Starting his entertainment career as a tap dancer, Jones joined a doo-wop group named The Berliners in 1954. They later changed their name to Sparks Of Rhythm.[1] In 1955 Jones co-wrote "Handy Man", which was recorded by the Sparks Of Rhythm in 1956 (after Jones left the group).
After recording with other groups, Jones went solo and, in 1959, teamed up with Otis Blackwell who reworked "Handy Man" which Jones recorded on the subsidiary MGM record label, Cub. When the flute player did not show up for the session, Blackwell famously whistled on the recording. "Handy Man," released in 1959, gave Jones his first U.S. and UK hit single. "Handy Man" went to #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1960. Later in that same year, Jones' recording of "Good Timin'" shot to #1 on the UK Singles Chart and #3 in the U.S. Both "Handy Man" and "Good Timin'" were million sellers, earning Jones two gold discs.
Jones' subsequent career was low key although it included three more UK chart entries in the following twelve months. "Handy Man", which introduced a rock falsetto singing style to the British audience, later scored hits for Del Shannon and James Taylor who both covered it.
Although Jones had but two Top 40 hits, both million sellers, he nevertheless kept active in the music industry as both a songwriter and recording artist and made personal appearances as he saw fit. He kept recording through most of the 1960s and remained with Cub until 1962, scraping the lower reaches of the charts with "That's When I Cried" and "I Told You So." He recorded for Ro-Jac and Vee-Jay over the next two years, and his work gradually took on a New York style uptown soul flavor.[1] From 1965-1967, he recorded for Roulette, Parkway, and Bell, none of which restored his commercial standing.
His considerable influence using falsetto extended to Del Shannon, who paid homage to Jones and also The Ink Spots for Shannon's falsetto style. Later singers who used falsetto included Lou Christie and Barry Gibb. Gibbs cited Shannon, in turn, as an influence for his disco vocalizations with the Bee Gees.
Jones released Grandma's Rock & Roll Party in the 1990s on CD, perhaps, in part due to his popularity in the UK Northern soul circles. It included new versions of "Handy Man" and "Good Timin'". In 2002, Castle/Sanctuary issued a double album anthology titled Good Timin': The Anthology.
Handyman
Jimmy Jones Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Listen to what I'm putting down
Hey babe, I'm your handy man
I'm not the kind to use a pencil or rule
I'm handy with love and I'm no fool
I fix broken hearts, I know that I truly can
Then I'm the man to see
I whisper sweet things, you tell all your friends
They'll come runnin' to me
Here is the main thing I want to say
I'm busy twenty-four hours a day
I fix broken hearts, I know that I truly can
Come, come, come
Yeah, yeah, yeah
Come, come, come
Yeah, yeah, yeah
They'll come runnin' to me
That's me
I'm your handy man
In Jimmy Jones's 1960 hit song Handyman, he proclaims himself to be a fixer of broken hearts. He calls the girls to gather round, telling them that he is "putting down" something for them to listen to. He then refers to himself as their "handy man." He boasts about his skills with love, saying that he is not the kind of person who needs a pencil or a rule to fix hearts. He is confident in his ability to repair them.
If anyone needs their broken heart to be repaired, he is the man to see. He whispers sweet things and woos them back to a happy state. He knows he is good at what he does because they will eventually tell all their friends about him, leading to more work for him. He is busy all day and all night, fixing broken hearts. He repeats that he is their "handy man," and they will come running to him whenever they need his services.
The song is a classic example of the "lovelorn handyman" motif in popular music, where the male singer portrays himself as a jack of all trades, able to fix anything that is broken, including his lover's heart. It also reflects the cultural values of the time where men were expected to be providers and fixers, and women were often seen as needing protection and care from their male partners.
Line by Line Meaning
Hey girls, gather round
Attention ladies, please gather around
Listen to what I'm putting down
Pay attention to what I'm about to say
Hey babe, I'm your handy man
Hello, I'm the man you need to fix your problems
I'm not the kind to use a pencil or rule
I don't need instructions to fix hearts, unlike a handyman who needs a pencil or ruler to finish the job
I'm handy with love and I'm no fool
I am skilled in the art of love and relationships, and I'm not naive
I fix broken hearts, I know that I truly can
I can repair a damaged heart with my expertise
If your broken heart should need repair
In case you have a broken heart
Then I'm the man to see
I am the one you should come to for a solution
I whisper sweet things, you tell all your friends
I talk sweet nothings and you share with your friends how I made things better for you
They'll come runnin' to me
Your friends or anybody who needs help with a heartbreak will come to me too
Here is the main thing I want to say
This is the central idea I want to communicate
I'm busy twenty-four hours a day
I'm always occupied with fixing heartbreaks
Come, come, come
I urge you to visit me
Yeah, yeah, yeah
A verbal confirmation to the previous statement
That's me
I am the handy man they are looking for
I'm your handy man
I'm the man who will fix your broken heart
Lyrics Β© Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: JIMMY JONES, OTIS BLACKWELL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@Mike-ny6sf
Iβm 76 years old. I was fixing something for my wife, and she said I was her handyman.
I started singing this song that I hadnβt heard since the sixties. How is it that I (we) can remember the lyrics and tune from that long ago.
I even hear the sound of his voice and the music in my mind. That stuff is still there in the deep recesses of our memory. Amazing
@davidperry2306
Because THAT is when REAL music was produced. The 60's were the best years ever.
@lavenderhearts101
Iβm 71 years old and retired nurse.
I can remember working with nonverbal Alzheimerβs, or dementia patients, who it out of the blue sing a popular song that they remembered from start to finish and didnβt miss a word.
A beautiful mystery.β€οΈπΌπΆ
@CHAY-1
@@lavenderhearts101 I'm 70 and we took care of my mom with Alzheimer's. We have a jukebox filled with music from the 50's to 70's. When a 50's song came on ,especially Elvis,she knew the words better than I. They say that music is one thing that retains in the minds of Alzheimer's patients.
@lavenderhearts101
Am Cheke β€οΈ Beautiful
@TheOriginalRick
@@lavenderhearts101 We fixed up a number of CDs with artists such as Doris Day, Jo Stafford, Joni James, and many others from the 1950s for my mother-in-law to listen to. They were all her favorites as she was then a young wife and mother in her mid-20s, starting her family at that time. She constantly had them playing at her home. As she began slipping further into dementia a few years ago the songs became even more important. We made sure the people who were taking care of her knew the importance of letting her listen to that music, and having it available. She left us a year ago, and during much of the wake and funeral the CDs got a heavy workout. β€
@maryomnes9445
I was just 14 years old when I first heard this song. It was so cool it had such a good beat. You could dance to this song very easily. Jimmy Jones was such a great singer. This song also reminds me of my best friend Mike because we use to go out to Mel's Diner for dinner. I was very excited that my parents would let me date at age 14. I had great parents and I miss them very much. RIP DAD and MOM. π₯²π₯²π’π’ You will always be in my heart. β€οΈβ€οΈβ€οΈβ€οΈ
@TheR1200clc
This hands down is one of the coolest songs ever written and sung absolutely fantastic!
@jamesbritton8783
I agree with you wow that's a song πβ€
@bellestarr4040
@@jamesbritton8783 back there those songs had a message