The band teamed up with John Farnham for "Everytime You Cry" which was one of the biggest hits of 1997, and due to the success of the previous tours, were asked personally by both Celine Dion and Michael Jackson to continue to support them throughout their European tours in June-September 1997. The band played to crowds often numbering over 100,000 people, and they also took the stage for three nights at Wembley Stadium. Upon their return to Australia in October, Human Nature embarked on their first ever national concert tour- headlining at entertainment centres around the country.
'Counting Down' released in 1998 continued the band's momentum, and debuted at number one on the ARIA charts and generated five gold singles in Australia - "Last To Know", "Don't Cry", "Cruel", "Be There With You" and "Eternal Flame" a cover version of the 1989 hit by The Bangles. The band also appeared in an Australian concert tour of symphonic versions of Beatles songs conducted by legendary producer and "fifth Beatle", Sir George Martin.
In 1999, Human Nature appeared in a tour of the musical version of the television series Happy Days.
The band released a self-titled album in 2000 with lead single "He Don't Love You" reaching Top 20 in the UK and being the 2nd best selling Australasian single in Australia for that year. The album was recorded in Sydney, London, Stockholm, Los Angeles and New York and featured a songwriting session with Gary Barlow of Take That.
In September 2000 the band performed the Australian National Anthem at the 2000 Summer Olympics with Julie Anthony. The band also appeared in Australian soap opera Neighbours in November 2000 and performed "He Don't Love You" at Erinsborough High's debutant ball and sang "Wishes" a cappella at the ball's after party.
A greatest hits album- Here & Now: The Best of Human Nature- followed in late 2001. The accompanying single "Always Be With You" also made the Australian top 30, with the appearance of comic character Guido Hatzis, breakdancing legend, making the video memorable.
Throughout 2002 and into early 2003, Toby took on the role of MC in a major production of the musical Cabaret. This portrayal earned him a prestigious Helpmann Award.
Human Nature's fourth studio album Walk the Tightrope was released on 26 April 2004. The first single "When You Say You Love Me" was written by Darren Hayes, formerly of Savage Garden, and it reached the Top 10 in Australia in 2004. The album also features "Love Is Blind" written by Barry Gibb of the Bee Gees, a reworked cover of Guilty by Barry Gibb and Barbra Streisand, and a cover version of "To Be With You", a 1992 hit by glam metal band Mr. Big.
Mid-2005 saw Toby again hit the musical theatre scene, playing Kenickie in an arena version of the musical Grease.
With the realisation that they were perhaps outgrowing their original teen market, for their fifth studio album Human Nature decided to pay tribute to the music that influenced them from the very beginning, and released an album of Motown covers- Reach Out: The Motown Record- on 6 November 2005. It peaked at number one on the Australian charts and has reached 5 times platinum. They toured extensively around Australia in 2006 on The Motown Show tour and members Phil Burton and Toby Allen both starred in reality TV shows during 2005/06: Phil in the Nine Network's Celebrity Overhaul 2 and Toby on Channel 7's Dancing With The Stars, plus both Phil and Toby on Channel 10's Australia's Brainiest Musician in March 2006 (Phil came in first, and Toby came in second).
On 29 October 2006, Human Nature won their first ARIA - highest selling album - after 15 nominations; band member Andrew Tierney joked saying they were the "John Wood" of the ARIAs.
The quartet's sixth studio album Dancing In The Street: The Songs Of Motown II was released on 13 October 2006 and debuted at number one, with 14 Motown cover songs, after the initial 'Motown' album sold over 350,000 copies and won the highest selling album ARIA award.
They toured Australia with Doug Parkinson as the MC for the Motown Tour 2005/06 and the Encore Motown Tour 2006, and again in mid-2007 with the Dancing In The Street Arena Tour 2007, with special guests Paulini and The Naturelles.
The 24th of November, 2007 saw Human Nature hit No.2 on the ARIA Albums Chart with Get Ready, the 3rd Motown-themed album, which this time featured appearances by several original Motown singing legends such as Smokey Robinson, Martha Reeves, Mary Wilson of The Supremes and The Temptations. All three albums have now sold close to a million copies in Australia. Human Nature's total album sales in Australia number almost two million.
At the start of 2008, Human Nature headed over to perform for the first ever time in the USA, with a two-month engagement at Atlantic City's Tropicana Casino. They played the Imperial Palace and Casino in 2009.
On 22 April 2008, Human Nature took the stage with The Supremes' Mary Wilson on the television show It Takes Two. They performed two duets from their Get Ready album: "It Takes Two" and "River Deep, Mountain High".
