Every Time It Rains
Kenny Wayne Shepherd and his group exploded on the scene in the mid-'90s an… Read Full Bio ↴Kenny Wayne Shepherd and his group exploded on the scene in the mid-'90s and garnered huge amounts of radio airplay on commercial radio, which historically has not been a solid home for blues and blues-rock music, with the exception of Stevie Ray Vaughan in the mid-'80s. Shepherd was born June 12, 1977, in Shreveport, LA. The Shreveport native began playing at age seven, figuring out Muddy Waters licks from his father's record collection (he has never taken a formal lesson). At age 13, he was invited on-stage by New Orleans bluesman Brian Lee and held his own for several hours; thus proving himself, he decided on music as a career. He formed his own band, which featured lead vocalist Corey Sterling, gaining early exposure through club dates and, later, radio conventions. Shepherd's father/manager used his own contacts and pizzazz in the record business to help land his son a major-label record deal with Irving Azoff's Giant Records. Ledbetter Heights, his first album, was released two years later in 1995. Ledbetter Heights was an immediate hit, selling over 500,000 by early 1996. Most blues records never achieve that level of commercial success, much less ones released by artists who are still in their teens. Although Shepherd -- who has been influenced by (and has sometimes played with) guitarists Stevie Ray Vaughan, Albert King, Slash, Robert Cray, and Duane Allman -- is definitely a performer who thrives in front of an audience, Ledbetter Heights is impressive for its range of styles: acoustic blues, rockin' blues, Texas blues, Louisiana blues. The only style that he doesn't tackle is Chicago blues, owing to Shepherd's home base smack dab in the middle of the Texas triangle. 1998's Trouble Is... earned a Grammy nomination; Live On followed a year later. In 2004 The Place You're In was released on Reprise Records, the first album that featured Shepherd doing the majority of the lead vocals (singer Noah Hunt handled the lead vocals on the previous two albums). Shepherd's next project saw him traveling in the American South with a documentary film crew and a portable recording studio as he backed up several veteran blues players on their home turf. The resulting album and film, 10 Days Out (Blues from the Backroads), appeared in 2007.

Every Time It Rains
Kenny Wayne Shepherd Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

Dust can't dry
Rust takes hold
See it in the sky
You want to go
Every time it rains
Clouds come
Standing in the doorway
You run, why you want to run away
Sky falls, take it as a sign
Who knows what I am gonna find
Every time it rains
If the rivers rise
You watch it all come down




See it in your eyes
It doesn't make a sound

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of “Every Time It Rains” by the Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band is an expression of the suppression and the inner turmoil within a person. It talks about how dust can’t dry and rust takes hold, which refers to an unfulfilled longing that a person is holding onto. It is a powerful image of the longing that the person has been carrying with him, and it seems that it is taking hold of his soul. The sky, being a metaphor for freedom, becomes all the more important when the person is trying to understand his emotions.


The lines "Every time it rains, clouds come, standing in the doorway, you run, why you want to run away" are powerful because they highlight the complexity of human behavior. Every time it rains, the clouds come, and the person is reminded of the feeling that he has been trying to suppress. Rather than facing it, the person runs away.


The song highlights that the person is searching for something, and he feels that he may find it when it rains. The line "Sky falls, take it as a sign" suggests that the person is willing to embrace the intensity of the moment and feels inspired to do something that may bring him closure.


Overall, the song is a reminder that everyone has their own battles to fight, and sometimes, it is important to embrace those feelings and confront them instead of running away. It is a powerful reminder that you cannot find what you are looking for until you are willing to embrace the rain and all that it represents.


Line by Line Meaning

Dust can't dry
The situation is stagnant and not progressing.


Rust takes hold
The situation is deteriorating and becoming worse.


See it in the sky
The signs of a coming storm are evident.


You want to go
The urge to leave the current situation is strong.


Every time it rains
Whenever life gets difficult or challenging.


Clouds come
The storm is approaching and the difficulties are increasing.


Standing in the doorway
Pausing and contemplating before taking action.


You run, why you want to run away
The instinct to flee from the situation is strong, but the reason for doing so is unclear.


Sky falls, take it as a sign
The storm is an omen or warning.


Who knows what I am gonna find
The outcome is uncertain and can go in any direction.


Every time it rains
Whenever life gets difficult or challenging.


If the rivers rise
If the situation becomes even more challenging.


You watch it all come down
Observing the destruction and chaos.


See it in your eyes
Feeling the emotions and impact of the situation.


It doesn't make a sound
The silence and lack of response is overwhelming.




Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: KENNY W. SHEPHERD, MARK SELBY, TIA M. SILLERS

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Comments from YouTube:

Darrin K

one of my favorite albums of all time

Debra J. Normand

I like Kenny's earlier work much better than what he's doing now. I have the first four CDs and they are the best. But everyone has to grow up and go his own way.

jerome sutphin

A GREAT SONG !!!

Josef Fuksa

Fantastic song

Valerie Mich'El Oliver

The bass line in this is "funk rock" song is just awesome!

Scotty Mo

I got to hear Tia Sillers sing this at a KWS concert a few years ago. As much as I love the original, her cover knocked me down and slapped me around. It's my favorite version, and I'm guessing I'll never hear it again.

BoomTexan

I just wonder why Blue on Black is more popular than this...
This is a much much better song, I listen to it almost every time I do gaming marathons.

6uoqjp

Right? It's like the unwashed masses can't appreciate a song with so many textures and layers :)

Matt Robson

I rewatched the entire series of Enterprise, with its famously terrible theme song. Every time, I'd mute it and put on this. Fantastic. If I were in charge of a space-based science fiction televison series, this would play over the title sequence.

Archi Bukson

Super

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