Growing up amidst music, Taylor had one release, "Somewhere to Lay My Head", on Chicago's Chance Records in the 50s as part of a doo-wop group called Five Echoes. Taylor was also part of the gospel group, The Highway QC's also, replacing r&b artist Sam Cooke that had left to become the lead singer of the Soul Stirrers in 1951. Then, after Cooke left the Soul Stirrers in 1957, Taylor was hired to take Cooke's place as lead singer.
A few years later, after Cooke had established his independent SAR Records, Taylor signed on and recorded "Rome Wasn't Built In A Day" in 1962. However, SAR Records quickly became defunct after Cooke's tradic early death in 1964.
In 1966, Taylor moved to Stax Records in Memphis, where he was dubbed "The Philosopher of Soul". While there he recorded with the label's house band, Booker T. & the MGs. His hits included "I Had a Dream", "I've Got to Love Somebody's Baby" (both written by the team of Isaac Hayes and David Porter) and most notably "Who's Making Love?", which reached No. 5 on the Billboard Top 40 and No. 1 on the R&B charts in 1968. During his tenure at Stax, he became an R&B star, with over a dozen chart successes, such as "Cheaper to Keep Her" (Mack Rice) and producer Don Davis's "I Believe in You (You Believe in Me)".
After Stax folded in the mid 1970s, Taylor switched to Columbia Records, where he made his best-known hit, "Disco Lady", in 1976. "Disco Lady" was the first certified platinum single. Columbia pigeonholed Taylor as a disco artist, however, and neglected his wide-ranging talent. Not surprisingly, his record sales slipped.
After a brief stint at Beverly Glen Records, Taylor signed with Malaco Records after the label's founder Tommy Couch and producing partner Wolf Stephenson heard him sing at blues singer Z.Z. Hill's funeral in the spring of 1984. Backed by members of The Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section as well as in-house veterans like former Stax keyboardist Carson Whitsett, Malaco gave Taylor the type of recording freedom that Stax had given him in the late 1960s and early 1970s, enabling him to record ten albums for the Malaco label in his sixteen year stint. Taylor's record sales were good but not enough for the singer to receive the measure of stardom he once had.
In 1996, Taylor's eighth album for Malaco, Good Love!, made it to Number One on Billboard's Blues chart (#15 R&B), the biggest record in Malaco's history.
Malaco recorded a live video of Taylor at the Longhorn Ballroom in Dallas, Texas in the summer of 1997.
Johnnie Taylor's 1999 album, "Gotta Get the Groove Back", also reached the # 1 Position on the Billboard Blues Charts. This album which featured veteran songwriter, Lamar Thmas (Woman don't be Afraid) was also a Grammy Nominated album during the same year that Johnnie passed.
Taylor was given a Pioneer Award by the Rhythm and Blues Foundation in 1999. He died in Dallas at the age of 66.
In what would turn out to be a sad foreshadowing, Taylor's final song was "Soul Heaven", in which he dreamed of being at a concert featuring deceased Soul music icons Otis Redding, Jackie Wilson, Marvin Gaye, Sam Cooke, and MGs drummer Al Jackson, among others. In one verse, Taylor sang, "I didn't want to wake up/I was havin' such a good time".
part time love
Johnnie Taylor Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I've got to find me, I've got to find me a part time love
The next time, the next time my baby leaves me
There's one other thing I want to tell you right here:
People in the cemetery, them are all alone
Some turn to dust, and some have bone
I'd rather be dead, six feet in my grave
She came home this morning, I asked her where had she been?
She said don't ask me no question daddy, because I'll be leaving again
That's why, that's why I've got to find me, Lord I've go to find me a part time love
The next time, the next time, the next time my baby leave me,
Can't you see I got to have me a part time love
And one more thing I want to say right here:
Every, every time my baby leaves me
I have to suffer the whole time she's gone
Every, every time my baby leaves me
I have to suffer the whole time she's gone
But oh, the next time my baby leaves me
Peoples can't you see I just got to have me a part time love
Whoa, whoa, I'm talking about a love,
One gonna stick by me when I get old
I'm talking about the kind of love
That's gonna wash my dirty clothes
Whoa, I'm talking about love, yeah, yeah, I'm talking about love...
