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Junior Byles (Kerrie Byles Junior, aka King Chubby) was born in Kingston, Jamaica 1948.
He first formed The Versatiles with friends Ben Davis and Dudley Earl, and they were soon recording. Their first songs were cut for Joe Gibbs, with Lynn Tait's Band under Lee Perry's direction. From these sessions came "The Time Has Come", which was entered for the 1967 festival.
Another festival entry was 1971's "Rub Up" in 1971, but Byles' debut solo single (1970) was "What The World Is Coming To" c/w "Live As One", and released in the UK with strings and vocal chorus.
In 1971 Byles also recorded "Beat Down Babylon" (co-written by friend Harold Meikle) for Lee "Scratch" Perry, backed by The Now Generation Band (including Val Douglas Bass, Mikey Chung Guitar, and Wire Lindo Organ).
Following the critical acclaim "Babylon" received, Byles then worked with Perry for the whole of 1972. These sessions produced 12 tracks, 10 of which formed the album "Beat Down Babylon".
In what must have been some incredible moments of musical genius, Perry recorded Junior Byles' monumental hit "A Place Called Africa" at the same session that produced Bunny Wailer's phenomenal hit "Dreamland". The musicians at these sessions included the Barrett brothers, Tony Chin (lead guitar), Glen Adams (organ), and the rhythm guitar of Reggie Lewis.
During the mid to late 1970's he was reduced to homelessness, hunger and mental turmoil, and spent much of his life living at the street level. Indeed, his mental condition was so frail at this time, that upon hearing of Haile Selassies' death on August 27 1975, he tried suicide. This resulted in a long stay at Kingstons Bellevue mental hospital.
Byles still managed to record during these troubled times, with releases on Thing, Micron, Lovepower, Well Charge, Clocktower, Hot Shot, Impact, Treasure Isle, Observer, Advance, Soul Beat, Upsetter, Justice League, Wizzdom and Orchid.
Aside from the tracks already mentioned, "The Long Way", "Chant Down Babylon", "Bury O Boy", "Fade Away" and the incredible "Curley Locks" all rank as some of the greatest music Jamaica has ever produced.
Apart from the retrospective looks at his career, Byles still occasionally releases new material, as well as composing for other artist's. He recently performed his first show in the U.S. at the Sierra Nevada Festival in Marysville and the Ocean Rooms in Hackney, though he appeared less than 100% mentally well at the latter.
If You Don't Know Me By Now
Junior Byles Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You will never never never know me
All the things
That we've been through
You should understand me
Like I understand you
Now girl I know the difference
I ain't gonna do nothing
To break up our happy home
Don't get so excited
When I come home
A little late at night
'Cause we only act like children
When we argue fuss and fight
If you don't know me by now
You will never never never know me
We've all got our
Own funny moods
I've got mine,
Woman you've got yours too
Just trust in me like I trust in you
As long as we've been together
It should be so easy to do
Just get yourself together
Or we might as well say goodbye
What good is a love affair
When you can't see eye to eye
If you don't know me by now
You will never
Never never know me
The lyrics of Junior Byles's song "If You Don't Know Me By Now" is essentially a plea for deeper understanding and trust in a romantic relationship. The singer suggests that because they've gone through so much together, it should be easy for their partner to understand them just as they understand their partner. The singer acknowledges differences in perspective and behavior, but emphasizes the importance of trust and communication in a relationship. They encourage their partner to get themselves together and avoid unnecessary arguments that only serve to disrupt their happy home. The refrain "If you don't know me by now / You will never, never, never know me" emphasizes the idea that understanding and trust are fundamental qualities in a relationship and without them, true connection may never be possible.
The song "If You Don't Know Me By Now" was originally written by Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff and recorded by Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes in 1972. Junior Byles's reggae cover of the song was released in 1975 and became popular in Jamaica.
Line by Line Meaning
(If you don't know me by now)
If you haven't come to really understand who I am,
You will never, never, never know me, whoa
it's unlikely that you ever will in the future.
All the things that we've been through
Considering everything we've faced together so far,
You should understand me
you are in a position to really know my mind and heart.
Like I understand you
just as I feel I truly know you in this relationship.
Now baby, I know the difference
I have a clear understanding
Between right and wrong
of what is appropriate and what isn't.
I ain't gonna do nothin'
I won't undertake any action
To upset our happy home
that could damage the health of our relationship.
(Oooh) Oh, don't get so excited
I ask that you try not to overreact emotionally
When I come home a little late at night
if I happen to return later than anticipated.
Cause we only act like children
Since we tend to behave like kids
When we argue fuss and fight
when we get into a dispute of some kind.
(If you don't know me by now)
If you haven't really come to know me
If you don't know me by now
then you likely never will.
(You will never, never, never know me)
You won't ever be able to get to the truth of my being,
You will never, never, never know me, whoa
that perception of me is forever out of your grasp.
(If you don't know me by now)
If you haven't really learned who I am
If you don't know me, baby
you can't claim to understand my motivations.
(You will never, never, never know me)
In fact, that lack of insight makes it hard for us to engage in a meaningful relationship.
No you won't, ah-hey
You lack the insight required to truly know me.
We've all got our own funny moods
Each of us has our own particular quirks and foibles
I've got mine
I'm no exception to that rule,
Woman you've got yours too
just as you have your own idiosyncrasies.
Just trust in me
Still, please don't let that shake your confidence in me
Like I trust in you
just as I rely on you to have faith in my own peculiarities.
As long as we've been together
Given the time we've already spent in this relationship,
That should be so easy to do
we should both be well-attuned to one another's distinctive personality traits.
Just get yourself together
All I ask is that you pull yourself together
Or we might as well say goodbye
in order that we may keep our relationship alive and well.
What good is a love affair
For what purpose is a romantic relationship
When you can't see eye to eye, ooh
if we can't find a way to successfully communicate and coexist.
Hey-hey, hey-hey, hey-hey-hey
(repetitive chorus)
Lyrics © TuneCore Inc., BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Royalty Network, ONErpm, Peermusic Publishing, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Kenneth Gamble, Leon Huff
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
jungesgenie
So nice.
Golden State Of Kind
Nice Cover Chune!