Chandler attended Englewood High School (later known as Englewood Technical Prep Academy) on Chicago's south side. He began performing in the early 1950s with The Gaytones. In 1957 he joined a doo-wop group called The Dukays with James Lowe, Shirley Jones, Earl Edwards and Ben Broyles, quickly becoming their lead singer. He was drafted by the U.S. Army to Germany for three years, returned to Chicago in 1960, and rejoined his bandmates. Through music industry contacts, the Dukays were offered a recording contract by the Chicago based Nat Records. The first single was titled "The Girl Is a Devil." In 1961, Nat Records released a song titled "Nite Owl", and the band went back to the recording studio to record once more.
The Duke is born
At the time, Nat Records wanted to release the new song "Duke of Earl", but was unable to. An executive with Vee-Jay Records, Calvin Carter, heard the song and wanted it for distribution as a song on his record label, but only as a Gene Chandler record. Vee-Jay were not interested in The Dukays.
Meanwhile, the previously recorded "Nite Owl" was on the charts, putting Chandler in a dilemma. He thus recorded with The Dukays under the name 'Gene Dixon' and recorded solo as 'Gene Chandler'.
When VeeJay was finally able to release "Duke of Earl", it sent it out as by Chandler, even though the Dukays had recorded it. The song sold a million copies in just over one month."The Duke" was born. Chandler can be seen in the full 'Duke' outfit singing "The Duke of Earl" in the 1962 movie, Don't Knock the Twist, starring Chubby Checker.
The Duke lives on
After spending three weeks at number one on the Billboard Magazine charts, Chandler got a cape, a monocle, a top hat and a cane. He simply became "The Duke of Earl" and his concerts drew a large crowd. Occasionally he would come out for an encore, usually "Rainbow." "Rainbow" was one of Chandler's collaborations with Curtis Mayfield, and the only song Chandler has ever recorded three times. Each time the song has been re-recorded, it became a hit all over again.
Chandler left Vee Jay and recorded for Constellation Records and then for Chess and Brunswick Records. He wound up recording for Chess and Brunswick at the same time. This left the record labels with having to work out a compromise. It was decided that the companies would alternate Chandler's releases, a new one from Brunswick, followed by a release from Chess. In 1964, he had a Top 20 pop hit with the Curtis Mayfield produced "Just Be True"; another Top 20 pop hit in 1965 with "Nothing Can Stop Me", another Mayfield song, and hits throughout the 1960s with the songs "What Now", "A Man's Temptation", "Bless Our Love", and "You Can't Hurt Me No More". He also had success with his cover of James Brown's "There Was A Time" (taken from his 1968 Brunswick album of the same name); and "You Threw A Lucky Punch" - Chandler's answer song to the Mary Wells' Motown hit "You Beat Me To The Punch". Almost all of these songs were Top 5 R&B hits. To date, Chandler has had more than 30 chart hits. Throughout his career, he has maintained a close personal friendship with Mayfield, Butler, and the other members of The Impressions (Sam Gooden and Fred Cash), and they could be frequently heard as background singers on his recordings. In the late 1960s he also recorded a couple of reasonably successful duets with Barbara Acklin.
In 1970, Chandler teamed with Butler for the album Gene and Jerry: One on One on the Mercury label . He also guest starred with Mayfield, Butler and the group on the live album: Curtis in Chicago (1973).
After a number of years on the road, Chandler decided to become more involved with the business end of the music industry. He produced, wrote, arranged, and he had another major hit in 1970 on Mercury. "Groovy Situation", was a pop and R&B success (reaching #12 and #8 respectively), his second biggest hit after "Duke Of Earl". This disc sold over one million copies, and received a gold disc awarded by the R.I.A.A. in November 1970.
The hits he recorded and produced earned him The National Association of Television and Radio Announcers 'Producer of the Year' award in 1970. It should be noted that Chandler was nominated with Kenneth Gamble, Leon Huff and Norman Whitfield, who were successful producers at that time, working with The Temptations and the Philadelphia soul sound.
Chandler went on to have a number of disco era hits, including "Get Down," "When You're #1," "Does She Have A Friend?" and "Rainbow '80."[1] Most of these were more popular in the United Kingdom. At that time, he was also the Executive Vice President of Chi-Sound Records, and worked with reggae star, Johnny Nash.
Revival
In the late 1970s, even whilst he was placing hits on the disco chart, the nostalgia craze began. DJ Wolfman Jack put together a traveling show of "oldies" acts, and Chandler joined them in the travels around the country.
In 1997 Chandler was inducted as a Pioneer Award honoree into the Rhythm and Blues Foundation.
