes, along with Rhodes Band’s Matt Malley, joined another ex-member of Fairport Convention, Iain Matthews, on a new version of "Time Will Show the Wiser", arranged, produced and performed by Nick Vernier Band. This recording, initially released on Nick Vernier Band's "Sessions"-album, marked Emitt's first new release as a featured artist in almost four decades. Both Emitt and Iain recorded this Rhodes-original early on in their careers, the song being starting points as well as signature works for The Merry-Go-Round and Fairport Convention respectively. The new version united the two singers in an Indian musical setting. Also in 2010, a tribute album titled Long Time, No See was released. It contained Emitt Rhodes songs recorded by various artists.
On November 3, 2011, Rhodes released three new songs on iTunes titled "Just Me And You", "What's A Man to Do" and "This Wall Between Us", featuring back up singing by Vicki and Debbi Peterson of the Bangles, and guitar work by Richard Thompson.
In 2014, Emitt began work with musician/producer Chris Price on a full album of songs, recorded in his original home studio, intended as a stylistic follow-up to Farewell to Paradise. During these sessions, Emitt recorded a cover of the Bee Gees hit "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" for a tribute album called To Love the Bee Gees, released in November 2015 by 80 Proof Records and Tapes.
His album Rainbow Ends was released in 2016, his first album in 43 years.
Discography
Studio albums
The Merry-Go-Round (1967, with The Merry-Go-Round) reached #190 on the Billboard 200
Emitt Rhodes (1970) #29
Mirror (1971) #182
The American Dream (1971) #194
Farewell to Paradise (1973)
Rainbow Ends (2016)
Collections
Daisy-Fresh from Hawthorne, California (The Best of the Dunhill Years)[4]
Daisy-Fresh includes all of the songs from Emmit Rhodes, six songs from Mirror, four songs from Farewell to Paradise, plus the single "Tame the Lion".[4]
Listen, Listen: The Best of Emitt Rhodes
Listen, Listen contains five songs from The Merry-Go-Round, one song from The American Dream, seven songs from Emitt Rhodes, four songs from Mirror, two songs from Farewell to Paradise, plus the single "Tame the Lion" and the previously-unreleased 1980 song "Isn't it So".
The Merry-Go-Round: Listen, Listen: The Definitive Collection
A nearly complete collection of Merry-Go-Round songs, almost all written and sung by Rhodes. The The Merry-Go-Round (stereo version) and American Dream LPs are included in their entirety, as are the mono mix of "Time Will Show the Wiser" and a few non-album singles. Not included are the mono mix of The Merry-Go-Round and the unique single mixes of "Come Ride, Come Ride" and "'Til the Day After".
Royal Tenenbaums: Collector's Edition CD
"Lullabye" appears.
The Emitt Rhodes Recordings (1969–1972), two CDs:
CD 1: The American Dream (all thirteen songs from both versions) and Emitt Rhodes
CD 2: Mirror, Farewell to Paradise, plus the single "Tame the Lion"
Singles
with The Merry-Go-Round:
"Live" #63 on pop chart
"Time Will Show the Wiser"
"You're a Very Lovely Woman" #94 on pop chart
"She Laughed Loud"
"Listen, Listen"
"'Til the Day After"
solo:
"Fresh as a Daisy" #54 on pop chart
"You Take the Dark Out of the Night"
"Live Till You Die"
"With My Face on the Floor"
"Love Will Stone You"
"Really Wanted You"
"Golden Child of God"
"Tame The Lion" / "Those That Die"
"Isn't It So?
"Just Me And You", "What's A Man To Do" / "This Wall Between Us" Released on iTunes, November 3, 2011
Live Till You Die
Emitt Rhodes Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I have to say the things I feel, oh
I have to feel the things I say
You must live till you die, you must fight to survive
You must live till you die
See the sun rising in the east, welcome warm days
Feel my heart flying every time we're alone babe
Everything around me has been changing so
I can't let go, oh no, no
You must live till you die, you must fight to survive
You must live till you die, you must feel to be alive
You must live till you die
Feel the earth trembling, have you heard distant thunder?
