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.
Stormy Weather
Etta James Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
There's no sun up in the sky
Stormy weather
Since my man and I ain't together
Keeps raining all of the time
Oh, yeah
Life is bad
Stormy weather, stormy weather
And I just can get my poor self together
Oh, I'm weary all of the time
The time, so weary all of the time
When he went away
The blues walked in and met me
Oh, yeah if he stays away
Old rocking chair's gonna get me
All I do is pray
The Lord will let me
Walk in the sun once more
Oh, I can't go on, can't go on, can't go on
Everything I have is gone
Stormy weather, stormy weather
Since my man and I, me and my daddy ain't together
Keeps raining all of the time
Oh, oh, keeps raining all of the time
Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah raining all of the time
Stormy stormy
Stormy weather
Yeah
The song "Stormy Weather" by Etta James is a heartbreaking ballad about a woman who is struggling to cope with the absence of her lover. The opening lines, "Don't know why, there's no sun up in the sky, stormy weather, since my man and I ain't together," sets the scene for the rest of the song. The singer is experiencing a tremendous amount of emotional pain and is finding it hard to carry on with her daily life. The repeated use of the phrase "stormy weather" throughout the song is a metaphor for her turbulent emotions which are mirrored in the accompanying music.
The lyrics speak to many people who have experienced heartbreak and loss. The singer is not able to move on from the absence of her lover and is consumed by grief. The lines "When he went away, the blues walked in and met me," perfectly encapsulate the feeling of depression that often accompanies a breakup. The song is poignant and emotionally charged, and it’s not difficult to understand why it has remained a classic almost 70 years after its release.
Line by Line Meaning
Don't know why
I don't understand why
There's no sun up in the sky
The sky is cloudy and there's no bright sun
Stormy weather
The weather is bad and turbulent
Since my man and I ain't together
I'm feeling this way because my love and I are apart
Keeps raining all of the time
It's raining constantly and things are not improving
Oh, yeah
This emphasizes the feeling of despair
Life is bad
Everything is going wrong
Gloom and misery everywhere
I'm surrounded by sadness and negativity
And I just can get my poor self together
I'm having difficulty coping and struggling to be strong
Oh, I'm weary all of the time
I'm constantly tired, both physically and emotionally
The time, so weary all of the time
This reemphasizes the previous line, conveying just how exhausted she is
When he went away
My man left me
The blues walked in and met me
Sadness and despair took over me when he left
Oh, yeah if he stays away
If he doesn't return, it'll get even worse
Old rocking chair's gonna get me
She's imagining herself as an old woman, still sad and pining
All I do is pray
She's trying to find solace in religion
The Lord will let me
She's asking for help and guidance from a higher power
Walk in the sun once more
She hopes for brighter days and to find happiness again
Oh, I can't go on, can't go on, can't go on
She's repeatedly expressing her feeling of being unable to keep going
Everything I have is gone
She feels like she's lost everything that's important to her
Since my man and I, me and my daddy ain't together
Her separation from her father is also adding to her sadness
Keeps raining all of the time
The bad weather is a metaphor for the tough times she's facing
Oh, oh, keeps raining all of the time
This line repeats her previous sentiment, emphasizing the ongoing struggles
Oh yeah, yeah, yeah raining all of the time
This repetition solidifies her feeling of not seeing an end to her struggles
Stormy stormy
The weather and her life are both bad right now
Stormy weather
This final line repeats the title and reflects the ongoing difficulties
Lyrics © S.A. MUSIC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Harold Arlen, Ted Koehler
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@robertocesar3884
Don't know why
There's no sun up in the sky
Stormy weather
Since my man and I ain't together
Keeps raining all of the time
Oh yeah
Life is bare
Gloom and misery everywhere
Stormy weather, stormy weather
And I just can't get my poor self together
Oh, I'm weary all of the time
The time, so weary all of the time
When he went away
The blues came in and met me
Oh, yeah, if he stays away
Old rocking chair's gonna get me
All I do is pray
The Lord will let me
Walk in the sun once more
Oh, I can't go on, can't go on, can't go on
Everything I have is gone
Stormy weather, stormy weather
Since my man and I, me and my daddy ain't together
Keeps raining all of the time
Oh, oh, keeps raining all of the time
Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah raining all of the time
Stormy, stormy
Stormy weather
Yeah
@memozzy22
This truly is the best version of this song.
@lilyn7497
Lena Horne?!
@peggysanders7502
I agree with memozzy22 Etta is queen of blues
@44susanabeatriz
Sorry, she is good but Ella Fitzgerald is better.
@paulnash7630
Such an effortless amazing voice with such passion in her voice, could listen all day and night RIP Etta 😢
@TatianaGolveaIajuc-wy1te
Yes ela é fantástica, poderia ouvir e repetir infinitamente
@M0HAK0
The Academy brought me here. Thank God for netflix showing me Godlike old school music!!
@denys9903
Best version ever recorded!!!!
@user-td8vv4il9x
ABSOLUTELY!!!!
@mckayjess9370
How can such a heartbreaking song bring me so much joy? an absolute gem.