Jimmy McCracklin (James David Walker, St. Louis, Missouri, August 13, 1921 … Read Full Bio ↴Jimmy McCracklin (James David Walker, St. Louis, Missouri, August 13, 1921 – San Pablo, California, December 20, 2012) was an American pianist, vocalist, harmonica player and songwriter. His style contained West Coast blues, Jump blues, and Rhythm & Blues.

Over a career that spanned seven decades, he said he had written almost a thousand songs and had recorded hundreds of them. McCracklin recorded over 30 albums, and earned four gold records. Tom Mazzolini of the San Francisco Blues Festival said of him, "He was probably the most important musician to come out of the Bay Area in the post-World War II years."
McCracklin was born in St. Louis, Missouri. He joined the United States Navy in 1938, later settled in Richmond, California, and began playing at the local Club Savoy owned by his sister-in-law Willie Mae "Granny" Johnson. The room-length bar served beer and wine, and Granny Johnson served home-cooked meals of greens, ribs, chicken, and other southern cuisine. A house band composed of Bay Area based musicians alternated with and frequently backed performers such as B. B. King, Charles Brown, and L. C. Robinson. Later in 1963 he would write and record a song "Club Savoy" on his I Just Gotta Know album.
His recorded a debut single for Globe Records, "Miss Mattie Left Me", in 1945, and recorded "Street Loafin' Woman in 1946. McCracklin recorded for a number of labels in Los Angeles and Oakland, prior to joining Modern Records in 1949-1950. He formed a group called Jimmy McCracklin and his Blues Blasters in 1946, with guitarist Lafayette Thomas who remained with group until the early 1960s.
His popularity increased after appearing on the TV pop Dick Clark's American Bandstand in support of his self written single "The Walk" (1957), subsequently released by Checker Records in 1958. It went to No. 5 on the Billboard R&B chart and No. 7 on the pop chart, after more than 10 years of McCracklin selling records in the black community on a series of small labels. Jimmy McCracklin Sings, his first solo album, was released in 1962, in the West Coast blues style. In 1962, McCracklin recorded "Just Got to Know" for his own Art-Tone label in Oakland, after the record made No. 2 on the R&B chart. For a brief period in the early 1970s McCracklin ran the Continental Club in San Francisco. He booked blues acts such as T-Bone Walker, Irma Thomas, Big Joe Turner, Big Mama Thornton, and Etta James. In 1967, Otis Redding and Carla Thomas had success with "Tramp", a song credited to McCracklin and Lowell Fulson. Salt-n-Pepa made a hip-hop hit out of the song in 1987. Oakland Blues (1986) was an album arranged and directed by McCracklin, and produced by World Pacific. The California rock-n-roll "roots music" band The Blasters named themselves after McCracklin's backing band The Blues Blasters. Blasters' lead singer Phil Alvin explained the origin of the band's name: "I thought Joe Turner’s backup band on Atlantic records – I had these 78s – I thought they were the Blues Blasters. It ends up it was Jimmy McCracklin's. I just took the 'Blues' off and Joe finally told me, that’s Jimmy McCracklin’s name, but you tell ‘im I gave you permission to steal it.
McCracklin continued to tour and produce new albums in the 1980s and 1990s. Bob Dylan has cited McCracklin as a favorite. He played at the San Francisco Blues Festival in 1973, 1977, 1980, 1981, 1984 and 2007. He was given a Pioneer Award by the Rhythm and Blues Foundation in 1990, and the Living Legend and Hall of Fame award at the Bay Area Black Music Awards, in 2007. McCracklin continued to write, record, and perform into the 21st century.
He died in San Pablo, California, in the San Francisco Bay Area, on December 20, 2012, after a long illness, aged 91.

Yesterday Is Gone
Jimmy McCracklin Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

I don't even want to talk about it
It's just one of those things
Trouble and more heartache, is all it will bring
So let's think of our future, and leave bygones alone
And talk about tomorrow, yesterday is gone

I know just how you feel baby (I know, I know)
But it's all said and done

You said yourself there was nothing (I know, I know)
Love can't overcome (Oh)
So let's think of our future, and leave bygones alone
And talk about tomorrow (Oh)
Yesterday is gone (Yesterday is gone)

(I just can't forget the past) (Although it's been so long)
All I really want to do, is just love you from now on
(I just can't forget the past) (What should we do from now on)
Baby let me tell you, we should think of tomorrow
Yesterday is gone (Yesterday is gone)

Now there's some lies to what you say
Although I'll admit some things are true
But what does that got to do with
You loving me and my loving you
So let's think of our future (Do do's)
And leave bygones alone (Do do's)

And talk about tomorrow (Oh)
Yesterday is gone (Yesterday is gone)

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Jimmy McCracklin's song "Yesterday Is Gone" are about leaving the past behind and focusing on the future. The first verse suggests that discussing past troubles and heartache will only bring more of the same, and so it's better to think about tomorrow instead of dwelling on the past. The second verse is a conversation between the singer and his lover, with the singer acknowledging that he knows how she feels about the past, but also reminding her that they both agreed that love wasn't enough to overcome their issues. The chorus reinforces the idea that yesterday is gone and that the focus should be on moving forward and building a better future.

The message of the song is one of hope and resilience in the face of adversity. It encourages listeners to let go of what has already happened and to focus on what is to come. The repetition of the phrase "yesterday is gone" reinforces this idea and serves as a reminder that the past cannot be changed, and therefore there is no use in dwelling on it.

Line by Line Meaning

I don't even want to talk about it
I do not wish to discuss this matter

It's just one of those things
Things happen sometimes and it cannot be helped

Trouble and more heartache, is all it will bring
Talking about it will only lead to more difficulties and sadness

So let's think of our future, and leave bygones alone
Instead of dwelling on the past, let us focus on what lies ahead

And talk about tomorrow, yesterday is gone
Talking about the future is better than dwelling on the past

I know just how you feel baby (I know, I know)
I can understand your emotions

But it's all said and done
The past is over and cannot be changed

You said yourself there was nothing (I know, I know)
You previously acknowledged that there was nothing that love could do in this situation

Love can't overcome (Oh)
Love alone cannot solve every problem

Now there's some lies to what you say
There are some false statements in what you are saying

Although I'll admit some things are true
I acknowledge that some aspects of what you are saying are correct