Human Nature is currently in residency through May 2010 at the Imperial Palace Hotel in Las Vegas. Their show, "The Ultimate Celebration of the Motown Sound," is being presented by friend and mentor Smokey Robinson.
Official Website: www.humannaturelive.com
Ain't Too Proud to Beg
Human Nature Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
But I refuse to let you go,
If I have to beg, plead for your sympathy,
I don't mind 'cause you mean that much to me.
Ain't too proud to beg and you know it,
Please don't leave me girl,
Don't you go,
Please don't leave me, girl,
Don't you go.
Now I've heard a cryin' man
Is half a man with no sense of pride,
But if I have to cry to keep you,
I don't mind weepin' if it'll keep you by my side.
Ain't too proud to beg and you know it,
Please don't leave me girl,
Don't you go,
Ain't too proud to plead, baby, baby,
Please don't leave me, girl,
Don't you go.
If I have to sleep on your doorstep all night and day
Just to keep you from walking away,
Let your friends laugh, even this I can stand,
'cause I wanna keep you any way I can.
Ain't too proud to beg and you know it,
Please don't leave me girl,
Don't you go,
Ain't too proud to plead, baby, baby,
Please don't leave me, girl,
Don't you go.
Now I've got a love so deep in the pit of my heart,
And each day it grows more and more,
I'm not ashamed to call and plead to you, baby,
If pleading keeps you from walking out that door.
Ain't too proud to beg and you know it,
Please don't leave me girl,
Don't you go,
Ain't too proud to plead, baby, baby,
Please don't leave me, girl,
Don't you go.
The lyrics to "Ain't Too Proud To Beg" by Human Nature are about a man who is desperately pleading to his partner not to leave him. He is willing to do anything to keep her, even if it means begging and pleading for her love and sympathy. The man acknowledges that society may see him as less of a man for crying and begging, but he is willing to do it if it means keeping his partner by his side. He is not ashamed to plead for his partner to stay, and his love for her grows deeper every day.
The song is a classic R&B hit that was originally performed by the Temptations in 1966. It has been covered by various artists over the years, including the Rolling Stones and TLC. "Ain't Too Proud To Beg" represents the classic Motown sound with its infectious melody, prominent bassline, and soulful vocals. The lyrics are relatable and speak to the universal feeling of love and the fear of losing it.
Line by Line Meaning
I know you wanna leave me,
I am aware that you desire to leave me,
But I refuse to let you go,
However, I am not willing to let you leave,
If I have to beg, plead for your sympathy,
Even if I have to beg and plead for your compassion,
I don't mind 'cause you mean that much to me.
I am willing to do so because I value you that much.
Ain't too proud to beg and you know it,
I am not too proud to beg, and you are aware of it,
Please don't leave me girl,
Hence, I request you not to depart, my lady,
Don't you go,
Kindly do not leave.
Now I've heard a cryin' man
I have heard that a weeping man,
Is half a man with no sense of pride,
Only half a person having dignity,
But if I have to cry to keep you,
However, if shedding tears keeps you with me,
I don't mind weepin' if it'll keep you by my side.
I am willing to cry to have you stay beside me.
Ain't too proud to beg and you know it,
I am not too proud to beg, and you are aware of it,
Please don't leave me girl,
Hence, I request you not to depart, my lady,
Don't you go,
Kindly do not leave.
If I have to sleep on your doorstep all night and day
In case I have to sleep on your doorstep day and night,
Just to keep you from walking away,
Simply to prevent you from departing,
Let your friends laugh, even this I can stand,
Even if your friends laugh, I can tolerate it,
'cause I wanna keep you any way I can.
As I want to keep you, no matter what happens.
Ain't too proud to beg and you know it,
I am not too proud to beg, and you are aware of it,
Please don't leave me girl,
Hence, I request you not to depart, my lady,
Don't you go,
Kindly do not leave.
Now I've got a love so deep in the pit of my heart,
I have an intense love buried within my heart,
And each day it grows more and more,
And it keeps on increasing each day,
I'm not ashamed to call and plead to you, baby,
I do not feel embarrassed to request and plead to you, my dear,
If pleading keeps you from walking out that door.
As long as pleading prevents you from departing.
Ain't too proud to beg and you know it,
I am not too proud to beg, and you are aware of it,
Please don't leave me girl,
Hence, I request you not to depart, my lady,
Don't you go,
Kindly do not leave.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Norman Whitfield, Edward Jr. Holland
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind