Jimmy Raney began his jazz guitar career very early with the history showing he played in the Jerry Wald band in 1944 at age 17.
In 1946 he worked for a time as guitarist with the Max Miller Quartet at Elmer's in Chicago, his first paying gig. Raney also worked in the Artie Shaw Orchestra and collaborated with Woody Herman for nine months in 1948. He also collaborated and recorded with Buddy DeFranco, Al Haig and later on with Bob Brookmeyer. In 1967 alcoholism and other professional difficulties led him to leave New York City and return to his native Louisville. He resurfaced in the 1970s and also did work with his son Doug, who is also a guitarist. Raney suffered for thirty years from Meniere's Disease, a degenerative condition that eventually led to near complete deafness in both ears. Fortunately, his playing remained unaffected. Raney died of heart failure in Louisville Ky. on May 10th of 1995, just short of his 68th birthday. An obituary in the New York Times referred to Jimmy Raney as 'one of the most gifted and influential postwar jazz guitarists in the world .
Everything I've Got
Jimmy Raney Lyrics
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It's impolite
To stamp your foot at me
Is not quite right
At man's ingratitude
A woman winks
But such an attitude just stinks
I have words that do not come from children's books
there's a trick with a knife I'm learning to do
And everything I've got belongs to you
I've a powerful anesthesia in my fist
And the perfect wrist to give your neck a twist
There are hammerlock holds
I've mastered a few
And everything I've got belongs to you
Share for share, share alike
You get struck each time I strike
You for me- me for me
I'll give you plenty of nothing
I'm not yours for better but for worse
And I've learned to give the well-known witches' curse
I've a terrible tongue, a temper for two
And ev'rything I've got belongs to you
Don't raise your voice at me
That's very rude
To raise your voice at me
Is rather crude
It's wrong essentially when woman yells
And confidentially, it smells
I'll converse with you on politics at length
I'll protect you with my superhuman strength
If you're ever attacked I'll scream and say , "Boo!''
And everything I've got belongs to you
I will never stray from home, I'll just stay put
Cause I've got a brand-new thing called athlete' s foot
I'm a victim of colds, anemia, too
And everything I've got belongs to you
Off to bed we will creep
Then we'll sleep and sleep and sleep
Till the birds start to peep
I'll give you plenty of nothing
I'll be yours forever and a day
If the first good breeze does not blow me away
You're enough for one man, that's why I'll be true
And everything I've got belongs to you
You may have some things that I can't use at all
When I look at you, your manly gifts are small
I've a wonderful way of saying adieu
And everything I've got belongs to you
You won't know how good I am until you try
And you'll let my well of loneliness run dry
I've a marvelous way of telling you no
And everything I've got belongs to you
And everything you want belongs to me!
And everything you need belongs to me!
Life has no shape or form
And no design
It isn't life without
That fool of mine
I used to gad about
With any chap
And now I'm sad about my sap
He's a living thing that isn't quite alive
He has brains enough for any child of five
Oh, he isn't too rich in vigor and vim
But everything I've got belongs to him
He's a naughty brat that can't be left alone
He has eyes for every skirt except my own
Even under a tree, he grabs for the limb
But everything I've got belongs to him
Something beats in his chest
But it's just a pump at best
I'm for him, he's for him
He gives me plenty of nothing
When I see that funny face, I know
Something scared his mother twenty years ago
But I'll never let go, he'll never be free!
Till everything he's got belongs to me!
And everything I've got belongs to him!
And everything I've got belongs to us!
The song "Everything I've Got" by Jimmy Raney is a humorous ode to the idea of devotion and submission in a relationship. The lyrics employ a mixture of playful sarcasm and exaggerated irony to express the singer's supposed willingness to give everything they have to their significant other. However, the underlying message is one of power dynamics and control, with the singer asserting their dominance and manipulation over their partner.
The first verse sets the tone, with the singer chastising their partner for stamping their foot and raising their voice. The second verse continues in a similar vein, with the singer boasting about their ability to give dirty looks, use foul language, and even physically harm their partner if they so desire. The third verse shifts to a more tender tone, with the singer promising to protect their partner and stay loyal to them, despite their faults.
Throughout the song, there is a sense of irony and exaggeration, as the singer's over-the-top declarations of love and devotion are contrasted with their hidden motives of control and manipulation. Overall, the song uses humor to comment on the complexities of power dynamics in relationships, and the often conflicting desires for both love and control.
