Lou Rawls, who learned of gospel music through his grandmother in Chicago, became a successful singer, primarily from the 1950s through the 1980s. He was a high school classmate of music giant Sam Cooke, and they sang together in the Teenage Kings of Harmony, a '50s gospel group.
After graduating from Chicago's Dunbar Vocational High School, he sang briefly with Cooke in the Teenage Kings of Harmony, a local gospel group, and then with the Holy Wonders. In 1951, Rawls replaced Cooke in the Highway QC's after Cooke departed to join The Soul Stirrers in Los Angeles. Rawls was soon recruited by the Chosen Gospel Singers and himself moved to Los Angeles, where he subsequently joined the Pilgrim Travelers
After graduating from Chicago's Dunbar Vocational Career Academy, Rawls enlisted in the U.S. Army as a paratrooper in the 82nd Airborne Division. He left the "All-Americans" three years later as a sergeant, and hooked up with The Pilgrim Travelers as he traveled to Los Angeles. In 1958, while touring the South with the Travelers and Sam Cooke, Rawls was in a serious car crash. Rawls was pronounced dead before arriving at the hospital, where he stayed in a coma for five and a half days. It took him months to regain his memory, and a year to fully recuperate. Rawls considered the event to be life-changing.
Alongside Dick Clark as master of ceremonies, Rawls was recovered enough by 1959 to be able to perform at the Hollywood Bowl. He was signed to Capitol Records in 1962, the same year he sang the soulful background vocals on the Sam Cooke recording of "Bring it on Home to Me." Rawls himself charted with a cover of the song in 1970 (with the title shortened to "Bring It On Home").
Rawls' first Capitol solo release was Stormy Monday (a.k.a. I'd Rather Drink Muddy Water), a jazz album. On August 21, 1966, he opened for The Beatles at Crosley Field in Cincinnati.
Though his 1966 album Live! went gold, Rawls would not have a star-making hit until he made a proper soul album, appropriately named Soulin', later that same year. The album contained his first R&B #1 single, "Love Is a Hurtin' Thing". In 1967 Rawls won his first Grammy Award for Best R&B Vocal Performance, for the single "Dead End Street."
In 1969, the singer was co-host of NBC's summer replacement series for the Dean Martin Show along with Martin's daughter, singer Gail Martin.
After leaving Capitol in 1971, Rawls joined MGM, at which juncture he released his Grammy-winning single "Natural Man." He had a brief stint with Bell Records in 1974, where he recorded a cover of Hall & Oates' "She's Gone." In 1976, Rawls signed with Philadelphia International Records, where he had his greatest album success with the million-selling All Things in Time. The album produced his most successful single, "You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine", which topped the R&B and Adult Contemporary charts and went to number two on the pop side, becoming Rawls' only certified million-selling single in the process.
Subsequent albums, such as 1977's When You've Heard Lou, You've Heard It All yielded such hit singles as "Lady Love". Other releases in the 1970s included the classic album Sit Down And Talk To Me.
In 1982, Rawls received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
On the night of September 29, 1977, Rawls performed the national anthem of the United States prior to the Earnie Shavers-Muhammad Ali title fight at Madison Square Garden. He would be requested to sing the anthem many times over the next 28 years, and his final performance of it came on October 23, 2005. The crowd at that performance may not have known that Rawls was extremely ill with cancer, but he reportedly delivered an electrifying performance to kick off Game Two of the 2005 World Series between the Chicago White Sox and Houston Astros.
In 1980, Rawls began the "Lou Rawls Parade of Stars Telethon" which benefits the United Negro College Fund. The annual event, known since 1998 as "An Evening of Stars: A Celebration of Educational Excellence", consists of stories of successful African-American students who have benefited from and/or graduated from one of the many historically black colleges and universities who receive support from the UNCF, along with musical performances from various recording artists in support of the UNCF's and Rawls' efforts. The event has raised over US$200 million in 27 shows for the fund through 2006.
