13. Fate Of A Fool
J.J. Cale featuring Leon Russell Lyrics
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Drinking that long black whisky down
I play the guitar, for me it's a living
Well, I know, just a hanging-around
Dancing girls, oh, they drive me crazy
All they want is a fancy name
Don't you know is I might not make it
That's the fate of a fool and a guitar man
Honky-tonk, where I come from
Smoke's so thick I can't imagine
Wine flows fast by the rule of a gun
One of these mornings it'll come up Sunday
I won't have a good time again
That time ain't now, it's a whole new dream
That's the fate of a fool and a guitar man
One more night, one more dollar
One more song, can you do it again
I don't know, I may not make it
That's the fate of a fool and a guitar man
That's the fate of a fool and a guitar man
The lyrics of J.J. Cale featuring Leon Russell's song 13. Fate Of A Fool depict the struggles of a musician who spends his life in a cold, hard bar-room drinking whisky and playing the guitar for a living. He is surrounded by dancing girls who drive him crazy, but all they want is a fancy name. The musician knows that he might not make it and that's the fate of a fool and a guitar man. The honky-tonk where he comes from is filled with smoke and wine flows fast by the rule of a gun. Although he enjoys the good time, he knows that one of these mornings it'll come up Sunday and he won't have a good time again.
The musician dreams about making it big, but he also knows that it might never happen for him. He lives one more night, one more dollar and one more song hoping to make it big. But he is uncertain if he can do it again as he doesn't know if he can make his name big in the music industry. The musician doesn't know what the future holds for him and whether he will be successful or not. The song portrays the struggles and uncertainty of a musician's life.
Line by Line Meaning
Spending my life in a cold hard bar-room
I spend my days isolated in a bleak, unwelcoming bar
Drinking that long black whisky down
I rely on alcohol as a coping mechanism
I play the guitar, for me it's a living
My profession is playing the guitar, it's how I make ends meet
Well, I know, just a hanging-around
I don't have a specific destination in mind, just aimlessly wandering
Dancing girls, oh, they drive me crazy
Women who prioritize luxury are my weakness, they make me lose focus
All they want is a fancy name
These women value material possessions and status over substance
Don't you know is I might not make it
I fear that I might not achieve success
That's the fate of a fool and a guitar man
It's a common outcome for a performer like me
Yeah, been down to the palace of pleasure
I've been to clubs where people go to indulge themselves
Honky-tonk, where I come from
I grew up in an area where country music is popular
Smoke's so thick I can't imagine
The environment was incredibly polluted with smoke that clouded my vision
Wine flows fast by the rule of a gun
Alcohol is consumed excessively and recklessly here and gun violence is a common occurrence
One of these mornings it'll come up Sunday
One day I'll wake up and realize I've been wasting my time chasing temporary pleasures
I won't have a good time again
After that realization, I won't be able to enjoy myself in the same way
That time ain't now, it's a whole new dream
Right now, I'm still too distracted by my aspirations to realize the truth about my lifestyle
One more night, one more dollar
I keep going, motivated by the promise of financial gain
One more song, can you do it again
I repeat the same routine, hoping to entertain the same people again
I don't know, I may not make it
Despite my hustle, I'm unsure if I'll actually succeed
That's the fate of a fool and a guitar man
It's a common outcome for a performer like me
That's the fate of a fool and a guitar man
It's a common outcome for a performer like me
Lyrics © BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC
Written by: J. J. CALE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@steelyman08
Spending my life in a cold hard bar-room
Drinking that long black whisky down
I play the guitar, for me it's a living
Well, I know, just a hanging-around
Dancing girls, oh, they drive me crazy
All they want is a fancy name
Don't you know is I might not make it
That's the fate of a fool and a guitar man
Yeah, been down to the palace of pleasure
Honky-tonk, where I come from
Smoke's so thick I can't imagine
Wine flows fast by the rule of a gun
One of these mornings it'll come up Sunday
I won't have a good time again
That time ain't now, it's a whole new dream
That's the fate of a fool and a guitar man
One more night, one more dollar
One more song, can you do it again
I don't know, I may not make it
