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.
Would It Make Any Difference To You
Etta James Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Would it make any difference to you?
If I packed my things and left town today
Would it make any difference to you?
Do you, do you even know?
Do you even know that I'm still alive?
I wonder if I ever, oh, cross
If I ever cross your sweet mind
If I got in, if I got into trouble
Would I send for you?
Would you come, would you come
Or would you stay away?
If we never love again
Like we used to do
Would it make, oh
Would it make any difference to you?
The song "Would it Make Any Difference to You" by Etta James is a powerful ballad that speaks to the pain of unrequited love. The lyrics are straightforward and ask the question of whether or not the person she is singing to would even care if she were to leave or face trouble in her life. The song is brimming with emotion and showcases the pain of feeling unnoticed and unloved by someone who means so much to you.
The lyrics in the first verse ask a series of questions that are left unanswered, emphasizing the singer's sense of confusion and frustration. She wonders if leaving town or facing trouble would even make a difference to the person she loves, and questions whether he knows that she's still alive. The lyrics in the second verse continue to explore these themes, asking whether the person would come to her aid if she were in trouble, or if distance would keep them apart. In the final verse, she questions whether their love is worth salvaging if it has faded away.
The melancholic melody and Etta James's soulful delivery amplify the inherent sadness of the lyrics, creating a stirring and emotive song that has resonated with listeners for decades.
Line by Line Meaning
If you read in the paper that I went away
If you were to discover that I had left and read about it in the paper
Would it make any difference to you?
Would that news affect you in any way or would it be inconsequential?
If I packed my things and left town today
If I were to leave, gathering my belongings and fleeing the town without warning
Would it make any difference to you?
Would my departure have any impact on you, or would you not care at all?
Do you, do you even know?
Do you have any awareness or knowledge of anything that's happening in my life?
Do you even know that I'm still alive?
Do you know if I'm still breathing, if I'm still maintaining my everyday existence?
Oh, I wonder
I have my doubts and concerns
I wonder if I ever, oh, cross
I wonder if I ever cross your mind and make you think of me
If I got in, if I got into trouble
If I were to run into some kind of issue or difficulty
Would I send for you?
Would I call out for your help or seek your assistance?
Would you come, would you come
Would you heed my request for assistance?
Or would you stay away?
Or would you choose to give me a cold shoulder and ignore my plea for help?
If we never love again
If we were never to fall in love with each other again
Like we used to do
Like how we used to show affection towards each other
Would it make, oh
Would it matter, oh
Would it make any difference to you?
Would it have any impact on you or would everything carry on as it is?
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Duane Holmes
A song that brings back some good solid memories and love that has never gone away.Ms. Heartbreak of my generation.
Juanita Olguin
One of the greatest voices ever.
David Baugh
I have this on an old 45 I've had for years. I've always thought this was one of her greatest songs.
Jim Campbell
underrated blues singer, My old Mum had her records years ago, loved listening to them on vinyl
Colleen Sarmento
These lyrics..her voice💓
Dino Slaughter
One of her all time best songs.
Duane Holmes
This song just tears my heart apart. Is Etta James taking all this talent to her grave ? Love me some Etta 2020!!.
GILMARSOUL1
Ballad muito boa D+
murp h
Always come back to this __ Etta sings country. She remains one of our great vocalists.
flamencoprof
Yee-har, Etta goes Country! Excellent!