Lee Dorsey (December 24, 1924 – December 2, 1986) was an American rhythm & … Read Full Bio ↴Lee Dorsey (December 24, 1924 – December 2, 1986) was an American rhythm & blues singer. His biggest hits were "Ya Ya" (1961) and "Working in the Coal Mine" (1966). Much of his work was produced by Allen Toussaint with instrumental backing provided by the Meters.

Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, Dorsey was a childhood friend of Fats Domino before moving to Portland, Oregon when he was ten years old. He served in the United States Navy in World War II and then began a career in prizefighting. Boxing as a lightweight in Portland in the early 1950s, he fought under the name Kid Chocolate and was reasonably successful. He retired from boxing in 1955 and returned to New Orleans, where he opened an auto repair business as well as singing in clubs at night.
His first recording was "Lottie Mo", for the small Valiant label in 1958, and he also recorded for the Rex label. These efforts were unsuccessful, but around 1960 he was discovered by A&R man Marshall Sehorn, who secured him a contract with Fury Records, owned by Bobby Robinson. After meeting songwriter and record producer Allen Toussaint at a party, he recorded "Ya Ya", a song inspired by a group of children chanting nursery rhymes. It went to number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1961, sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc. Although the follow-up "Do-Re-Mi" also made the charts, later releases on Fury were not successful. Dorsey returned to running his repair business, but also released singles on the small Smash and Constellation labels in 1963 and 1964.
He was then approached again by Toussaint, and recorded Toussaint's song "Ride Your Pony" for the Amy label, a subsidiary of Bell Records. The song reached no.7 on the R&B chart in late 1965, and he followed it up with "Get Out Of My Life, Woman", "Working in the Coal Mine" – his biggest pop hit – and "Holy Cow", all of which made the pop charts in both the US and the UK. Dorsey toured internationally, and also recorded an album with Toussaint, The New Lee Dorsey in 1966. In 1970 Dorsey and Toussaint collaborated on the album Yes We Can; the title song was Dorsey's last entry in the US singles chart. It was later a hit for the Pointer Sisters under the title, "Yes We Can Can". With declining sales, Dorsey then returned to his auto repair business.
In 1976 Dorsey appeared on the album I Don't Want to Go Home by Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, which led to more recordings on his own with ABC Records, including the album Night People. In 1980, he opened for English punk band The Clash on their US concert tour, and also toured in support of James Brown and Jerry Lee Lewis.
Dorsey contracted emphysema and died on December 2, 1986, in New Orleans, at the age of 61.

Dorsey's songs have been covered by artists as diverse as Petula Clark ("Ya Ya Twist," a 1962 French version of "Ya Ya") and Devo ("Working in the Coal Mine"). "Ya Ya" was also covered on John Lennon's Rock 'n' Roll album. His version of the Allen Toussaint song "Everything I Do Gonh Be Funky (From Now On)" is referenced in the Beastie Boys' song lyrics for "Sure Shot" - "...everything I do is funky like Lee Dorsey." "Ya Ya" was spoken by Cheech Marin in Cheech and Chong's Next Movie, as he was waiting for his girlfriend.

Discography

Albums
Ya Ya (1962)
Ride Your Pony (1966)
The New Lee Dorsey (1966)
Working in the Coalmine (1967)
Yes We Can (1970)
Night People (1978)

Chart singles
"Ya Ya" U.S. Pop #7/R&B #1 (1961)
"Do-Re-Mi" U.S. #27/#22 (1962)
"Ride Your Pony" U.S. #28/#7 (1965)
"Get Out Of My Life, Woman" U.S. #44/#5/ UK #22 (1966)
"Confusion" UK #38 (1966)
"Working in the Coal Mine" U.S. #8/#5/UK #8 (1966)
"Holy Cow" U.S. #23/#10/UK #6 (1966)
"My Old Car" U.S. #97 (1967)
"Go-Go Girl" U.S. #62/#31 (1967)
"Everything I Do Gonna Be Funky (From Now On)" U.S. #95/#33 (1969)
"Yes We Can - Part 1" --/#46 (1970)
"Night People" --/#93 (1978)

Give It Up
Lee Dorsey Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

(Give it up, to give it up)
You know what's on my mind
(Give it up, to give it up, girl)
You've been wastin' too much time

You know you got what I want
You come on, you're 'bout to blow my mind
(Can you dig it?