In 2002, his #1 hit recording of "Duke Of Earl" was inducted into the Grammy Hall Of Fame.
He still performs in Chicago, Las Vegas and elsewhere around the U.S.
"Duke of Earl" was played in the 1988 film, Hairspray. It was also sampled by Cypress Hill, on the song "Hand on the Pump" on their 1991 album, Cypress Hill. Equally, Chandler's song "Hallelujah, I Love Her So" was also sampled by Cypress Hill, on the song "Legalize It" on their 1993 album, Black Sunday. "Groovy Situation" appeared on 2004's Anchorman: Music from the Motion Picture
Good Times
Gene Chandler Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Dark glasses and don't give a care
Finger popping out on the street
All dressed and neat
My buddy pulls up in a Cadillac
Driving slow with the top left back
Patiently, the girls, they wait
(CHORUS)
And it's gonna be good times
It's gonna be good times
It's gonna be good times
Good times
To a slow stop at the first girl's door
I don't plan to be back til four
The old folks, they don't worry, you see
They have trust in me
(CHORUS)
Today I'm gonna get my bread
For tonight I've got to look my best
My girl would be full of smiles
When the music begins
We're gonna dance awhile
Fast music and the room smoked up
Double clutch in an old beer cup
Digging music from the old hi-fi
Giving her the eye
(CHORUS)
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah...
The song "Good Times" by Gene Chandler takes us back to a nostalgic era where people indulged in the simple pleasures of life and had no worries. The opening verses set the scene of an early evening with pleasant weather. The character portrayed in the song is carefree and relaxed, as he strolls down the street finger-popping. The description of a Cadillac cruising with the top left back enhances the imagery of an unhurried past. Women eagerly await their dates and are ready for a night full of good times.
The singer makes a slow stop at his girl's door, clearly implying he has a plan for the night ahead. The lyrics suggest that this might be a night of pure joy and relaxation, as he does not intend to be back until four in the morning. The singer's nonchalance is evident as he assures the older folks that they have trust in him. The final verses describe the singer's mood to get his bread for the night ahead and highlights the couple's intention to dance.
In essence, "Good Times" is a depiction of treasured memories that we all carry close to our hearts. The carefree attitude of the singer, set in a time where life might have been more relaxed, paints a vivid anticipation of people eagerly waiting for a night of happy moments with the people they love.
Line by Line Meaning
Early evening and the weather's fair
It's still early in the evening, and the weather is good.
Dark glasses and don't give a care
I'm wearing dark glasses and don't care what others think.
Finger popping out on the street
I'm snapping my fingers to the music as I walk down the street.
All dressed and neat
I'm dressed nicely and look put-together.
My buddy pulls up in a Cadillac
My friend arrives in his fancy Cadillac car.
Driving slow with the top left back
He's driving slowly with the top of the car down.
Patiently, the girls, they wait
The girls are waiting patiently for us to pick them up.
For their heavy date
They're going on a date with us.
And it's gonna be good times
We're going to have a good time.
It's gonna be good times
We're going to have a good time.
It's gonna be good times
We're going to have a good time.
Good times
We're going to have a good time.
To a slow stop at the first girl's door
We stop slowly at the first girl's house.
I don't plan to be back til four
We plan to stay out until 4 a.m.
The old folks, they don't worry, you see
The parents of the girls we're with don't worry about us.
They have trust in me
They trust me to take care of their daughters.
Today I'm gonna get my bread
Today I'm going to make some money.
For tonight I've got to look my best
I need to look my best tonight.
My girl would be full of smiles
My girlfriend will be happy.
When the music begins
When the music starts playing.
We're gonna dance awhile
We're going to dance for a while.
Fast music and the room smoked up
The music is fast and the room is full of smoke.
Double clutch in an old beer cup
I'm holding onto an old beer cup tightly.
Digging music from the old hi-fi
I'm enjoying the music from the old stereo system.
Giving her the eye
I'm looking at my date romantically.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah...
We're having a good time and feeling enthusiastic.
Contributed by David D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Walter Johnson
MAN YALL DONT KNOW THE FEELING I FELT EVERYTIME I HEARD THIS,SO COOL!!!
Frankie C
One of his best! A killer from 1965.
Andrew Turnbull
Soul sue my all time favourite record gean Chandler there was a time Brill love from the soul man and the peaky blinder x
odshagtunes ODSHAGTUNES
ANOTHER KILLER 24 K GOLD STANDARD!
Red Mc
✊🏻
Andrew Turnbull
Soul sue hi Brill record love from soul man