His first album featured a recording of the Beatles' "With a Little Help from My Friends", which brought him to near-instant stardom. The song reached number one in the UK in 1968, became a staple of his many live shows (Woodstock and the Isle of Wight in 1969, the Party at the Palace in 2002) and was also known as the theme song for the late 1980s American TV series The Wonder Years. He continued his success with his second album, which included a second Beatles song: "She Came In Through the Bathroom Window". A hastily thrown together 1970 US tour led to the live double-album Mad Dogs & Englishmen, which featured an all-star band organized by Leon Russell. His 1974 recording of "You Are So Beautiful" reached number five in the US, and became his signature song. Cocker's best selling song was the US number one "Up Where We Belong", a duet with Jennifer Warnes that earned a 1983 Grammy Award. He released a total of 22 studio albums over a 43-year recording career.
In 1993, Cocker was nominated for the Brit Award for Best British Male. He was awarded a bronze Sheffield Legends plaque in his hometown in 2007, and received an OBE the following year for services to music. Cocker was ranked number 97 on Rolling Stone's 100 greatest singers list.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Cocker
Studio albums
With a Little Help from My Friends (1969)
Joe Cocker! (1969)
Joe Cocker (1972/EU: 1973)
I Can Stand a Little Rain (1974)
Jamaica Say You Will (1975)
Stingray (1976)
Luxury You Can Afford (1978)
Sheffield Steel (1982)
Civilized Man (1984)
Cocker (1986)
Unchain My Heart (1987)
One Night of Sin (1989)
Night Calls (1991/US: 1992)
Have a Little Faith (1994)
Organic (1996)
Across from Midnight (1997)
No Ordinary World (1999/US: 2000)
Respect Yourself (2002)
Heart & Soul (2004/US: 2005)
Hymn for My Soul (2007/US: 2008)
Hard Knocks (2010/US: 2012)
Fire It Up (2012)
Don't Give Up On Me
Joe Cocker Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
If I don't make the grade
If you're expectations aren't met in me today
There's always tomorrow, or tomorrow night
Hang in there, baby
Sooner or later I know I'll get it right
Please don't give up on me
I know It's late, late in the game
But my feelings, my true feelings haven't changed
Here in my heart I know, I know I was wrong, wrong, wrong
I'd like to make amends for the love that I've never ever, ever, ever shown
Just don't give up on me, every word is true
I'll give you my everything, all of my love,
All of my love, all of my love, love, love, love, love to you
Just don't give up on me,
Oh please, please, please don't give up on me
I don't want you to
I know It's late
But wait please, please, please, please, please
Don't give up on me
Promise, will you promise me,
Will you promise me
Please don't give up on me
We can make it if we try
I'm going to hold on, hold on with me
And don't give up on me
Oh baby, oh baby, please don't give up on me
Whatever you do we'll make it though
Don't you give up on me,
Please, please, please promise me,
Don't give up on me
The lyrics to Joe Cocker's song "Don't Give Up on Me" speak to a sense of regret for not living up to the expectations of a loved one. The singer acknowledges that they may have fallen short and not met the other person's expectations, but they ask for patience and understanding. The refrain "please don't give up on me" is repeated multiple times throughout the song, conveying a sense of desperation and a desire for forgiveness and a second chance.
The singer expresses a willingness to make amends for the love that they have failed to show in the past. They promise to give everything they have and hold on tight to the hope that they can make it work. The lyrics convey a sense of vulnerability and an acknowledgement of the fragility of relationships.
Overall, "Don't Give Up on Me" is a heartfelt plea for forgiveness and renewed commitment to a relationship that has been strained. The lyrics are relatable and speak to a universal human experience of wanting to be loved and accepted despite our imperfections.
Line by Line Meaning
If I fall short
If I fail to meet your expectations
If I don't make the grade
If I don't live up to your standards
If you're expectations aren't met in me today
If I don't satisfy you today
There's always tomorrow, or tomorrow night
There's still hope for the future
Hang in there, baby
Be patient with me
Sooner or later I know I'll get it right
Eventually I'll get things together
Please don't give up on me
Please don't abandon me
Oh please don't give up on me
Please don't give up on our relationship
I know It's late, late in the game
I understand that it's been a long time coming
But my feelings, my true feelings haven't changed
My love for you remains constant
Here in my heart I know, I know I was wrong, wrong, wrong
I admit my mistakes and am asking for forgiveness
I'd like to make amends for the love that I've never ever, ever, ever shown
I want to make up for the lack of love I've expressed
Every word is true
I mean everything I say
I'll give you my everything, all of my love, all of my love, all of my love, love, love, love, love to you
I vow to give you all of my love and devotion
But wait please, please, please, please, please
Hold on a little longer
Don't give up on me
Please don't give up on me
Promise, will you promise me, Will you promise me
Will you make a commitment to me?
We can make it if we try
We can overcome our difficulties if we work together
I'm going to hold on, hold on with me
I'm not giving up and ask that you do the same
Whatever you do we'll make it though
Together we can face any challenge
Please, please, please promise me
I'm begging you, don't give up on me
Contributed by Caden M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
01thme
i love you, joe. RIP what a song.