The lyrics of Johnnie Taylor's "Part Time Love" tell a story of a man who repeatedly experiences the pain of his lover leaving him, leaving him to suffer in her absence. He declares that he needs a part-time love to fill the void and keep him company during these lonely stretches. The lyrics also express his disdain for the feeling of loneliness so much that he would rather be dead and buried six feet underground than be alive and lonely. The song can be interpreted in a couple of ways: either the man cannot commit to a serious relationship and wants someone to fill the void when his partner is gone, or he is in a toxic relationship where his partner frequently leaves, which causes him pain and makes him seek comfort in other relationships. Either way, he needs someone to fill in during the times when his current partner leaves him.
The lyrics are full of similes and metaphors to express the depth of the man's pain and loneliness. When he says, "I'd rather be dead, six feet in my grave than to live lonely, each and every day," it shows the extent to which he dislikes being alone. He also notes that the people in the cemetery are the only ones who are always alone, either turned to dust or reduced to bones. He suggests he would rather be dead and join their ranks than suffer the pains of loneliness.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm gonna find me, lord I've got to find me a part time love
I need to find a lover who will be there for me when my current partner leaves, but not a full-time commitment.
I've got to find me, I've got to find me a part time love
I am searching for a new lover who can bring me comfort and companionship when my current partner is gone.
The next time, the next time my baby leaves me
I am anticipating the day when my partner will abandon me again, and I will need someone else to fill the void.
People in the cemetery, them are all alone
Some turn to dust, and some have bone
I'd rather be dead, six feet in my grave
Than to live lonely, each and every day
The lonely people in the cemetery have nobody left for them, turning to dust, and I do not want to end up like them; thus, I would rather die forever than live a lonely life.
She came home this morning, I asked her where had she been?
She said don't ask me no question daddy, because I'll be leaving again
When my partner returned home, I asked her where she was, but she refused to answer and made it clear she would be leaving again in the future.
That's why, that's why I've got to find me, Lord I've go to find me a part time love
The next time, the next time, the next time my baby leave me,
Can't you see I got to have me a part time love
Because I cannot handle being alone each time my partner leaves, I must find a temporary lover to fill the void whenever she departs.
Every, every time my baby leaves me
I have to suffer the whole time she's gone
Every, every time my baby leaves me
I have to suffer the whole time she's gone
But oh, the next time my baby leaves me
Peoples can't you see I just got to have me a part time love
I suffer through the entire time my partner is away, and I cannot take it anymore, hence the reason why I need a part-time lover to ease the pain.
Whoa, whoa, I'm talking about a love,
One gonna stick by me when I get old
I'm talking about the kind of love
That's gonna wash my dirty clothes
Whoa, I'm talking about love, yeah, yeah, I'm talking about love...
I am looking for a love that can last through the years and stay by my side when I am old, and even do small things such as wash my dirty clothes. Love is crucial to me.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: CLAY HAMMOND
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Maxine Warner
I remember my parents playing this song. I became so afraid when says people in the cemetery. And talking about bones and thangs. Now I understand!
John Wilkerson
This is a good song
darren clark
if Mr. Taylor was a live he would have fit.
Diane Mc daniels
Love this!!!? ✔️❤️🔥🔥🔥🔥🎯💋
Darnell Webb
Johnnie Taylor Arkansas boy can sing with the best of them
57dogsbody
the WRONNNGGGG johnny taYlor!!
Alyce Thompson
They both sang this song... Part Time Love....Johnny and Johnnie Taylor
Misty Blue
Set the needle back for those that know what that is.
lizzie pie
This is not Johnnie Taylor. I have most of the late Johnnie Taylor's CDs and I know this is not him.
Rudi Mwongozi
This is NOT Johnnie Taylor from Crawfordsville Arkansas. This is the singer called "Little Johnny Taylor" (also from Arkansas and namesake of Johnnie Taylor) the one who sang the original.