Born in Cleveland, Ohio, and raised in St. Petersburg, Florida, Neil was one of the songwriters who for a time worked out of New York City's famous Brill Building. He has often been called a pioneer of the folk rock & singer-songwriter musical genres; his most frequently cited disciples are Tim Buckley, Harry Nilsson, and the Jefferson Airplane, but his most prominent descendants have been Stephen Stills, James Taylor, Paul Simon and Joni Mitchell. In concert appearances, as well as the liner notes for his 2003 album, Meet Me In Margaritaville: The Ultimate Collection, Jimmy Buffett called Neil "one of my heroes." Some of Neil's early compositions were recorded by Buddy Holly and Roy Orbison; he played as a session guitarist on hits by Bobby Darin and Paul Anka. In 1968, Nilsson recorded a cover version of Neil's song "Everybody's Talkin'," which became a huge hit a year later when it was featured in the film Midnight Cowboy.
Neil was an accomplished professional musician atypically inclined to a very modest frugality. "Candy Man", his first of two Top-40-hit compositions, substantially introduced him to a sufficient income stream for life in his early 20's; he became increasingly disinclined to work if he did not feel like it. Consequently his two fully realized albums (see next paragraph) are remarkable for their singularly unpretentious authenticity. His combination of baritone vocal and 12-string guitar remains unusual, and his combo recordings provide his shimmering melodies with muscular grooves; but his exemplarity is that of resolving the apparent opposition between aesthetic integrity and commercial value almost entirely in favor of aesthetic integrity, which gives all of his recordings a unique historical resonance.
He had debts to previous singer-songwriters such as Woody Guthrie, Robert Johnson, Chuck Berry and Hank Williams (Senior); but his approach to melody was more in the manner of Cole Porter and to rhythm very much in the school of Ray Charles. His popularly acclaimed albums are "Bleecker & MacDougal" (also known as A Little Bit of Rain) without drums (1965) and "Fred Neil" (also known as Everybody's Talkin') in (1966), made during his residences in the Greenwich Village section of lower Manhattan in New York City and in Coconut Grove, Florida, respectively.
The reigning web expert in (October) 2005 has been Richie Unterberger. The Rick O'Barry interview at the dedicated website (fredneil.com) claims that a third fully realized album, Neil's "Stuff Sessions" of 1978, was never released by Columbia. The unreleased "Walk on the Water" album was recorded at Bayshore studios in Coconut Grove, with a second set of sessions taking place in NJ with the group Stuff.
After the mid 1970s he ceased to maintain a residence in Woodstock, New York, and spent his remaining decades enjoying life on the shores of southern Florida. His last public performance was in 1981 coffeehouse concert in Coconut Grove where he joined Buzzy Linhardt onstage.
Fred Neil died of natural causes in 2001.
Sweet Mama
Fred Neil Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Don't be mean to me
Well sweet baby
Don't be mean to me
I've been waiting for such a dog
Gone lonesome time
For somebody just like you
To change these blues of mine
Don't you turn me down
Well sweet baby
Don't you turn me down
Hey sweet mama
Now don't you turn me down
You know I love you
That's why I keep hanging 'round
Sweet mama
Don't you treat me mean
Go on with it
I've been waiting for such a dog
Gone lonesome time
For somebody just like you
To change these blues of mine
Sweet mama
Don't you treat me mean
Well sweet mama
I said sweet mama
Oh sweet mama
Yeah sweet mama
The song "Sweet Mama" by Fred Neil is a plea from the singer to his love interest not to treat him poorly. He repeatedly begs her not to be mean to him, claiming that he has been waiting for someone like her to come along and change his "dog gone lonesome time" and "blues." His desperation is evident in the repetition of the chorus, where he tells her not to turn him down or treat him mean. The singer is clearly head over heels in love with this woman, and is willing to put up with some mistreatment if it means he can stay close to her.
The lyrics are simple and straightforward, but they convey a powerful sense of longing and desire. The use of repetition in the chorus emphasizes the singer's desperation and the urgency of his plea. The song is driven by a bluesy guitar riff, and the instrumentation is spare, which keeps the focus on the lyrics and the singer's emotional delivery.
Overall, "Sweet Mama" is a classic blues love song that captures the intensity and passion of a man deeply in love. While the lyrics are simple, they are effective in conveying the singer's emotional state, and the spare instrumentation allows the focus to remain on the power of his voice and the urgency of his plea.
Line by Line Meaning
Sweet mama
Addressing the woman he desires and is trying to win over
Don't be mean to me
Asks her to not be unkind to him
Well sweet baby
Addressing her with affectionate words
I've been waiting for such a dog
Gone lonesome time
For somebody just like you
To change these blues of mine
He has been lonely and longing for someone like her to come along and make him happy
Don't you turn me down
Asks her to not reject him
Hey sweet mama
Now don't you turn me down
You know I love you
That's why I keep hanging 'round
He tells her he loves her and that is why he keeps pursuing her
Don't you treat me mean
Go on with it
Asks her again to not be unkind to him and to continue pursuing a relationship
Sweet mama
Don't you treat me mean
Final plea to not be treated poorly by her
I said sweet mama
Oh sweet mama
Yeah sweet mama
Repeating his affectionate address to her
Contributed by Levi M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.