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.
Let's Burn Down The Cornfield
Etta James Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Let's burn down, baby, the cornfield
And we'll listen, we'll listen to it burn
You hide behind the oak tree
I want you to hide behind that
You know that old oak tree
Stay, stay out of danger
Keep outta sight, babe till I return
On a cold, cold night, yeah
To have a fire, a fire burnin'
Burnin' warm, warm an' bright
You hide behind the oak tree
An' I want you to stay out of sight, baby
Get behind that old, the old oak tree
An' stay, stay, get out of danger, Lord till I return
Let's burn down the cornfield
Come on, baby, let's set fire, set fire
Set fire to the cornfield
An' we'll make love, we'll make love
While it's burnin', while it's burnin'
Get a warm, get a warm, warm fire goin', baby
An' we'll make love, it'll be so good while it's burnin'
While it's burnin', it'll be so, so good, baby
While it's burnin', burnin'
The lyrics to Etta Jame's Let's Burn Down The Cornfield suggests a kind of recklessness and desire that comes with being in love. The song calls for setting fire to the cornfield, creating a sense of danger and urgency to be with the person she loves. Yet, there is a need for caution as well, as she tells her lover to hide behind an oak tree to stay out of danger. There is a sense of excitement and spontaneity in the act of burning down the cornfield, a kind of rebellion against societal norms and expectations. The warm fire represents the passion and intensity of their love, and the idea of making love while the cornfield burns down symbolizes a desire to fully immerse themselves in their love, despite any potential consequences.
The song is open to interpretation, but one common understanding is that it is about a couple who want to express their love in a wild and unconventional way. The cornfield can be seen as a metaphor for societal norms and expectations that restrict them from fully experiencing their passion for each other. By burning it down, they rebel against these norms and fully embrace their love. The oak tree represents a safe haven where they can escape from the dangers of their passion and wait until it is safe to come out and continue their love affair.
Line by Line Meaning
Let's burn down the cornfield
Let's set fire to the cornfield
Let's burn down, baby, the cornfield
Come on, baby, let's set fire to the cornfield
And we'll listen, we'll listen to it burn
We'll hear the sound of the cornfield burning
You hide behind the oak tree
I want you to hide behind that old oak tree
I want you to hide behind that
Stay out of sight, babe
You know that old oak tree
That oak tree over there
Stay, stay out of danger
Stay safe and keep out of danger
Keep outta sight, babe till I return
Stay hidden until I come back
It's so, it's so good
It feels so good
On a cold, cold night, yeah
Especially on a cold night
To have a fire, a fire burnin'
To have a burning fire
Burnin' warm, warm an' bright
Burning warmly and brightly
An' I want you to stay out of sight, baby
And I want you to stay hidden, baby
Get behind that old, the old oak tree
Go and hide behind that old oak tree
An' stay, stay, get out of danger, Lord till I return
Stay safe and out of danger until I come back
Come on, baby, let's set fire, set fire
Let's light the fire, baby
Set fire to the cornfield
Burn the cornfield down
An' we'll make love, we'll make love
And we'll have sex
While it's burnin', while it's burnin'
While the cornfield is on fire
Get a warm, get a warm, warm fire goin', baby
Let's get a warm fire going
It'll be so good while it's burnin'
It'll be amazing while the cornfield is burning
While it's burnin', it'll be so, so good, baby
While it's burning, it'll be so, so good, baby
While it's burnin', burnin'
While it's burning, burning
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Randy Newman
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Billy F
Saw Etta & her band twice in NYC about 1990....boy she was burning too..15 out of 10!! I think she loved Otis and despite her lack of mainstream recognition she will always be FOREMOST (or at least equal with Billie Holiday) in the Pantheon of the Goddesses.
Karen Law
Hi, I just came across this by chance & wow it blew my mind! I am a big Etta James fan from now on, and Lowell George on the electric slide guitar was phenomenal! Thank you for the experience-very grateful! Karen Law, Glasgow, UK
Merle Hambrook
one of her best memorable songs ever
Black Firekitty
thank you for uploading it! This one is my fav Etta song..gives me goosebumps everytime I hear it! As soon as i heard she passed I just had to hear it. R.I.P Etta....she's singing for angels now
Ben powel
She was so damn good.
lauriroset
thank you for posting this .. john paul white of the civil wars tweeted this song title today in tribute to Etta after her passing today, and i was glad to find you had shared it.. reminds me of Strange Fruit by Billie Holiday... rest in peace, miss etta...
LOST IN MUSIC
Amazing and therefore in my Groove Magicians playlist
Gary Noel
Yes Billy F, it was on "Come A little Closer". A masterpiece, I agree. And seeing her perform live at the Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto in the late 70's was the best live music i have ever seen.
Cyn Hanrahan
I love Miss Etta, and a friend posted this today to blow off some political stress. This is a badass song. Oh yeah!
Qunnie Baby
I just love Etta james❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️