James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American entert… Read Full Bio ↴James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American entertainer, record producer, and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honorific nicknames "the Hardest Working Man in Show Business", "Godfather of Soul", "Mr. Dynamite", and "Soul Brother No. 1". In a career that lasted more than 50 years, he influenced the development of several music genres. Brown was one of the first 10 inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at its inaugural induction in New York on January 23, 1986.

Brown began his career as a gospel singer in Toccoa, Georgia. He first came to national public attention in the mid-1950s as the lead singer of the Famous Flames, a rhythm and blues vocal group founded by Bobby Byrd. With the hit ballads "Please, Please, Please" and "Try Me", Brown built a reputation as a dynamic live performer with the Famous Flames and his backing band, sometimes known as the James Brown Band or the James Brown Orchestra. His success peaked in the 1960s with the live album Live at the Apollo and hit singles such as "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag", "I Got You (I Feel Good)" and "It's a Man's Man's Man's World".

During the late 1960s, Brown moved from a continuum of blues and gospel-based forms and styles to a profoundly "Africanized" approach to music-making, emphasizing stripped-down interlocking rhythms that influenced the development of funk music. By the early 1970s, Brown had fully established the funk sound after the formation of the J.B.s with records such as "Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine" and "The Payback". He also became noted for songs of social commentary, including the 1968 hit "Say It Loud - I'm Black and I'm Proud". Brown continued to perform and record until his death from pneumonia in 2006.

Brown recorded 17 singles that reached No. 1 on the Billboard R&B charts. He also holds the record for the most singles listed on the Billboard Hot 100 chart that did not reach No. 1. Brown was posthumously inducted into the first class of the Rhythm & Blues Music Hall of Fame in 2013 as an artist and then in 2017 as a songwriter. He also received honors from several other institutions, including inductions into the Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame, and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In Joel Whitburn's analysis of the Billboard R&B charts from 1942 to 2010, Brown is ranked No. 1 in The Top 500 Artists. He is ranked seventh on Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.

Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Brown

Studio albums
Please Please Please (1958)
Try Me! (1959)
Think! (1960)
The Amazing James Brown (1961)
James Brown and His Famous Flames Tour the U.S.A. (1962)
Prisoner of Love (1963)
Grits & Soul (1964)
Showtime (1964)
Out of Sight (1964)
James Brown Plays James Brown Today & Yesterday (1965)
Mighty Instrumentals (1966)
James Brown Plays New Breed (The Boo-Ga-Loo) (1966)
James Brown Sings Christmas Songs (1966)
Handful of Soul (1966)
James Brown Sings Raw Soul (1967)
James Brown Plays the Real Thing (1967)
Cold Sweat (1967)
I Can't Stand Myself When You Touch Me (1968)
I Got the Feelin' (1968)
James Brown Plays Nothing But Soul (1968)
Thinking About Little Willie John and a Few Nice Things (1968)
A Soulful Christmas (1968)
Say It Loud - I'm Black and I'm Proud (1969)
Gettin' Down to It (1969)
The Popcorn (1969)
It's a Mother (1969)
Ain't It Funky (1970)
Soul on Top (1970)
It's a New Day - Let a Man Come In (1970)
Hey America (1970)
Sho Is Funky Down Here (1971)
Hot Pants (1971)
There It Is (1972)
Get on the Good Foot (1972)
Black Caesar (1973)
Slaughter's Big Rip-Off (1973)
The Payback (1973)
Hell (1974)
Reality (1974)
Sex Machine Today (1975)
Everybody's Doin' the Hustle & Dead on the Double Bump (1975)
Hot (1976)
Get Up Offa That Thing (1976)
Bodyheat (1976)
Mutha's Nature (1977)
Jam 1980's (1978)
Take a Look at Those Cakes (1978)
The Original Disco Man (1979)
People (1980)
Soul Syndrome (1980)
Nonstop! (1981)
Bring It On! (1983)
Gravity (1986)
I'm Real (1988)
Love Over-Due (1991)
Universal James (1993)
I'm Back (1998)
The Merry Christmas Album (1999)
The Next Step (2002)

I Guess I'll Have to Cry Cry Cry
James Brown Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

My cup is running over
I don't know what to do
My cup is running over
I don't know what to do
No, I don't know
No, I don't know

[Chorus]

Guess I gotta cry, cry, cry
People, let me cry, cry, cry
I'd feel a little bit better
If I cry, cry, cry

My cup is overflowing
I don't know what to do
My cup is overflowing
I don't know what to do
No, I don't know
No, I don't know

[Chorus]

When I, I lost you
I lost the best thing I ever had
Now that I, I realize, oh
It makes me, it makes me
It makes me so bad

My cup is running over
I don't know what to do
My cup is running over
I don't know what to do
No, I don't know
No, I don't know

[Chorus]

Just let me cry, people
How do you feel
How do you feel
When you see a man cry

People, let me cry
I'm not ashamed
I'm not ashamed
Guess I gotta walk away now
Just let me walk away

Just let me walk away
Just let me walk away

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of James Brown's song I Guess I'll Have to Cry Cry Cry can be seen as a reflection of the singer's feelings after losing his lover. The line "My cup is running over, I don't know what to do" expresses a sense of overwhelming emotion that Brown is struggling to contain. He seems to be grappling with the pain and heartache of his loss and is unsure how to cope with it. The repetition of "no, I don't know" emphasizes his confusion and uncertainty.

The chorus of the song, "Guess I gotta cry, cry, cry, People, let me cry, cry, cry, I'd feel a little bit better if I cry, cry, cry," seems to be Brown's plea to those around him to let him express and release his emotions. He believes that shedding tears will help ease his pain and make him feel better. The phrase "guess I gotta cry" suggests that Brown sees crying as a necessary part of his healing process.

The final line of the song, "Just let me walk away," implies that Brown needs to remove himself from the situation to process his feelings. He wants to be left alone to grieve and work through his emotions in his own way.

Overall, the lyrics of I Guess I'll Have to Cry Cry Cry convey the pain and confusion that come with losing a loved one. Brown's raw and emotional delivery adds to the intensity of the song, and his message about the importance of expressing and releasing one's emotions resonates with listeners.

Line by Line Meaning

My cup is running over
I am overwhelmed with emotions

I don't know what to do
I am at a loss of how to cope

No, I don't know
I am unsure and confused

Guess I gotta cry, cry, cry
I have no other option but to cry

People, let me cry, cry, cry
I am asking for permission to let out my emotions

I'd feel a little bit better
I believe that crying will help me feel some relief

If I cry, cry, cry
If I allow myself to cry

My cup is overflowing
My emotions are too much to contain

When I, I lost you
When I lost the best thing I ever had

It makes me, it makes me
It overwhelms me with emotions

It makes me so bad
It makes me feel so terrible