If I fall short
If I don't make the grade
If you're expectations aren't met in me today
There's always tomorrow, or tomorrow night
Hang in there, baby
Sooner or later I know I'll get it right
Please don't give up on me
Oh please don't give up on me
I know It's late, late in the game
But my feelings, my true feelings haven't changed
Here in my heart I know, I know I was wrong, wrong, wrong
I'd like to make amends for the love that I've never ever, ever, ever shown
Just don't give up on me, every word is true
I'll give you my everything, all of my love
All of my love, all of my love, love, love, love, love to you
Just don't give up on me
Oh please, please, please don't give up on me
I don't want you to
I know It's late
But wait please, please, please, please, please
Don't give up on me
Promise, will you promise me
Will you promise me
Please don't give up on me
We can make it if we try
I'm going to hold on, hold on with me
And don't give up on me
Oh baby, oh baby, please don't give up on me
Whatever you do we'll make it though
Don't you give up on me
Please, please, please promise me
Don't give up on me
If I fall short
If I don't make the grade
If you're expectations aren't met in me today
There's always tomorrow, or tomorrow night
Hang in there, baby
Sooner or later I know I'll get it right
Please don't give up on me
Oh please don't give up on me
I know It's late, late in the game
But my feelings, my true feelings haven't changed
Here in my heart I know, I know I was wrong, wrong, wrong
I'd like to make amends for the love that I've never ever, ever, ever shown
Just don't give up on me, every word is true
I'll give you my everything, all of my love
All of my love, all of my love, love, love, love, love to you
Just don't give up on me
Oh please, please, please don't give up on me
I don't want you to
I know It's late
But wait please, please, please, please, please
Don't give up on me
Promise, will you promise me
Will you promise me
Please don't give up on me
We can make it if we try
I'm going to hold on, hold on with me
And don't give up on me
Oh baby, oh baby, please don't give up on me
Whatever you do we'll make it though
Don't you give up on me
Please, please, please promise me
Don't give up on me
Carlos Lizzoli
Joe Cocker, the best, the Master!!!!! and this band sounds amazing!!!!!!!
Ann Amos
Amazing and sung with such huge feeling..... Just wonderful!
hohum488
His voice singing this song is overwhelming rapture. Gotta play it over and over!!!
Ernest Stewart
Deep deep from your soul . Every song that you sing comes from so deep inside of you . Such Passion you are Joe Cocker. Amazing Artist , just amazing.
mslinda freeman
Joe Cocker gets better and better! Hard to imagine anything better then this . NO ONE can deliver a ballad better than Joe, he is simply amazing.....Thanks Joe for all the years! Keep them coming....
SwoleRadroach
Tiger Budbil...
Sophie Rankin
I adore this song, it takes a massive piece of my heart x
01thme
i love you, joe. RIP what a song.
If I fall short
If I don't make the grade
If you're expectations aren't met in me today
There's always tomorrow, or tomorrow night
Hang in there, baby
Sooner or later I know I'll get it right
Please don't give up on me
Oh please don't give up on me
I know It's late, late in the game
But my feelings, my true feelings haven't changed
Here in my heart I know, I know I was wrong, wrong, wrong
I'd like to make amends for the love that I've never ever, ever, ever shown
Just don't give up on me, every word is true
I'll give you my everything, all of my love
All of my love, all of my love, love, love, love, love to you
Just don't give up on me
Oh please, please, please don't give up on me
I don't want you to
I know It's late
But wait please, please, please, please, please
Don't give up on me
Promise, will you promise me
Will you promise me
Please don't give up on me
We can make it if we try
I'm going to hold on, hold on with me
And don't give up on me
Oh baby, oh baby, please don't give up on me
Whatever you do we'll make it though
Don't you give up on me
Please, please, please promise me
Don't give up on me
If I fall short
If I don't make the grade
If you're expectations aren't met in me today
There's always tomorrow, or tomorrow night
Hang in there, baby
Sooner or later I know I'll get it right
Please don't give up on me
Oh please don't give up on me
I know It's late, late in the game
But my feelings, my true feelings haven't changed
Here in my heart I know, I know I was wrong, wrong, wrong
I'd like to make amends for the love that I've never ever, ever, ever shown
Just don't give up on me, every word is true
I'll give you my everything, all of my love
All of my love, all of my love, love, love, love, love to you
Just don't give up on me
Oh please, please, please don't give up on me
I don't want you to
I know It's late
But wait please, please, please, please, please
Don't give up on me
Promise, will you promise me
Will you promise me
Please don't give up on me
We can make it if we try
I'm going to hold on, hold on with me
And don't give up on me
Oh baby, oh baby, please don't give up on me
Whatever you do we'll make it though
Don't you give up on me
Please, please, please promise me
Don't give up on me
Bob T
RIP JOE COCKER YOU'RE SINGING WITH THE ANGELS NOW
tommy henson
WOW!!!! The man has still got it. Bluesy and lots of sweet chords. Great song for Valentines Day.......