After returning from the military, Price became more financially savvy than many of his fellow early Rock n Roll and gritty R&B artists. In 1957, he decided to launch his own label KRC (Kent Record Company) and retain control of his masters, leasing his tracks to labels like Atlantic and later ABC-Paramount in an arrangement that likely inspired Ray Charles to do the same.
His first single after returning from Korea was "Just Because". That was followed by a massive hit, "Stagger Lee", which has appeared in many multi-artist collection albums and served as one of Price's best known songs. Television host Dick Clark insisted the violent content of the track, which lyrically describes a shooting based on a gambling fight, be toned down when Price appeared on the popular but highly sanitized show American Bandstand.
Price’s biggest year was likely 1959, during which he had four hit records: “Personality,” “Where Were You (On Our Wedding Day),” “I’m Gonna Get Married” and “Come Into My Heart.” His increasing entrepreneurial efforts soon included new record labels and starting the Turntable nightclub in New York City. Price's Double L Records, started with partner Harold Logan discovered Wilson Pickett, who got his career started on their label. Price's biggest hit for Double-l was a 1963 revival of the old standard "Misty", but his remaining efforts at hitmaking drew little national attention. He signed briefly to Monument in 1964 and then Reprise, and later to JAD and to his own Turntable imprint to no avail. By 1971, he was recording in Muscle Shoals his own cover version of BJ Thomas hit "Hooked On A Feeling" for Scepter but the arrangement failed to catch fire.
In 1974 Price was a partner of boxing promoter Don King who staged the famous music festival in Zaire featuring James Brown, B.B. King, Etta James, Bill Withers, The Spinners, and the Fania All Stars as documented in Spike Lee's film about the Ali vs Foreman fight "When We Were Kings"
Price continued touring with a 9 piece group in the 1970's, issuing some singles on the GFS label, but seemingly retired for awhile. He then returned to performing and touring in 1993, when Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard and Gary U.S. Bonds accompanied him on a European tour. He was inducted into the Rock n Roll Hall of fame in 1998, and can still occasionally be seen on PBS performing during oldies revue concerts, or during fundraising breaks such as during a recent Sam Cooke documentary special, and remains surprisingly youthful despite well over 50 years in the music business.
Carry Me Home
Lloyd Price Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Hey baby, come on and carry me home
I'm the oobie, doobie daddy
Please don't leave me alone
Hey baby, don't you want a man like me?
Hey baby, don't you want a man like me?
Well, I'm still young
Hey baby, don't I satisfy?
Hey baby, don't I satisfy?
See I'm a man
I sure don't have to lie
Hey baby, gee, that's killing me
Hey baby, ooh, you're killing me
I'm the oobie, doobie daddy
Giving you this loving free
The lyrics to Lloyd Price's song "Carry Me Home" are about a man pleading with his lover to take him home after a night out. He refers to himself as the "oobie, doobie daddy" and begs her not to leave him alone. He asks if she wants a man like him, as he is still young at "heavenly twenty-three". He assures her that he satisfies her, and being a man, he doesn't have to lie about it. However, her rejection of him is breaking his heart, and he tells her that she's killing him. Despite this, he still offers his loving freely.
The song is a bluesy R&B track, and the lyrics reflect a common theme in the genre: male-female relationships and the struggles of men to hold on to their partners. The "oobie, doobie daddy" phrase is open to interpretation but is likely a nickname that the man gives himself to sound charming and attractive to his lover. The repetition of "hey baby" throughout the song adds to its romantic and pleading tone.
Line by Line Meaning
Hey baby, come on and carry me home
The singer is requesting to be taken home by their lover
I'm the oobie, doobie daddy Please don't leave me alone
The singer doesn't want to be left alone and is referring to himself as the 'oobie, doobie daddy'
Hey baby, don't you want a man like me?
The singer is asking if their lover desires someone like them
Well, I'm still young Heavenly twenty-three
The artist is emphasizing their age, which is still young and promising
Hey baby, don't I satisfy?
The artist wants to know if they are doing a good job of satisfying their lover
See I'm a man I sure don't have to lie
The singer is asserting that they are truthful about their abilities as a lover
Hey baby, gee, that's killing me Ooh, you're killing me
The singer is expressing their attraction and love for their lover
I'm the oobie, doobie daddy Giving you this loving free
The artist refers to themselves again as the 'oobie, doobie daddy' and expresses that they are giving their lover love freely
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: LLOYD PRICE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind