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.
Breakin' Up Somebody's Home
Etta James Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
On a rainy night like this
Starving for your love
Hungry for just one kiss
Every raindrop I hear
Against my window pane
Speaks so loud and clear, oh Lord
Got nowhere to turn, tired of being alone
Feel like breaking up somebody's home
I know it's useless hanging on
When you belong to someone else
Can't control the feelin'
'Cause after all I didn't make myself
Last night I cried so hard
I believe I caught a chill
Can't stand the vibration
Oh, my heart just won't stand still
Got nowhere to turn, tired of being alone
Feel like breakin' up somebody's home
Got nowhere to turn, tired of being alone
Feel like breakin' up somebody's home
I know it's useless hanging on
When you belong to someone else
Can't control my feelin'
'Cause after all I didn't make myself
Got nowhere to turn, tired of being alone
Feel like breakin' up somebody's home
Got nowhere to turn, tired of being alone
Feel like breakin' up somebody's home
Got nowhere to turn, tired of being alone
Feel like smashing up somebody's home
Feel like breakin' up somebody's home
Etta James's song "Breakin' Up Somebody's Home" is a powerful ballad about a woman who is lonely and desperate for affection. She is lying at home alone on a rainy night and is starving for love, hungry for just one kiss. She can hear every raindrop against her windowpane, and they seem to spell out the name of the man she desires. She feels useless and tired of being alone, so she contemplates breaking up somebody's home. She knows it is pointless to keep hanging on since the man she loves already belongs to someone else. However, she cannot control her feelings because she did not choose to fall in love with him. The singer is in intense pain, and her heart won't stand still. She believes that breaking up somebody's home might be the only way to alleviate her anguish.
The song is poignant and emotional, with the lyrics conveying the powerful message of heartbreak and desperation. The song's metaphors, such as the raindrops spelling out the man's name and the singer wanting to smash up somebody's home, are powerful and vivid. These metaphors make the song stand out and deeply resonate with the audience. The song's message is not about encouraging people to break up someone else's relationship but instead, it throws light on the pain and desperation that a heartbreak can cause.
Line by Line Meaning
Lying 'round home alone
I'm all by myself with nothing to do
On a rainy night like this
It's raining outside and I'm alone inside
Starving for your love
I need your love desperately
Hungry for just one kiss
I need a kiss from you to feel close to you
Every raindrop I hear
I'm listening to the sound of raindrops hitting the window
Against my window pane
The window is the only barrier between me and the rain
Speaks so loud and clear, oh Lord
The sound of the rain speaks to me clearly
Spelled out your name
The rain tells me your name over and over again
Got nowhere to turn, tired of being alone
I have no one else to turn to and I'm tired of being by myself
Feel like breaking up somebody's home
I'm so desperate for love that I'm willing to ruin someone else's relationship to get it
I know it's useless hanging on
I know it's pointless to keep waiting for something that won't happen
When you belong to someone else
You're already in a committed relationship
Can't control the feeling
I can't stop myself from feeling this way
'Cause after all I didn't make myself
I can't control who I fall in love with
Last night I cried so hard
I cried myself to sleep last night
I believe I caught a chill
I think I got sick from crying so much
Can't stand the vibration
My emotions are overwhelming and hard to deal with
Oh, my heart just won't stand still
My heart is beating so fast and erratically because of how I feel
Feel like smashing up somebody's home
I'm so desperate for love that I'm willing to destroy someone else's relationship to get it
Feel like breaking up somebody's home
I'm so desperate for love that I'm willing to ruin someone else's relationship to get it
Contributed by Skyler A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Teresa Ma'afu
Laying around home alone
On a rainy night like this
Starving for your love
Hungry for just one kiss
Every raindrop I hear
On my window pane yeah
Beats so loud and clear
Why does it tell your name?
I got nowhere to turn to
Tired of being alone
I feel like breaking up somebody's home
I know it's useless
Hanging on to you
When you belong to someone else
Can't control the feelin'
Cause after all I didn't make it myself
Last night I cried so hard
I believe I caught a chill
Can't control the vibration
My heart just won't stand still
Got nowhere to turn to
I'm tired of being alone
I feel like breaking up somebody's home
I know you hear me talkin'
I know it's useless
Hanging on to you
When you belong to someone else
Can't control the vibration
Cause after all I didn't make it myself
Got nowhere to turn to
I'm tired of being alone
I feel like breaking up somebody's home
Songwriters: Al Jackson / Timothy Matthews
Breaking Up Somebody's Home lyrics © MUSIC OF ON
Denilson Coimbra
Etta James maravilhosa!
Deneece
Great song with a sexy, sassy blues groove! Love it and love singing it!
Skogsbusen
Fantastic album! Love this!
Deneece
Great, groovy and sexy song! Love Etta James! Love singing it!
gregboy59
"on a rainy night like this" perfect! RIP Etta! thanks for all you did!
Teresa Ma'afu
Laying around home alone
On a rainy night like this
Starving for your love
Hungry for just one kiss
Every raindrop I hear
On my window pane yeah
Beats so loud and clear
Why does it tell your name?
I got nowhere to turn to
Tired of being alone
I feel like breaking up somebody's home
I know it's useless
Hanging on to you
When you belong to someone else
Can't control the feelin'
Cause after all I didn't make it myself
Last night I cried so hard
I believe I caught a chill
Can't control the vibration
My heart just won't stand still
Got nowhere to turn to
I'm tired of being alone
I feel like breaking up somebody's home
I know you hear me talkin'
I know it's useless
Hanging on to you
When you belong to someone else
Can't control the vibration
Cause after all I didn't make it myself
Got nowhere to turn to
I'm tired of being alone
I feel like breaking up somebody's home
Songwriters: Al Jackson / Timothy Matthews
Breaking Up Somebody's Home lyrics © MUSIC OF ON
Pam Zavada
I get this
erin
Best Etta James song. I remember as a kid probably around 4 or 5 years old listening to St. Louis am 1600 and Dr Jockenstein would play this song. My mom played him every Saturday.
coco d
For some reason this is one I haven't heard until now...and I LOVE IT!!!
Deneece
Great, groovy, sexy song indeed! Love singing it too!