James was born Jamesetta Hawkins in Los Angeles, California, on 25th January 1938, to an unmarried fourteen-year-old mother, Dorothy Hawkins. According to Etta, her mother claimed that her father was the white Rudolph "Minnesota Fats" Wanderone, and that they received financial support from him on the condition that they keep his paternity a secret. This seems unlikely, though it has not been definitively disproved. Etta was born in Los Angeles in 1938. At the time, Wanderone was known to be managing a pool hall in Washington, D.C. and had not yet become known to be the cross-country traveller he later became.
She received her first professional vocal training at five years old from James Earle Hines, musical director of the Echoes of Eden choir at St Paul Baptist Church in Los Angeles. Her family moved to San Francisco in 1950, and she teamed up with two other girls to form a doo-wop singing group. When the girls were fourteen, band leader Johnny Otis had them audition. They sang an answer to Hank Ballard's "Work with Me, Annie" called "Roll Wwth Me Henry". Otis particularly liked the song, and against her mother's wishes, James and the trio went to Los Angeles to record the song in 1954. The song was recorded on the label Modern Records. By this time, the trio renamed the song "The Wallflower (Dance with Me, Henry)" and released it in 1955. James named her vocal group The Peaches. Richard Berry, a Los Angeles doo-wop luminary, is featured on some of their records.
"The Wallflower" reached number two on the rhythm and blues charts in February 1955, but was undercut in the wider market by a rushed-out cover version by Georgia Gibbs on Mercury Records; in fact, the very first time Gibbs was recorded in studio, they used the first take recorded and it became number one on the top 100 songs nationally. The song's royalties were divided between Hank Ballard, Etta James, and Johnny Otis, and its huge success attracted the attention of the R&B world, resulting in James going on tour with Little Richard. On the tour, though, according to James, she witnessed and experienced situations to which minors are not usually privy, and she allegedly acquired a drug habit.
Soon after the success of "Wallflower", The Peaches and James parted company, but this did not halt her career. Shecontinued to record and release albums throughout much of the decade, and enjoyed more success. Her follow-up, "Good Rockin' Daddy", became another fifties hit. Other songs however, such as "Tough Lover" and "W-O-M-A-N" failed to gain any significant success. James toured with Johnny "Guitar" Watson and Otis Redding in the fifties, and has cited Watson as the most significant influence on her style..
In 1960, James signed a recording contract with Chess Records. She went on to have the biggest success of her career from this label, recording her biggest and most memorable hits. Chess went into high gear with James, releasing many duets with her then boyfriend, the married Harvey Fuqua, who was the lead singer of the Moonglows. One of her duets with Fuqua, "If I Can't Have You", became a hit on the R&B charts in 1960. As a solo artist however, she had more enduring success. One of her first singles released by Chess in 1960 was called "All I Could Do Was Cry"; this blues number became a big hit on the R&B charts in 1960. Leonard Chess, one of the founders of Chess Records, helped James along the way. He saw the potential for her to go in a more pop-oriented direction, and she started recording more pop tunes for the label.
The year 1961 became a year of great change for James. In 1961 came the release of one of her first pop-oriented tunes called "At Last". The song became a big hit in 1961, reaching number two on the R&B charts. The song even went as far as twenty-two on the pop charts that year. It became her signature song. Other songs, such as "Trust in Me", also became hits, and the 1962 tune "Something's Got a Hold On Me" showed more of James' gospel side, a genre she had sung since childhood.
She had other big hits in the 1960s, but mainly on the R&B charts: the song "Pushover" in 1963 and "Stop the Wedding", "Fool That I Am", and "Don't Cry Baby", were hits for her between 1961 and 1963. Her 1963 album Etta James Rocks the House, recorded at Nashville's "New Era" club, also gave her career a boost. James then became one of the most successful R&B artists of the 1960s, having many more top ten and top twenty hit singles. Performing in Memphis, Tennessee helped make her into a blues icon.
In 1967, James released her next hit single, "Tell Mama", and it became a top ten hit on the R&B charts. After a dry period of no hits for almost four years, the song once more made James a household name. The follow-up, "Security", was also a success, and proved that James had staying power on the charts again. Whilst less success came for James after this hit, she was still on the charts regularly and, despite the death of Leonard Chess, stayed with the Chess label into 1975. Towards the end of the Chess years though, she went into more rock-based songs. She recorded for many other labels, and continued to release albums, such as 1978's Deep In the Night on Atlantic Records.
Despite a dry period during the early to mid 1980s, James got back on track and began to record music again. She received accolades for her 1981 rendition of Randy Newman's "God's Song". Her 1988 album Seven Year Itch proved this comeback capability; the album showed more of her soul side. In 1989, she recorded the song "Avenue D" with David A. Stewart of Eurythmics. The song was featured on the soundtrack to the Robert Wise film Rooftops. She also performed with the Grateful Dead for two shows in 1982. In the 1990s she continued to record and perform. Her albums widely varied in styles and genres. Her 1992 album, The Right Time, was another soul album that was released by Elektra Records. She also began to record more jazz, which became the style for many of her 1990s albums.
Drug-related and romantic problems interfered with her career, but James managed to maintain a career throughout the latter half of the twentieth century. Later in life, she struggled with obesity, experiencing mobility and knee problems. In 2003, she underwent gastric bypass surgery.
In 2011, a vocal sample from Etta's "Something's Got a Hold on Me" was used in "Levels" by Avicii. "Levels" became a monster EDM hit, making Etta's "sometimes I get a good feeling" one of the most recognizable samples in 21st century music.
She died on 20th January 2012.
Ball and Chain
Etta James Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Sittin' down by my window,
Honey, lookin' out at the rain.
Lord, Lord, Lord, sittin' down by my window,
Baby, lookin' out at the rain.
Somethin' came along, grabbed a hold of me,
And it felt just like a ball and chain.
Honey, just dragging me down.
And I say, oh, whoa, whoa, now hon', tell me why,
Why does every single little tiny thing I hold on goes wrong?
Yeah it all goes wrong, yeah.
And I say, oh, whoa, whoa, now babe, tell me why,
Why does every thing, every thing.
Hey, here you gone today, I wanted to love you,
Honey, I just wanted to hold you, I said, for so long,
Yeah! Alright! Hey!
Love's got a hold on me, baby,
Feels just like a ball and chain.
Now, love's just draggin' me down, baby, yeah,
Feels like a ball and chain.
I hope there's someone out there who could tell me
Why the man I love wanna leave me in so much pain.
Yeah, maybe, maybe you could help me, come on, help me!
And I say, oh, whoa, whoa, now hon', tell me why,
Now tell me, tell me, tell me, tell me, tell me, tell me why, yeah.
And I say, oh, whoa, whoa, whoa, when I ask you,
When I need to know why, c'mon tell me why, hey hey hey,
Here you've gone today,
I wanted to love you and hold you
Till the day I die.
I said whoa, whoa, whoa!
And I say oh, whoa, whoa, no honey
It ain't fair, daddy it ain't fair what you do,
I see what you're doin' to me and you know it ain't fair.
And I say oh, whoa whoa now baby
It ain't fair, now, now, now, what you do
I said hon' it ain't fair what, hon' it ain't fair what you do.
Oh, here you gone today and all I ever wanted to do
Was to love you
Honey an' I think there can be nothing wrong with that,
Only it ain't wrong, no, no, no, no, no.
Sittin' down by my window,
Lookin' at the rain.
Lord, Lord, Lord, sittin' down by my window,
Lookin' at the rain, see the rain.
Somethin' came along, grabbed a hold of me,
And it felt like a ball and chain.
Oh this can't be in vain
And I'm gonna tell you one just more time, yeah, yeah!
And I say oh, whoa whoa, now baby
This can't be, no this can't be in vain,
And I say no no no no no no no no, whoa!
And I say whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa
Now now now now now now now now now no no not in vain
Hey, hope there is someone that could tell me
Hon', tell me why,
Hon', tell me why love is like
Just like a ball
Just like a ball
Baaaaaaalllll
Oh daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy
And a chain.
Yeah!
The lyrics to Etta James's song Ball and Chain describe a feeling of being trapped in love, as if it were a ball and chain dragging the singer down. She is sitting by her window, looking out at the rain, and this feeling has come over her that she can't quite shake. She pleads to the man she loves to tell her why everything always seems to go wrong for her, and why he wants to leave her in so much pain. She wants him to know that it's not fair what he's doing to her, and that all she ever wanted was to love him.
Line by Line Meaning
Sittin' down by my window, Honey, lookin' out at the rain.
Etta James is sitting by her window and looking out at the rain.
Lord, Lord, Lord, sittin' down by my window, Baby, lookin' out at the rain.
Etta James is looking out the window and is expressing her sadness with an exclamation.
Somethin' came along, grabbed a hold of me, And it felt just like a ball and chain.
Etta James is using 'ball and chain' as a metaphor to express how she feels trapped due to the actions of someone close to her.
Honey, that's exactly what it felt like, Honey, just dragging me down.
Etta James reiterates how trapped she feels and how it’s affecting her.
And I say, oh, whoa, whoa, now hon', tell me why, Why does every single little tiny thing I hold on goes wrong?
