His life took a turn, though, as he became a victim of drug and alcohol abuse, as well as stints with manic depression that found him hospitalized in a mental health facility. He had almost disappeared entirely when he started performing again on rare occasions in the early 1990s, often working with Tyrone Davis or Otis Clay.
Carr had suffered from lung cancer for many years, spending the end of his life in a nursing home in Memphis. At the age of 58, James Carr died there from his battle with the disease on January 7, 2001. It is said that he had been analphabetic.
Forgetting You
James Carr Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I can't help but to keep wishing that you were here
I done you wrong but now you are gone
what can I do?
don't make me live the rest of my life
forgetting you
it's too bad I didn't realize until you were gone
but now that you've gone I can't go on
living here without you
don't make me live the rest of my life
forgetting you
Forgetting you
it will be so hard I know
but listen baby
how can I forget you
every day I love you more and more
come back to me
I'm lone and blue
don't make me live the rest of my life
forgetting you
how can I forget you
when every day I love you a little more
and a little more
how can I forget you
when you fill my heart with so much joy
how can I forget you
when I love you all so much
how can I forget you
when every day I need you by my side
Oh, I love you baby
I love you from the bottom of my heart
tell me
tell me that we will never part
I love you baby
The lyrics to James Carr's song Forgetting You speak of regret, longing, and a deep desire to be reunited with a lost love. The singer in the song is preparing to go to bed alone and cannot help but wish that their lover were there with them. They acknowledge that they have done wrong and that their lover is now gone, leaving them to face the consequences of their actions. The singer pleads with their lover not to make them spend the rest of their life "forgetting you."
The second verse further emphasizes the singer's regret and the depth of their love for their lost partner. They confess that they did not fully appreciate what they had until it was gone and now cannot go on without their lover by their side. The refrain of the song ("Forgetting you") serves as a reminder of the singer's desperation to be reunited with their love.
The final section of the song is a plea for their lover to come back to them, the singer is filled with loneliness and despair, and unable to cope with the loss of their lover. They express their deep love and need for their partner, promising never to take them for granted again. The song ends with a tender declaration of love and a plea for their lover to never leave them.
Overall, the lyrics to Forgetting You convey a message of regret, longing, and the pain of lost love. The singer's deep remorse for their actions and their desperate plea for their lover's return are heartfelt and poignant, making this song a classic example of soulful, emotive balladry.
Line by Line Meaning
As I prepare to lay down here alone dear
As I get ready to go to sleep alone, my mind is occupied with thoughts of you.
I can't help but to keep wishing that you were here
It's difficult for me to stop thinking about how much I miss you and how much I want you to be with me right now.
I done you wrong but now you are gone
I made a mistake and hurt you, and now that you've left, I'm left with the consequences of my actions.
what can I do?
I'm at a loss as to how I can make things right and make you come back to me.
don't make me live the rest of my life
forgetting you
I can't bear the thought of spending the rest of my life without you and trying to forget about you.
it's too bad I didn't realize until you were gone
just what it meant to have a love like you for my own
It's unfortunate that I didn't understand the true value of our relationship and how much you meant to me until you were no longer with me.
but now that you've gone I can't go on
living here without you
Life without you is unbearable and I can't imagine carrying on without you by my side.
Forgetting you
Trying to forget you is going to be a difficult task.
it will be so hard I know
I'm aware that it's going to be incredibly difficult for me to forget about you.
but listen baby
how can I forget you
every day I love you more and more
I keep falling more and more in love with you each day, so how can I even begin to start forgetting about you?
come back to me
I'm lone and blue
I'm feeling so lonely and sad without you, please come back to me.
how can I forget you
when you fill my heart with so much joy
You bring me so much happiness and joy that it's impossible for me to forget about you and what you mean to me.
when every day I need you by my side
I feel like I need you with me every single day to feel complete and happy.
Oh, I love you baby
I love you from the bottom of my heart
My love for you is so deep and unconditional that it reaches the very bottom of my heart.
tell me
tell me that we will never part
I love you baby
I need to hear from you that we'll never be separated and that you love me too, because I love you so much.
Contributed by Hunter B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@user-it5ne8zj1i
Lyrics
As I prepare to lay down here alone dear
I can't help but to keep wishing that you were here
I done you wrong but now you are gone
what can I do?
don't make me live the rest of my life
forgetting you
it's too bad I didn't realize until you were gone
just what it meant to have a love like you for my own
but now that you've gone I can't go on
living here without you
don't make me live the rest of my life
forgetting you
Forgetting you
it will be so hard I know
but listen baby
how can I forget you
every day I love you more and more
come back to me
I'm lone and blue
don't make me live the rest of my life
forgetting you
how can I forget you
when every day I love you a little moreΒ
and a little more
how can I forget you
when you fill my heart with so much joy
how can I forget you
when I love you all so much
how can I forget you
when every day I need you by my side
Oh, I love you baby
I love you from the bottom of my heart
tell me
tell me that we will never part
I love you baby
@colephillips142
How could we let such a great song get past us until the good neighbour??π
@terrellwilliams2240
Thatβs what brought me here
@mse7501
Agree. Loved soul music, blues and Motown since I was five yrs old. White Texas girl.
@kwameboxa567
Me too.
@GREATTECH1
I grew up on James Carr down south in Louisiana during the early 60's. I'm nearly 70 now, and James Carr's music was in the regular rotation in the soul music arena. We all knew James Carr was bad. All the soul radio stations played him night and day. This music transcended races too. One of my favorite DJ's was a white announcer on WLAC am radio in Nashville Tennessee. His name was the Big John R (Richbourg). He played all the soul classics, and it was years later that I discovered he was white. He was so cool. Even in Louisiana, we could hear that 50000 watt clear channel station all over the deep south. He played Joe Simon, Dorothy Moore, Sam and Dave, ZZ HILL, Percy Sledge, Otis Redding, Lou Rawls, Little Milton, Johnnie Taylor, Clarence Gatemouth Brown, and a host of other stars a lot of people barely heard about. They became famous because of his and other DJ airplay on that station. They also sold records at record shops in Nashville, like Ernie's and Randy records of Gallatin, Tennessee. I miss those nights listening to my am radio fade in and out, but the delay was worth waiting for. I still love it all, and all races listened to that station. Soul is universal.
@wgb75
The movie Good Neighbor brought me here....nice songπ€
@veronicasmith1045
Cold in July. Bright me here
@mikeyincalif
I heard this song on the movie Good Neighbor, searched YouTube; I'm now a fan of James Carr. He's fantastic Soulful Singer.
@pablolitenstein6710
THE GOOD NEIGHBOR BROUGHT ME HERE , AND YOU?
@Techniiik
My lazy ass did