Line by Line Meaning
Don't stamp your foot at me
It is impolite to stamp your foot at me
To stamp your foot at me
Stamping your foot is not quite right
At man's ingratitude
Women wink at man's ingratitude
But such an attitude just stinks
However, such an attitude is bad
I have eyes for you to give you dirty looks
I have eyes to look at you in a way that can have bad intentions
I have words that do not come from children's books
I have harsh words that are not appropriate for children
there's a trick with a knife I'm learning to do
I am learning a trick with a knife
And everything I've got belongs to you
Everything that I have belongs to you
I've a powerful anesthesia in my fist
I have a powerful substance that can numb or knock out someone in my fist
And the perfect wrist to give your neck a twist
I am skilled at turning my wrist to twist your neck
There are hammerlock holds
I know some holds that can lock your arm in place
I've mastered a few
I have mastered some of these holds
Share for share, share alike
Sharing is equal
You get struck each time I strike
You get hurt every time I hurt someone
You for me- me for me
You do things for me, and I do things for myself
I'll give you plenty of nothing
I will give you nothing
I'm not yours for better but for worse
I am not only yours when things are good but also when things are bad
And I've learned to give the well-known witches' curse
I know how to cast a wicked spell
I've a terrible tongue, a temper for two
I have a very sharp tongue and a very bad temper
And ev'rything I've got belongs to you
Everything that I have belongs to you
Don't raise your voice at me
It is rather rude to raise your voice at me
That's very rude
It is not polite to raise your voice
To raise your voice at me
To scream at me
It's wrong essentially when woman yells
It is essentially wrong when a woman yells
And confidentially, it smells
And, secretly, it is unpleasant
I'll converse with you on politics at length
I will talk to you for a long time about politics
I'll protect you with my superhuman strength
I will keep you safe using my strength that is beyond normal human abilities
If you're ever attacked I'll scream and say , "Boo!''
If anyone ever attacks you, I will scream and try to scare them away by saying 'Boo!'
And everything I've got belongs to you
Everything that I have belongs to you
I will never stray from home, I'll just stay put
I will never leave home or cheat on you
Cause I've got a brand-new thing called athlete' s foot
However, I have a new foot infection called athlete's foot
I'm a victim of colds, anemia, too
I often have colds and also have anemia
And everything I've got belongs to you
Everything that I have belongs to you
Off to bed we will creep
We will quietly go to bed
Then we'll sleep and sleep and sleep
And then we will sleep for a long time
Till the birds start to peep
Until the birds start chirping
I'll give you plenty of nothing
I will give you nothing
I'll be yours forever and a day
I will be yours always and forever
If the first good breeze does not blow me away
If I don't blow away in the first good breeze
You're enough for one man, that's why I'll be true
You are enough for me, and that's why I will be faithful
And everything I've got belongs to you
Everything that I have belongs to you
You may have some things that I can't use at all
You may have some things that I can't use
When I look at you, your manly gifts are small
When I look at you, your manly features do not measure up
I've a wonderful way of saying adieu
I have a great way to say goodbye
And everything I've got belongs to you
Everything that I have belongs to you
You won't know how good I am until you try
You will not know my skills unless you try me out
And you'll let my well of loneliness run dry
You will let me heal my loneliness
I've a marvelous way of telling you no
I have a great way of saying no
And everything I've got belongs to you
Everything that I have belongs to you
And everything you want belongs to me!
Everything that you want belongs to me!
And everything you need belongs to me!
Everything that you need belongs to me!
Life has no shape or form
Life does not have any particular shape or form
And no design
And has no particular plan or purpose
It isn't life without
Life is not complete
That fool of mine
Without that particular person
I used to gad about
I used to wander aimlessly
With any chap
With any man that came along
And now I'm sad about my sap
Now I am sad about that particular person
He's a living thing that isn't quite alive
That person is a living thing, but not quite living
He has brains enough for any child of five
He is not very bright
Oh, he isn't too rich in vigor and vim
He does not have a lot of energy and enthusiasm
But everything I've got belongs to him
However, everything that I have belongs to him
He's a naughty brat that can't be left alone
He is a mischievous and immature person that cannot be trusted
He has eyes for every skirt except my own
He flirts with every woman except me
Even under a tree, he grabs for the limb
Even when sitting under a tree, he cannot resist touching its branches
But everything I've got belongs to him
However, everything that I have belongs to him
Something beats in his chest
He has a heart
But it's just a pump at best
However, his heart is only a biological pump
I'm for him, he's for him
I support him, but he only cares about himself
He gives me plenty of nothing
He gives me nothing
When I see that funny face, I know
When I see his face, I know
Something scared his mother twenty years ago
Something frightened his mother twenty years ago
But I'll never let go, he'll never be free!
However, I will never leave him, and he will never be free from me!
And everything I've got belongs to him!
Everything that I have belongs to him!
And everything I've got belongs to us!
Everything that I have belongs to us!
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: LORENZ HART, RICHARD RODGERS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind