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
Try Me
Esther Phillips Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Try me.
Why don't you try me?
If you wanna know if I'm affected by the moon above,
Then try me.
Come on and try me.
Don't you know my heart feels a strong desire
When I'm thrilled by the warmth of your touch?
And I need your lovin' so much.
If you really wanna know if I am longing for your kiss,
Then try me.
Why won't you try me.
If you think that I'll get weak in a cozy spot like this,
Please try me.
I beg you, try me.
If you're wondrin' 'bout the magic in stars and soft caresses
There's only one way to know if it's right:
Just take me in your arms, baby, and try, try me tonight.
Don't you know my heart feels a strong desire
When I'm thrilled by the warmth of your touch?
Baby, don't you know my soul's on fire,
And I need your lovin' so much.
Just take me your arms and try me tonight
I want you to take me in your arms, and come on, and try me tonight
I beg you, try me, try me, try me, try me tonight.
The song "Try Me" by Esther Phillips is a soulful ballad about a woman asking her lover to test the strength of her love. The lyrics suggest that the woman is ready to prove her love for her man by enduring any trial that might come her way. The chorus is repeated throughout the song, with the verse focusing on different aspects of her love that she is willing to be tested on. The first verse challenges her lover to try her brand of love, and the second verse invites him to try her emotional strength by putting her in a cozy spot. The final verse encourages her lover to take her in his arms and try her tonight, to prove that their love is real.
The lyrics convey a sense of longing and desire for a deeper connection with her lover. She sings about the heat and passion that she feels when she is with him, and how much she craves his touch. The repetition of the chorus emphasizes the importance of testing their relationship, to ensure that they have a strong foundation for their love to grow. Overall, the lyrics suggest that the woman is willing to do whatever it takes to prove her love and commitment to her partner.
Line by Line Meaning
If you really wanna know if I can stand your brand of love,
Try me.
If you want to know if I can handle your type of love, put me to the test and give it a try.
Why don't you try me?
Just test me out and see what happens.
If you wanna know if I'm affected by the moon above,
Then try me.
If you want to see if I'm impacted by the moon's phases, give it a try.
Come on and try me.
Please give me a chance to prove myself.
Don't you know my heart feels a strong desire
When I'm thrilled by the warmth of your touch?
You should know that I long for your touch and it fills me with desire.
Baby, don't you know my soul's on fire,
And I need your lovin' so much.
I'm consumed by passion for you and I crave your love intensely.
If you really wanna know if I am longing for your kiss,
Then try me.
To find out if I'm yearning for your kiss, put me to the test and kiss me.
Why won't you try me.
Why are you hesitating? Test me out and see what happens.
If you think that I'll get weak in a cozy spot like this,
Please try me.
If you assume I'll become vulnerable in a comfortable spot like this, I urge you to give it a try.
I beg you, try me.
I'm pleading with you to give me a chance to show you what I'm made of.
If you're wondrin' 'bout the magic in stars and soft caresses
There's only one way to know if it's right:
If you're curious about the connection between stars and gentle touches, there's a single way to find out:
Just take me in your arms, baby, and try, try me tonight.
Hold me in your arms and give it a go tonight.
Just take me your arms and try me tonight
I want you to take me in your arms, and come on, and try me tonight
I beg you, try me, try me, try me, try me tonight.
Hold me tonight and test out our connection because I really want you to try.
Writer(s): James Brown Copyright: Jadar Music Corp.
Contributed by Miles B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@Sofiapewpew
If you really wanna know
If I can stand your brand of love
Try me, why don't you try me
If you wanna know
If I'm affected by the moon above
Then try me, come on and try me
Don't you know my heart feels strong desire
When I'm thrilled by the warmth
of your touch
Baby don't you know my soul's on fire
And I need your loving so much
If you really wanna know
If I am longing for your kiss
Then try me, why won't you try me
If you think that I'll get weak
In a cozy spot like this
Please try me, I beg you try me
If you're wondering about the magic in stars
And soft caresses
There's only one way
To know if its right
Just take me in your arms baby!
And try
Try me tonight...
Now you know my heart feels strong desire
When I'm thrilled by the warmth of your touch
Baby don't you know my soul's on fire
And I need your loving so much
Just take in your arms
And try me tonight
I want you to take me in your arms
And come on and try me tonight
I beg you try me
Try me
Try me
Try me tonight
@lovebuzzi
I've stopped watching a movie, when this song has started on the background. And I've found this song here. And I am listening it again and again.
@nadienadie6748
Me ha pasado igual...ellos están en un avión...
@joeyj559
Lol same
@pattimaisner9847
Did the same
@normaflores9526
Same
@roomsaurora
Same ❤
@Whittles1986
I came here from the movie “Obsession” on Netflix. I heard this and I had to find out who sang it. 💜💜
@aurorestlaurent1261
Me Too... I' love these random songs, that pop up out of no where. It's an AWESOME song.
@nymowairimu1891
I'm here because of the same 🤭
@Drifter15
Was watching a serie on Netflix, and this song came for only a few seconds. Just fell in love with the song and searched for it. I'm happy to know this song now. Its beautiful.