That's the fate of a fool and a guitar man
That's the fate of a fool and a guitar man
Songwriters: J. J. Cale
Fate of a Fool lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Check out the "In Session" live performance with Leon Russell if you enjoy JJ's album "5". It coincided with the release of this album. So the songs from this "5" album are actually introducing this album from 1979. It's on my channel if you're interested.🙂
@steelyman08
Spending my life in a cold hard bar-room
Drinking that long black whisky down
I play the guitar, for me it's a living
Well, I know, just a hanging-around
Dancing girls, oh, they drive me crazy
All they want is a fancy name
Don't you know is I might not make it
That's the fate of a fool and a guitar man
Yeah, been down to the palace of pleasure
Honky-tonk, where I come from
Smoke's so thick I can't imagine
Wine flows fast by the rule of a gun
One of these mornings it'll come up Sunday
I won't have a good time again
That time ain't now, it's a whole new dream
That's the fate of a fool and a guitar man
One more night, one more dollar
One more song, can you do it again
I don't know, I may not make it
That's the fate of a fool and a guitar man
That's the fate of a fool and a guitar man
Songwriters: J. J. Cale
Fate of a Fool lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Check out the "In Session" live performance with Leon Russell if you enjoy JJ's album "5". It coincided with the release of this album. So the songs from this "5" album are actually introducing this album from 1979. It's on my channel if you're interested.🙂
@GinnyJacksonPownell
Another great one from J.J. - I've noticed a recurring theme in his songs...lol !! Still a big fan of Leon Russell !! Wishing you a Happy New Year, hope '24 treats you well. As for me, still too early to tell. 😊🤗❤
@steelyman08
Same to you, Ginny. Still too early for me to tell as well! Truly. But I'm wishing you a happy one as well. It's nice to have a handful of regulars out of 23,000 who actually make contact on YT. Always grateful for that. I remember YT in 2008. The difference is mind blowing! People were always chatting & messaging back then. I hardly even had any uploads at all. It was simply 100% more social. It's obviously Smart Phones that put an end to all of that. And the whole nature of streaming in general. All of that in 15 years! And here we are in 2024. I'm actually glad that I'm older because I was around for some very good music & a society that was far easier to get by in ~ far more accepting, ironically enough (because everyone's supposedly so much more "open" these days?). I wish I'd been born in your generation, though. The sixties and seventies must seem like another lifetime for those who were old enough to enjoy it all. I can't even imagine being around for The Beatles or the hippie generation. I would have had a blast because that's basically what's driven my tiny life ~ riding on the coat-tails of all of the music & cultural changes of that era. My earliest years were all about Bob Dylan & The Beatles. I have no idea why because I grew up with very conservative grandparents who loathed all of that nonsense. I just heard it all and gravitated towards it. I was the perfect age for the Punk & New Wave movement in the UK. I enjoyed it well enough, but it was always The Byrds, Hendrix, Dylan, The Beatles, Neil Young, and all of the others who hailed from the 60s that really won my heart & mind. Still, there's my New Year's ramble for you. Hope it wasn't too long & boring. So here I sit wishing that I'd been born around 1950! Feel free to have your own New Year's talkabout. That's honestly what the new year made me think about the most ~ what I didn't experience 🤣I'm not ashamed at all! Take care & I hope that your new year isn't too eclipsed by all of the healthcare issues that keep knocking away at the door, etc. I've been glad to have you around in 2023. Thank you ♥
@GinnyJacksonPownell
@@steelyman08 I consider you a TRUE friend! Funny you mention 2008! I was around here then, but I (me, myself, etc..lol) deleted my channel by not understanding that if I deleted my Gmail address, there went my channel !! 🤣🤣 I had 100,000 + views on some things, and right down the proverbial rat-hole !! I had open-heart surgery in 2007, so I remember it well. Then the "rebuilding phase" started back, little by little, and I feel that there are still things that were on my first channel that fell by the wayside. My best friend was from the UK !! Carl Roberts. He has many sites, but "Carl's Old Record Club" was the best! He had a first marriage (I think) in the UK, but he also lived in The Philippines, and had a wife named Yvonne, and they had a daughter named Tilly! The content was easier to manage from The Philippines.
You should look him up! I'm sure some of his sites are still around. Of course, he put his "stamp" on every song, but he didn't mind at all if people wanted to share, plus I made friends with a lot of his friends. He was instrumental in helping to "jog my memory" in re-starting my 2nd channel, which was now started in 2015. By the way, Carl did his own videos and if you go on my channel and go to "Favorite Instrumentals,etc" you will find the song "Love is Blue," by Paul Mauriat in which Carl did the beautiful video. I lost touch with him and family, unfortunately. Probably due to my health issues.
I think politics in general, and world issues have changed this venue a lot. I came here for music, and nothing else. I was also on G+, and a lot of my followers loved music, so we did that every night before they canned G+ ! I remember Napster in the olden days, etc...I have Spotify, but don't use it much because there is no communication between friends there (I don't think). I also had another friend here from the UK, and he told me that my being born in 1953, was probably the "best era for music," looking from his perspective, from the stand point of having a music background before The British Invasion. I did join Premium (my son and I got a family plan), and am enjoying more content and some free movies, as well as no ads, etc..!! I love a lot of the old bands like The Byrds, The Zombies, The Turtles, The Young Rascals, etc...
Not feeling great at the moment, fighting something, just don't know what I'm fighting! I feel like I have the flu, but I did have a flu vaccine way back in September. If I don't feel better in a few days, I will go to the E.R., which is way too expensive, but may be necessary. Taking lots of Vitamin C and chicken soup and all of the old remedies, but seem to be worsening. Hoping 2024 will be better for both of us !! ❤
@steelyman08
@@GinnyJacksonPownell I lost a channel in exactly the same way. It's still up, but they locked me out as they did you. No way back in at all.
Sorry to hear of your struggles. I've a plateful myself & it's all pretty rough.
I was also on Google + and talked with many others. Why does the nicer side of things always get replaced by empty, dehumanized technology? I really don't understand how people just let it all go as it it meant nothing? It's simply that the big corporations don't want the chatter because it interferes with consumption. But you'd think people might fight back?
Wishing you the best ♥
@GinnyJacksonPownell
@@steelyman08 Carl's channel is now called "The Old Record Club," and if you scroll down, it has the name of 4 of his channels. He's such a nice chap!!
@steelyman08
@@GinnyJacksonPownell I'll check it out. I spend most of my time just finding new stuff to watch. Might be a documentary or a live show. That's what I love about YT. It's simply the only place where you can literally tune into absolutely anything that interests you. Music is always first, but I've found so much interesting stuff on this site over the years. It's the number 1 place for discovery. I just know they'll change it all eventually ~ turn it into a strictly mainstream service, etc. Let's enjoy it while we can! Hard to believe that it's survived since about 2006 (?) as a content sharing platform. I don't even understand how my channel even gains new subscribers still. It's that surreal. It would be very easy to play the game and get lots of subscribers, you know? But that's just something I can't stomach. I see many just uploading entire albums every day ~ the top albums across all genres. And they get so many subscribers. They don't get paid because you can't, but they attract 50,000 new subscribers each month. That means that any upload gets a lot of views. If I put up some odd tune that I love, it gets about 80 views & then fizzles away. So you want people to enjoy different things, but you pay the price if it's not popular enough. Sorry to waffle, but thanks for listening. It's just really tough because of the cursed algorithm! ♥
@i3i2ian
excellent
@jeffbyrnes3686
Cool as always from 5 😎🎸🤠
Can i request an upload of "If You Leave Her" from 😎Shades😎? 😊😊😊
@steelyman08
Wow! Finally a fan of Shades. I just love the entire album. It gets very few views? Why? It's all excellent. More bluesy, but superb. Let me see what I can rustle up 🙂