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.
Love And Happiness
Etta James Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Someone's on the phone, three o'clock in the morning, yea
Talking bout, how she can make it right, will
Happiness is when, you really feel good about somebody
Cause nothing wrong being in love with someone, yea, yea
Oh baby, love and happiness,
Love and happiness
Love and happiness
Interlude: horns
I have to say, love and happiness
Love and happiness`
Yea, love and happiness
Love and happiness
Be good to me,
I'll be good to you, will be together,
See each other walk away with victory, hey, oh baby
Love and happiness
Love and happiness`
Love and happiness
Love and happiness
Hey, hey, hey, make you do right, hey, love will make you do wrong,
Make you come home early, make you stay out all night long, power
Of love, wait a minute, let me tell you something, about the
Power,
Power of love, hey, hey, hey
Power, power, make you do right, love will make you do wrong,
Baby,
Love and happiness
Baby,
Love and happiness,
I say
Love,
Love and happiness,
Can you say,
Love and
Happiness,
Make you wanna dance, love and happiness
Love is, wait a minute, love is, hey, hey, walking together,
Hey, hey, talking together, singing together, laying together, make
Me wanna moan, uh, moan for love, uh, let me moan for love, uh,
Moan for love
In this song, Etta James explores the complex emotions of love and happiness, and how they can be both positive and negative influences in our lives. The song opens with an acknowledgement that even in the midst of love and happiness, things can still go wrong. The phone ringing at 3am is a metaphor for the unexpected challenges that can arise in a relationship, and the lyrics suggest that the singer is looking for a way to make things right.
As the song progresses, we get a sense that love and happiness are inextricably linked. The singer suggests that when you truly feel good about someone, that's when happiness comes into play. But this happiness can have a power of its own, and it can make you do both right and wrong things. This theme is echoed throughout the song, with the idea that love and happiness can be both a blessing and a curse.
Ultimately, the song seems to argue that love and happiness are worth pursuing, even in the face of potential heartbreak. The repetition of the phrase "Love and happiness" reinforces the idea that these emotions are deeply intertwined, and that we need both in our lives to truly thrive.
Line by Line Meaning
Love and happiness, something going wrong
Despite having love and happiness, something is still not quite right in the relationship/friendship or general life circumstances
Someone's on the phone, three o'clock in the morning, yea
A person is calling Etta James late at night, possibly seeking advice or comfort
Talking bout, how she can make it right, will
The caller is discussing ways to improve their relationship/friendship, looking for a solution or a listening ear
Happiness is when, you really feel good about somebody
Happiness in a relationship/friendship is genuinely feeling positive towards the other person
Cause nothing wrong being in love with someone, yea, yea
There's nothing wrong with loving someone and feeling good about it
Oh baby, love and happiness,
Etta James is reflecting on the importance of love and happiness
Love and happiness
Love and happiness
Repeated emphasis of the importance of love and happiness
Love and happiness
Reiteration of the topic addressed in the song
I have to say, love and happiness
Love and happiness`
Etta James accentuates the fact that love and happiness are crucial for a happy life
Yea, love and happiness
Love and happiness
The chorus is repeated again for emphasis
Be good to me,
I'll be good to you, will be together,
An expression of the importance of mutual respect and loyalty for a successful relationship/friendship
See each other walk away with victory, hey, oh baby
A happy ending to any situation involving love and happiness is when both parties feel like they have won
Hey, hey, hey, make you do right, hey, love will make you do wrong,
Love can make people better or worse, depending on the situation
Make you come home early, make you stay out all night long, power
Love has the power to influence a person's behavior, whether it's to come home early or stay out all night
Of love, wait a minute, let me tell you something, about the
A pause in the song to emphasize the importance of love
Power,
Etta James reiterates the power of love and its ability to influence behavior
Power, power, make you do right, love will make you do wrong,
Love has the power to influence a person's behavior
Baby,
Love and happiness
A reminder of the two key themes of the song
Baby,
Love and happiness,
I say
More emphasis on the importance of love and happiness
Love,
A single word to underline the importance of love
Love and happiness,
The central themes of the song are once again repeated
Can you say,
Etta James challenges listeners to identify the importance of love and happiness
Love and Happiness,
The title of the song, reminding listeners of its central themes
Make you wanna dance, love and happiness
Love and happiness are so powerful that they make people dance, possibly implying that they bring joy to people's lives
Love is, wait a minute, love is, hey, hey, walking together,
Hey, hey, talking together, singing together, laying together, make
Me wanna moan, uh, moan for love, uh, let me moan for love, uh,
Moan for love
Love is about two people doing everything together, from walking and talking to singing and laying down. The last few lines imply that love brings about physical pleasure
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: ALLEN GEORGIO
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Fred James
Whew, she sings this like its her business. I've heard lots of her music but not this song, she does it justice.
Dee Clark
Oh sing it Miss Etta! My husband and I were lucky enough to see her years ago at the Hollywood bowl. She never got the recognition she deserved but groove Miss Etta!
Lisa Cunningham
That must've been the BEST. When she died, it was the same year as Whitney Houston. Seemed like the Grammys focused so much on Whitney and not so much on Etta, who paved the way for women like Whitney. SAD.
jjaniero
everything great about al green's rhythm and soul along with etta's voice and delivery
smartalek1
Yow! I had no idea she'd covered this -- thank you so much for posting it!
ztruth4u
Her voices is made for songs like this!
Fernando Salvia Mazzei
wowwww, awesome voice, great song, good vibes
RetroJenny
Love it. Peaches will live on forever through her music.
Jimmy Alexander
Thanks for Posting this. Two Great Artist's. The Singer and the Master, Al Green.
barbara thomas
Ms Etta James. Greatness again-- Love