Born Esther Mae Jones in Galveston, Texas, when she was an adolescent, her parents divorced, and she was forced to divide her time between her father in Houston and her mother in the Watts area of Los Angeles. Because she was brought up singing in church, she was hesitant to enter a talent contest at a local blues club, but her sister insisted and she complied. A mature singer at age fourteen, she won the amateur talent contest in 1949 at the Barrelhouse Club owned by Johnny Otis. Otis was so impressed that he recorded her for Modern Records and added her to his traveling revue, the California Rhythm and Blues Caravan, billed as 'Little Esther Phillips' (she reportedly took the surname from a gas station sign).
Her first hit record was Double Crossing Blues, recorded in 1950 for Savoy Records. After several hit records with Savoy, including her duet with Mel Walker on Mistrusting Blues, which went to number one that year, as did "Cupid Boogie". Other Phillips records that made it onto the U.S. Billboard R&B chart in 1950 include "Misery" (number 9), "Deceivin' Blues" (number 4), "Wedding Boogie" (number 6), and "Faraway Blues" (number 6). Few female artists, R&B or otherwise, had ever enjoyed such success in their debut year. Phillips left Otis and the Savoy label at the end of 1950 and signed with Federal Records.
But just as quickly as the hits had started, they stopped. Although she recorded more than thirty sides for Federal, only one, Ring-a-Ding-Doo, charted; the song made it to number 8 in 1952. Not working with Otis was part of her problem; the other part was her drug usage. By the middle of the decade Phillips was chronically addicted to drugs.
In 1954, she returned to Houston to live with her father to recuperate. Short on money, she worked in small nightclubs around the South, punctuated by periodic hospital stays in Lexington, Kentucky, stemming from her addiction. In 1962, Kenny Rogers re-discovered her while singing at a Houston club and got her signed to his brother Lelan’s Lenox label.
Phillips ultimately got well enough to launch a comeback in 1962. Now billed as Esther Phillips instead of Little Esther, she recorded a country tune, Release Me, with producer Bob Gans. This went to number 1 R&B and number 8 on the pop listings. After several other minor R&B hits on Lenox, she was signed by Atlantic Records. Her cover of The Beatles' song And I Love Him nearly made the R&B Top Ten in 1965 and the Beatles flew her to the UK for her first overseas performances.
She had other hits in the 1960s on the label, but no more chart toppers, and she waged a battle with heroin dependency. With her addiction worsening, Phillips checked into a rehab facility. While undergoing treatment, she cut some sides for Roulette in 1969, mostly produced by Lelan Rogers. On her release, she moved back to Los Angeles and re-signed with the Atlantic label. A late 1969 gig at Freddie Jett's Pied Piper club produced the album Burnin'. She performed with the Johnny Otis Show at the Monterey Jazz Festival in 1970.
One of her biggest post-1950s triumphs was in 1972 with her first album for Kudu Records. The song penned by Gil Scott-Heron, Home Is Where the Hatred Is, - an account of drug use — was lead track on From a Whisper to a Scream which went on to be nominated for a Grammy Award. When Phillips lost to Aretha Franklin, the latter presented the trophy to Phillips, saying she should have won it instead.
Taylor continued to cut albums with her until in 1975, she scored her biggest hit single since "Release Me" with a disco-style update of Dinah Washington's What a Diff'rence a Day Makes. It reached a high of a Top 20 chart appearance in the U.S., and Top 10 in the UK Singles Chart. On November 8, 1975 she performed the song on an episode of NBC's Saturday Night hosted by Candice Bergen. The accompanying album of the same name became her biggest seller yet, with arranger Joe Beck on guitar, Michael Brecker on tenor sax, David Sanborn on alto sax, and Randy Brecker on trumpet to Steve Khan on guitar and Don Grolnick on keyboards.
She continued to record and perform throughout the 1970s and early 1980s, completing a total of seven albums on Kudu and four with Mercury Records, for whom she signed in 1977. In 1983, she charted for the final time on a tiny independent label, Winning with Turn Me Out, which reached #85 R&B. She completed recording her final album a few months before her death, but it was not until 1986 that the label (Muse) released the record.
Phillips died at UCLA Medical Center in Carson, California in 1984, at the age of 48 from liver and kidney failure due to drug use. Her funeral services were conducted by Johnny Otis, and she was buried in the Morning Light section, at Forest Lawn - Hollywood Hills Cemetery in Los Angeles. The bronze marker recognizes her career achievements, as well as quoting a Bible passage, "In My Father's House Are Many Mansions" - St. John 14:2
FEVER
Esther Phillips Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Never know how much I care
When you put your arms around me
I get a fever that's so hard to bear
You give me fever when you kiss me
Fever when you hold me tight
Fever in the morning
Ev'rybody's got the fever
that is something you all know
Fever isn't such a new thing
Fever started long ago
Sun lights up the daytime
Moon lights up the night
I light up when you call my name
And you know I'm gonna treat you right
You give me fever when you kiss me
Fever when you hold me tight
Fever in the morning
Fever all through the night
Romeo loved Juliet
Juliet she felt the same
When he put his arms around her
He said, Julie baby, you're my flame
Thou givest fever when we kisseth
Fever with thy flaming youth
Fever, I'm afire
Fever, yea I burn forsooth
Captain Smith and Pocahontas
Had a very mad affair
When her daddy tried to kill him
She said Daddy-o don't you dare
He gives me fever with his kisses
Fever when he holds me tight
Fever, I'm his Missus,
Oh daddy, won't you treat him right
Now you've listened to my story
Here's the point that I have made
Cats were born to give chicks fever
Be it Fahrenheit or centigrade
They give you fever when you kiss them
Fever if you live and learn
Fever till you sizzle
What a lovely way to burn
What a lovely way to burn
What a lovely way to burn
Esther Phillips’s song, “Fever”, talks about the overwhelming emotions that one feels when they are close to their love. The lyrics start by stating that the singer never knew how much they loved or cared for their significant other until they held them. When the singer is with their love interest, they get a fever that is so strong that it is hard to bear. Each time they kiss or embrace, the fire within them grows stronger.
The chorus repeats and emphasizes the effect that their partner has on them. They mention how everyone has experienced this fever, and it is not something new, and it has been around for a long time. Esther mentions that just like the sun and moon that light up the day and night, her love interest lights up her world. Her lover’s presence alone is enough to warm her up, with or without physical touch.
The second verse provides two examples of couples that have been affected by the fever. There is Romeo and Juliet, who were madly in love, and Captain Smith and Pocahontas, who had a tumultuous affair. In both cases, the fever was significant and overpowering. The last verse is Esther’s way of summarizing the song, stating that love is a natural thing that makes people feel hot, whether it is Fahrenheit or centigrade.
Line by Line Meaning
Never know how much I love you
I never realized how deep my love for you goes
Never know how much I care
I never realized how much I care for you
When you put your arms around me
Whenever you hold me close
I get a fever that's so hard to bear
I feel a strong emotion that I can't handle
You give me fever when you kiss me
Your kiss ignites a strong feeling in me
Fever when you hold me tight
I feel a strong rush of emotions when you hold me tight
Fever in the morning
I feel this rush of emotions even in the morning
Fever all through the night
I feel this rush of emotions throughout the night
Ev'rybody's got the fever
Everyone feels strong emotions at some point
that is something you all know
This is something that everyone can relate to
Fever isn't such a new thing
Feeling strong emotions isn't new or uncommon
Fever started long ago
People have felt strong emotions for a long time
Sun lights up the daytime
The sun is out during the day
Moon lights up the night
The moon is visible at night
I light up when you call my name
I feel a burst of excitement and happiness when you call my name
And you know I'm gonna treat you right
I will make sure to treat you with love and respect
Thou givest fever when we kisseth
When we kiss, I feel a strong emotion
Fever with thy flaming youth
Your passionate, fiery youth fuels this strong emotion
Fever, I'm afire
I feel a burning passion
Fever, yea I burn forsooth
I burn with intense feelings for you
Captain Smith and Pocahontas
The story of Captain Smith and Pocahontas
Had a very mad affair
They had a passionate love affair
When her daddy tried to kill him
Pocahontas' father disapproved of their relationship
She said Daddy-o don't you dare
Pocahontas pleaded with her father not to hurt Captain Smith
He gives me fever with his kisses
Captain Smith's kisses ignite a strong feeling in Pocahontas
Fever when he holds me tight
Pocahontas feels a strong rush of emotions when held tight by Captain Smith
Fever, I'm his Missus,
Pocahontas is Captain Smith's wife
Oh daddy, won't you treat him right
Pocahontas asks her father to accept her relationship with Captain Smith
Now you've listened to my story
You've heard my story
Here's the point that I have made
Here's what I'm trying to say
Cats were born to give chicks fever
Cats have always been known to make people feel strong emotions
Be it Fahrenheit or centigrade
Regardless of the temperature scale used
They give you fever when you kiss them
Cats have a way of igniting strong emotions when you interact with them
Fever if you live and learn
Strong emotions are a part of life and can be felt through experience
Fever till you sizzle
Feelings can become so intense that one can feel like they are boiling
What a lovely way to burn
Feeling a strong emotion is a beautiful and intense experience
What a lovely way to burn
Feeling a strong emotion is a beautiful and intense experience
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Van Morrison
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind