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)
The Chicken
James Brown Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Revenge! I'm mad (the big payback)
Got to get back! Need some get back! Pay Back! (the big payback)
That's it! Payback! Revenge!
I'm mad!
Get down with my girlfriend, that ain't right!
Hollarin' cussin', you want to fight
Brother do any damn thing to me
Sold me out, for chicken change (yes you did!)
Told me that they, they had it all arranged
You had me down, and that's a fact
Now you punk, You gotta get ready
For the big payback! (the big payback!)
That's where I am, the big payback (the big payback!)
I can do wheelin', I can do dealin' (yes you can!)
But I don't do no damn squealin'
I can dig rappin', I'm ready! I can dig scrappin'
But I can't dig that backstabbin' (Oh no!)
The brother get ready! That's a fact!
Get ready you Mother, for the big payback (The big Payback!)
Let me hit 'em hit'em! Hey, hey! Woo!
Took my money, you got my honey
Don't want me to see what you doing to me
I got to get back I gotta deal with you!
Hey let me tell ya!
Get down with my woman, that ain't right!
You hollerin' and cussin', you want to fight!
Don't do me no darn favor,
I don't know karate, but I know Ka-Razor! (yes we do!)
Get ready that's a fact,
Get ready you Mother for the big payback (the big payback!)
Hey! I'm a man! I'm a man!
I'm a son of a man, but don't they tell ya then Pappa can
Get ready for the big payback (the big payback!) Hit 'em again!
Get ready I need it, I need a hit again!
Say it once
Hit 'emagain!(the big payback!)
Sold me out for chump change
Said my woman had it all arranged
Tryin' to make a deal, she wants to squeal
But I had my boys on her heals
Saw me comin', told a lie
Went down like you wanted to cry
I don't care what she does, she'll be doin' just like she was
Take those kids and raise them up,
Somebody teach 'em to be righteous tough
Take her, take that woman, it's one place she found
Just run that mother out of town!
Got to get up! Got to get up, get out!
I'm mad! I want revenge, I want revenge (the big payback!)
I want revenge, revenge, revenge (the big payback!)
Give me those hits! I want some hits!
I need those hits, hit me!
"The Chicken" by James Brown is a song about revenge and payback. The main theme of the song is getting back at someone who has wronged you in some way. The lyrics indicate this, with phrases like "Got to get back! Need some get back! Pay Back!" In the song, James Brown talks about being sold out by someone for chicken change and how they had him down. He talks about his anger and how he's ready to get revenge. James Brown also addresses the fact that someone he trusted had cheated on him with his girlfriend, and he was not happy about it. He mentions his willingness to fight back and take revenge on those who have wronged him.
Throughout the song, James Brown makes it clear that he is not going to put up with anyone who betrays or cheats him. He talks about not doing any "damn squealin'" and being ready to "dig scrappin'," but not "dig backstabbin'." He is ready to take matters into his own hands and get the payback he deserves.
Line by Line Meaning
Hey! Gotta gotta payback! (The big payback)
I am seeking revenge and I must get it, no matter what it takes (the big payback)
Get down with my girlfriend, that ain't right! Hollarin' cussin', you want to fight
You are disrespecting me by getting intimate with my girlfriend and you are provoking me (to fight)
Sold me out, for chicken change (yes you did!), Told me that they, they had it all arranged
You betrayed me for a small amount of money and claimed you had everything figured out
I can do wheelin', I can do dealin' (yes you can!), But I don't do no damn squealin'
I am capable of negotiating and making deals, but I will not betray my own to gain something for myself
Took my money, you got my honey, Don't want me to see what you doing to me, I got to get back I gotta deal with you!
You stole my money and seduced my lover, preventing me from discovering your treachery, and now I have to take revenge
Get down with my woman, that ain't right!, You hollerin' and cussin', you want to fight!
You are disrespecting me by getting intimate with my woman and you are provoking me (to fight)
Don't do me no darn favor, I don't know karate, but I know Ka-Razor! (yes we do!)
Do me no favors, because despite not knowing martial arts, I know how to use a razor
Sold me out for chump change, Said my woman had it all arranged, Tryin' to make a deal, she wants to squeal, But I had my boys on her heals
You betrayed me for a small amount of money and claimed that my woman was involved, you tried to negotiate with her, and she was contemplating betraying me, but I had people watching over her
Saw me comin', told a lie, Went down like you wanted to cry
You realized I was on to you and you lied to me, and when you got caught, you acted as if you were the victim
Take those kids and raise them up, Somebody teach 'em to be righteous tough
Raise the kids correctly, teach them to be strong and honorable
Give me those hits! I want some hits!, I need those hits, hit me!
I need to release my anger and frustration, hit me!
Writer(s): ALFRED JAMES ELLIS
Contributed by Brody M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
mootbooxle
I have spent many an hour over the years jamming to this record. I can't get enough of that groove!
dearlm
Love this song. The bass rhythm......the lead sax..... can't beat it!!
Nevik Yesnik
"Blow, Maceo!!!" :D
Dario De Rosa
the drums...
Charles Duckett Jr.
Very fun, and instructive, for me to finally check out this original version of "The Chicken". I learned this tune on the bandstand maybe 20 years ago. It is a standard instrumental for certain types of gigs; most musicians know the tune. Probably many have not gone back & listened to this version though. I certainly never knew that there was such a busy, aggressive guitar part!
Artofunk
I’m just discovering this original.. shame on me, but better late than never
Ray Burton
JB always have a groove that made you sit back, cross your legs and nod your head to the beat
supahsekzy
The best part of the song is where they don't hit the last note. So bad ass
grayforester
There's a song?
tiddy tips
No shit there's a song