John William "Long John" Baldr… Read Full Bio ↴From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
John William "Long John" Baldry (12 January 1941 – 21 July 2005) was an English and Canadian blues singer and a voice actor. He sang with many British musicians, with Rod Stewart and Elton John appearing in bands led by Baldry in the 1960s. He enjoyed pop success in the UK where Let the Heartaches Begin reached No. 1 in 1967 and in Australia where his duet with Kathi McDonald You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin' reached number two in 1980. Baldry lived in Canada from the late 1970s until his death; there he continued to make records and do voiceover work. One of his best known roles in voice acting was as Dr Robotnik in Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog.
Early life
Baldry's birth was registered in Brixworth Registration District in the first quarter of 1941. This District includes East Haddon so it appears certain that this was his birthplace. His mother's maiden name was Parker. His early life was spent in Edgware, Middlesex where he attended Camrose Primary School until the age of 11, after which he attended Downer Grammar School. Just before his death, he attended the school's 40th anniversary celebrations.
Blues bands of the 1960s
Baldry grew to 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m), resulting in the nickname "Long John" (from the character Long John Silver from Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island). He was one of the first British vocalists to sing blues in clubs.[citation needed] John appeared quite regularly in the early '60s in the Gyre and Gymble coffee lounge, around the corner from Charing Cross railway station. He sometimes appeared at Eel Pie Island on the Thames at Twickenham and at the Station Hotel in Richmond, one of the Rolling Stones' earliest venues.
In the early 1960s, he sang with Alexis Korner's Blues Incorporated, with whom he recorded the first British blues album in 1962, R&B from the Marquee. At stages, Mick Jagger, Jack Bruce and Charlie Watts were members of this band while Keith Richards and Brian Jones played on stage, although none played on the R&B at the Marquee album. When The Rolling Stones made their debut at the Marquee Club in July 1962, Baldry put together a group to support them. Later, Baldry was the announcer introducing the Stones on their US-only live album, Got Live If You Want It!, in 1966.
Baldry became friendly with Paul McCartney after a show at the Cavern Club in Liverpool in the early 1960s, leading to an invitation to sing on one of The Beatles 1964 TV specials, Around The Beatles. In the special, Baldry performs "Got My Mojo Workin'" and a medley of songs with members of The Vernons Girls trio; in the latter, the Beatles are shown singing along in the audience.
In 1963, Baldry joined the Cyril Davies R&B All Stars with Nicky Hopkins playing piano. He took over in 1964 after the death of Cyril Davies, and the group became Long John Baldry and his Hoochie Coochie Men featuring Rod Stewart on vocals and Geoff Bradford on guitar. Stewart was recruited after Baldry heard him busking a Muddy Waters song at Twickenham station after Stewart had been to a Baldry gig at Eel Pie Island. Long John Baldry became a regular fixture on Sunday nights at Eel Pie Island from then onwards, fronting a series of bands.
In 1965, the Hoochie Coochie Men became Steampacket with Baldry and Stewart as male vocalists, Julie Driscoll as the female vocalist and Brian Auger on Hammond organ. After Steampacket broke up in 1966, Baldry formed Bluesology featuring Reg Dwight on keyboards and Elton Dean, later of Soft Machine, as well as Caleb Quaye on guitar. Dwight adopted the name Elton John, his first name from Dean and his surname from Baldry.
Baldry was openly gay during the early 1960s, at least amongst his friends and industry peers. However, he did not make a formal public acknowledgement of this until the 1970s—possibly because in 1960s Britain, homosexuality was still a criminal offense that could lead to forced medication and/or jail time.
Baldry had a brief relationship with lead-guitarist of The Kinks, Dave Davies and supported Elton John in coming to terms with his own sexuality. In 1978 his then-upcoming album Baldry's Out announced his formal coming out, and he addressed sexuality problems with a cover of Canadian songwriter Bill Amesbury's "A Thrill's a Thrill".
Solo artist
In 1967, he recorded a pop song "Let the Heartaches Begin" that went to number one in Britain, followed by a 1968 top 20 hit titled "Mexico", which was the theme of the UK Olympic team that year. "Let the Heartaches Begin" made the lower reaches of the Billboard Hot 100 in the US.
Bluesology broke up in 1968, with Baldry continuing his solo career and Elton John forming a songwriting partnership with Bernie Taupin. In 1969, Elton John tried to commit suicide after relationship problems with a woman. Taupin and Baldry found him, and Baldry talked him out of marrying the woman, helping make Elton John comfortable with his sexuality. The song "Someone Saved My Life Tonight" from Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy was about the experience.
In 1971, John and Stewart each produced one side of It Ain't Easy which became Baldry's most popular album and made the top 100 of the US album charts. The album featured "Don't Try to Lay No Boogie Woogie on the King of Rock and Roll" which became his most successful song in the US. John's first tour of the US was at this time. The band included, Micky Waller, Ian Armitt, Pete Sears, and Sammy Mitchell. Stewart and John would again co-produce his 1972 album Everything Stops For Tea which made the lower reaches of the US album charts. The same year, Baldry worked with ex-Procol Harum guitarist Dave Ball.
Baldry had mental health problems and was institutionalised for a brief time in 1975. The 1979 album Baldry's Out was recorded after his release.
In a 1997 interview with a German television program, Baldry claimed to be the last person to see singer Marc Bolan before Bolan's death on 16 September 1977, having conducted an interview with the fellow singer for an American production company, he says, just before Bolan drove away and had his accident. He played his last live show in Columbus, Ohio, on 19 July 2004, at Barristers Hall with guitarist Bobby Cameron. The show was produced by Andrew Myers. They played to a small group, some came from Texas. Two years previously the two had a 10-venue sell-out tour of Canada. Baldry's final UK Tour as 'The Long John Baldry Trio' concluded with a performance on Saturday 13 November 2004 at The King's Lynn Arts Centre, King's Lynn, Norfolk, England. The trio consisted of LJB, Butch Coulter on harmonica and Dave Kelly on slide guitar.
Discography and more here: 'Long John Baldry' From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Morning Dew
Long John Baldry Trio Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Walk me out in the morning dew, babe.
I wouldn't walk you out in the morning dew, my honey
I wouldn't walk you out in the morning dew at all.
I thought I heard a young boy cryin' for his mama.
I thought I heard a young boy cryin' for his mama today.
You wouldn't hear no young boy cryin' for his mama.
Walk me out in the morning dew, my babe.
Ah, walk me out in the morning dew, babe.
I wouldn't walk you out in the morning dew, my babe.
I wouldn't walk you out in the morning dew at all.
No, no, no, no, no.
Now there ain't no more morning dew, my honey.
Now there ain't no more morning dew at all
I wouldn't walk you out in the morning dew my honey.
I wouldn't walk you out in the morning dew at all.
Walk me out in the morning dew.
Walk me out in the morning dew.
The song "Morning Dew" by Long John Baldry Trio is about a person who is hesitant to leave their loved one alone in the morning dew. The first verse of the song has the singer asking their lover to walk with them in the morning dew. However, in the same verse, they say that they wouldn't walk with them in the morning dew. The hesitation in the first verse might imply that the singer doesn't want to get wet in the morning dew or, metaphorically, that they are scared to confront their partner or perhaps leave them.
In the second verse, the singer hears a young boy crying for his mother. This line could be interpreted in different ways - perhaps it is a metaphor for the singer's own childhood and their relationship with their mother. Alternatively, it could be a representation of something else entirely. The singer then assures the listener that they would not hear a young boy cry for his mother at all.
The last verse repeats the first, with a slight alteration. The singer tells their loved one that there is no more morning dew, implying that the situation has changed. This change could mean that the singer has overcome their fear or that they are willing to face their challenges with their partner by their side. Overall, the song's lyrics are open to interpretation and could mean different things to different people.
Line by Line Meaning
Walk me out in the morning dew, my babe.
Take me for a walk in the fresh morning dew, my love.
Walk me out in the morning dew, babe.
Take me for a walk in the morning dew, my dear.
I wouldn't walk you out in the morning dew, my honey
I wouldn't make you walk in the wet morning dew, my sweetie.
I wouldn't walk you out in the morning dew at all.
I wouldn't make you walk in the morning dew at any time.
I thought I heard a young boy cryin' for his mama.
I believe I heard a little boy crying for his mother.
I thought I heard a young boy cryin' for his mama today.
I thought I heard a young boy cry for his mother earlier today.
You wouldn't hear no young boy cryin' for his mama.
You wouldn't hear a young boy crying for his mother at this moment.
You wouldn't here no young boy cryin' for his mama at all.
You wouldn't hear a young boy crying for his mother at any time.
Now there ain't no more morning dew, my honey.
Now there isn't any more wet morning dew, my love.
Now there ain't no more morning dew at all
Now there isn't any more morning dew at any time.
No, no, no, no, no.
Absolutely not.
Walk me out in the morning dew.
Take me for a walk in the morning dew.
Walk me out in the morning dew.
Take me for a walk in the morning dew.
Contributed by Xavier M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.