Give it up, to give it up, girl)
You've been wastin' too much time

(Give it up, to give it up, girl)
You know what's on my mind
Ah, don't wait another longer

Patiently I've waited, baby, waited just for you
And I ain't gonna move and act till you do what you're supposed to do
You got your thing together and I can't waited too
And that's the very reason, baby,
I'm stickin' here with you

(Give it up, to give it up, girl)
You know what I'm talkin' about, give it to me
(You can dig it, to give it up, girl)
Yeah, make me shout

Give it to me
Give it to me
Give it to me

(Give it up, to give it up, girl)
My baby, don't take so long
It's right around the corner
I'm gonna get it and bring it home

(Give it, give it up, child)
Oh, make me shout
(Give it, to give it up, girl)
Oh, that's what I'm talkin' about

Give it to me
Give it to me
Give it to me
Give it to me

That's right, baby
Now you just give it to me

Overall Meaning

Lee Dorsey's "Give It Up" is a soulful song with lyrics that are both playful and suggestive. The singer is addressing a female and he's encouraging her to be open-minded and to stop wasting her time. He seems convinced that she possesses what he desires and is ready for her to give it up to him. He's been patiently waiting for her to make the first move and to fulfill his desires. The song is a request for intimacy and a declaration of love. He asks his partner to give him what he wants, to stop delaying and just come through with what she has been hinting at. The song is all about getting it on with someone who has been sending mixed signals and wasting too much time, and finally asking for what one wants.

The song's emphasis on a single phrase - "give it up" - is indicative of its sexual nature. The lyrics are suggestive and playful, with a playful undertone throughout. The lines are repeated multiple times throughout the song, emphasizing the singer's desire for his partner's affection. The lyrics describe a scenario in which the singer is ready to take things to the next level and he wants his partner to join him. It is a perfect example of a call-and-response kind of song, where the lead vocal is engaging with the listeners in a conversation, while the backing vocals reinforce the lead vocal's message.

Line by Line Meaning

(Give it up, to give it up)
I want you to surrender to me

You know what's on my mind
You know what I want from you

(Give it up, to give it up, girl)
I want you to surrender to me, girl

You've been wastin' too much time
We've wasted enough time, it's time to give in

You know you got what I want
You have what I desire

You come on, you're 'bout to blow my mind
You're about to make me lose control

(Can you dig it? Give it up, to give it up, girl)
Do you understand what I'm saying? I want you to surrender to me, girl

Ah, don't wait another longer
Don't make me wait any longer

Patiently I've waited, baby, waited just for you
I've waited patiently for you, baby

And I ain't gonna move and act till you do what you're supposed to do
I won't do anything until you give me what I want

You got your thing together and I can't waited too
You have what I want and I can't wait any longer

And that's the very reason, baby, I'm stickin' here with you
That's why I'm still here with you

(Give it up, to give it up, girl)
I want you to surrender to me, girl

You know what I'm talkin' about, give it to me
You know what I mean, give it to me

(You can dig it, to give it up, girl)
Do you understand what I'm saying? I want you to surrender to me, girl

Yeah, make me shout
Make me feel good

Give it to me
Give me what I want

My baby, don't take so long
Don't make me wait so long, baby

It's right around the corner
What I want is very close

I'm gonna get it and bring it home
I will get what I want and take it with me

(Give it, give it up, child)
I want you to give it up, child

Oh, make me shout
Make me feel good

(Give it, to give it up, girl)
I want you to surrender to me, girl

Oh, that's what I'm talkin' about
That's what I want

Give it to me
Give me what I want

That's right, baby
You got it right, baby

Now you just give it to me
Now you give me what I want

Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: ALLEN TOUSSAINT

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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Most interesting comment from YouTube:

PhatNana237

2y↑5

THIS song is literally the absolute epitome of "COOL!" If I hear any (and I mean ANY) person bumping this song, they automatically get a pass as "cool" regardless of their personality!!

Sidenote: this song actually SHARES it's status as "the epitome of COOL" with a few other songs tho. For those interested, those songs are:
1. Eric Burdon & War - Spirit (Live in Denmark 1971 recording)
2. The JB's - The Grunt
3. Funkadelic - Cosmic Slop (Live in Houston 1976 version)
4. Brothers Johnson - Strawberry Letter 23
5. Luther Vandross - She's a Super Lady

Songs in NO particular order