Everything's moving what's this feeling I'm under
Everything around me has been changing so
I can't let go, oh no, no
You must live till you die, you must fight to survive
You must live till you die, you must feel to be alive
You must live till you die, you must live till you die
I have to spin the spinning wheel, I have to kneel that way
I have to say the things I feel, I have to feel the things I say
You must live till you die, you must fight to survive
You must live till you die, you must feel to be alive
You must live till you die
"Live Till You Die" is a powerful song about living life to the fullest and embracing all of its highs and lows. The first verse emphasizes the need to express one's emotions genuinely and authentically, highlighting the significance of vulnerability and honesty in human connections. The repetition of the phrase "you must live till you die" emphasizes that one must not waste a single moment and must fight to survive in this world that is constantly changing. The chorus emphasizes feeling alive and the importance of experiencing everything until the very end.
In the following verses, the song describes the beauty of life, the sun rising in the east bringing warm days, and the feeling of flying every time one is with someone they love. However, it also acknowledges the feeling of uncertainty and change, the trembling earth, and distant thunder. Despite the changes, the singer cannot let go of their desire to live fully and embrace everything life has to offer.
The final verse speaks of the need to take action and spin the spinning wheel, kneel down and express oneself authentically. The song ends with a reiteration of the refrain "you must live till you die."
Overall, the song conveys a powerful message about the need to live life to the fullest, to embrace everything, and not to be afraid of feeling everything – both joy and pain.
Line by Line Meaning
I have to say the things I feel, oh
I cannot restrain my emotions within, and instead, I need to express them verbally.
I have to feel the things I say
I need to firmly believe in the things I say and stand by them with authenticity.
You must live till you die, you must fight to survive
One must embrace life in its entirety, find the strength to keep going, and face challenges head-on to stay alive.
You must live till you die, you must feel to be alive
It is necessary to let ourselves be emotionally vulnerable and experience various feelings to experience the full essence of being alive.
You must live till you die
Live life to the fullest, and keep living until your very last breath.
See the sun rising in the east, welcome warm days
Be aware of the changing times and receive the beauty of life that each new day brings.
Feel my heart flying every time we're alone babe
My heart is brimming with joy and happiness whenever I'm with my beloved.
Everything around me has been changing so
Life keeps moving forward, and everything around me is in a constant state of change.
I can't let go, oh no, no
I'm unable to relinquish the past and resist the changing tide of time.
Feel the earth trembling, have you heard distant thunder?
Suggestive of the turbulent times ahead, with uncertain changes indicated by distant and unheard of events.
Everything's moving what's this feeling I'm under
The uncertainty of life and its power to take everything in its fold, leaving one in a state of constant wonderment.
I have to spin the spinning wheel, I have to kneel that way
I have to continue doing things that make me feel complete, no matter how hard or challenging it gets.
Contributed by Isaac N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Rich Alderson
Emitt has now died and that is very sad. Even though there was sadness while he lived, he also left a small but incredible body of work that continues to lift us up and inspire. R.I.P.
Johnny Lloyd Rollins
Rip to my musical big bro. Playing this song on repeat all day
Frank Carmack
Amen. Requiem aeternum, Emmit Rhodes
Miles Trotter
I'm 15 and Emmit Rhodes is downright spectacular! I have this on record or will soon, and I can't get enough of his music. What a phenomenal musician. I also frequently play his songs on guitar. I cant believe he passed right after I discovered his genius.
Michael Maricic
How did this artist get missed by so many? So talented.
Jane Dumestre
+Michael Maricic His was my favorite music back in 1969-73 or so.
Paul Gentile
.............🎲🎲
Noknes
Such an underrated artist.
RIP Emmit
Diana Sarver
Have had this album since i was young and still have it.
Frank Carmack
I had a copy in '71, gave it to someone who needed to hear it, finally tracked down a used copy in '92. Finally upgraded to CD on the Vintage Varese label in later '90s.