Etta James is questioning how everything that she is holding onto, goes wrong.
And I say, oh, whoa, whoa, now babe, tell me why, Why does every thing, every thing.
Etta James reiterates how everything is going wrong and keeps asking why.
Love's got a hold on me, baby,Feels just like a ball and chain.
Etta James is comparing love to a ball and chain as she feels trapped in the relationship.
Now, love's just draggin' me down, baby, yeah, Feels like a ball and chain.
Etta James is reiterating the feeling of being dragged down by her love and is trapped in her relationship.
I hope there's someone out there who could tell me Why the man I love wanna leave me in so much pain.
Etta James is questioning why the man she loves is causing her so much pain and wishes she could find someone to help her.
And I say, oh, whoa, whoa, now hon', tell me why, Now tell me, tell me, tell me, tell me, tell me, tell me why, yeah.
Etta James is repeating her question and is seeking an answer for what she’s going through.
It ain't fair, daddy it ain't fair what you do, I see what you're doin' to me and you know it ain't fair.
Etta James is addressing her partner and telling him it’s not fair what he’s doing to her, and he knows it’s not right.
Oh, here you gone today and all I ever wanted to do Was to love you Honey an' I think there can be nothing wrong with that, Only it ain't wrong, no, no, no, no, no.
Etta James is saying that she only wanted to love him and that there is nothing wrong with that, but the situation is different now.
Oh this can't be in vain, And I'm gonna tell you one just more time, yeah, yeah!
Etta James believes that all of her efforts shouldn't go in vain and is going to address the issue one more time.
And I say oh, whoa whoa, now baby This can't be, no this can't be in vain,
Etta James is reiterating that all her efforts can't go to waste and is pleading with her love to do the right thing.
Hope there is someone that could tell me Hon', tell me why, Hon', tell me why love is likeJust like a ballJust like a ballBaaaaaaalllllOh daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy, daddy, daddyAnd a chain.
Etta James is asking for someone to explain why love is like a ball and chain and is wondering why it's painful like that.
Writer(s):
Contributed by Lucas V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@louisemusiclover
Oooh aaah aah whoah mmm
Sittin' by my window,
I was, lookin' out at the rain.
I, I waa, sittin' by my window,
Yeah, lookin' out at the rain.
You know that something struck me' an clamped on to me just like a ball n chain
Oh baby, why you wanna do these old mean things to me
Ah I wanna know
I said baby, baby, I wanna know why wanna you do these old things to me
Tell me right now, because you know I love you baby, and I'm sick and tired sick and tired of livin in misery
Yes I am, Yes I am
Oh I know my love for you holds on, like a ball n chain yes it does
Whoah you know my love for you babe, hey hey, holds on like a ball n chain
Oh yeah
You no I don't need no harm honey, I just don't wanna go, I don't wanna go insane, no no ooh
Hey baby ahhh ahhh alright, alright, ahhh yeah ahh ahh a yeah babe, ahhh ahhh
Ahh babe you know I love you babe, an my love holds on like a ball n chain yes it does, yes it does
You know my love for you baby, holds on like a ball n chain, yeah yeah yeah
You know I don't need no harm honey
I just don't, I just don't wanna go insane, no don't wanna go insane , ahh oooh oooh aaah baby,
I wanna know why everything's gotta happen to me
Whoah I wanna know why babe, why everything, everything has to happen to me
You know my loves going to last forever,
Whoah ooh for for eternity, for eternity, my loves going to last for eternity,
ahhh, ball n chain, ball n chain
@carlenedean8382
Outstanding!!! Of course, I'm a huge fan of Miss Etta. And Big Mama. And Janis.
@milivapakovc4776
🙏🤫😊😉❤️💎🦾❤️❤️🇷🇸😎
@stacyblue1980
Jan the s is everything. 🙏🌹
@billmavin6203
I love Big Mama, Janis and Etta. Women who sing love songs and leave blood and snot on the stage.
@Dana-uc6xu
Freakin amazing! I was led hear by listening to the Janis Joplin version...really cannot compare. I’m so happy I stumbled onto this!!!
@tonyhudson7715
same
@broskoone
Janis was good but for me bombastic.
@AbdallaKilsam
This voice ❤️ This woman ❤️
@stacyblue1980
Praise be to God and thanks be to God for Big Mama, Etta and Janis Joplin. Nobody can touch these ladies. Ever. 🙏🌹💖💖💖
@oigres96
No había escuchado esta versión de este grandioso Blues. La de Janis en Cheap Thrills era mi favorita...hasta ahora.
Maravillosa Etta en esta canción.