In January 2004, Rawls was honored by the United Negro College Fund for his more than 25 years of charity work with the organization. Instead of hosting and performing as he usually did, Rawls was given the seat of honor and celebrated by his performing colleagues, including Stevie Wonder, The O'Jays, Gerald Levert, Ashanti, and many others. His final television performance occurred during the 2005-2006 edition of the telethon, honoring Stevie Wonder in September 2005, just months before entering the hospital and after having been diagnosed with cancer earlier in the year. This program, aired in January, 2006, contains his final public television performance, where he performed two classics, "You Are the Sunshine of My Life," and a final ode to Frank Sinatra with, "It Was A Very Good Year."
At the time of Rawls' death, news and UNCF figures noted the significance of Rawls' final performance, "It Was a Very Good Year." The song is a retrospective of one's life and its lyrics include, "When I was seventeen, it was a very good year. It was a very good year for small town girls and soft summer nights...And now those days grow short, it is the autumn of years, and now I think about life as vintage wine from fine old kegs, from the brim to the dregs, it pours sweet and clear, it was a very good year."
Rawls appeared in a segment of the first season of Sesame Street, to sing the alphabet. He dismissed the concept of using cue cards for the performance, but reversed such decision when he forgot the order of the letters.
Throughout Rawls' singing career, he had the opportunity to appear in many films, television shows, and commercials. He can be seen in such films as Leaving Las Vegas, Blues Brothers 2000, and Angel, Angel, Down We Go. He had a supporting role in the Baywatch spin-off, Baywatch Nights. He also appeared in the western television series, Big Valley, (starring legend Barbara Stanwyck, along with Lee Majors and Linda Evans) where he played a hired hand. Here, he delivered the memorial line: "Ain't a horse that can't be rode; ain't a man that can't be throwed".
Rawls lent his rich baritone voice to many cartoons, including Hey Arnold! as the voice of Harvey The Mailman, Garfield, and The Proud Family. For many of the Film Roman Garfield specials, Rawls would often compose songs for them, which he would then sing usually doing a duet with Desiree Goyette. He also was famously in American sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel Air.
For many years, he was a spokesperson for the Colonial Penn Life Insurance Company. He was also a spokesman for Budweiser, helping promote the brand on radio and TV to African-American markets much as Ed McMahon did for the white audience. Budweiser was a key sponsor for the Rawls telethon and UNCF.
Rawls was also a regular guest host on "Jazz Central", a program aired on the BET Jazz cable channel.
He appears as "Dr. Rawls" in a dream on an episode My Wife and Kids, where he breaks into a parody version of "You'll Never Find", which a frightened Damon Wayans is afraid of having a colonoscopy the following day. Rawls uses the scope as a microphone in the scene. Rawls appears as a commentator in the second half of the unrated commentary of Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy.
Rawls was also a guest star during the second season of The Muppet Show. He also made a brief appearance on the series finale of Martin. (The show's character Tommy is excited to see Lou Rawls at Nipsey's and mentioned that his favorite song is "Natural Man." Lou replied that he received a letter from a female claiming that she and her boyfriend broke up because of the song. This eludes to the episode where Tommy and Pam decide to move in together, but winded up fighting and ultimately breaking up because Tommy played the song "Natural Man" so much that it drove Pam crazy.)
The following is a list of Lou Rawls singles that made the top 50 on the Billboard Hot 100. His first Hot 100 entry was "Three O'Clock in the Morning" in 1965, and his final was "Wind Beneath My Wings" in 1983. In addition to those two, nine other singles peaked at positions below the top 50 on the Hot 100, and additional singles reached the R&B, Adult Contemporary and Bubbling Under charts.
* "Love Is a Hurtin' Thing" - 1966, #13 (also #1 R&B)
* "Dead End Street" - 1967, #29
* "Show Business" - 1967, #45
* "Your Good Thing (Is About to End)" - 1969, #18
* "A Natural Man" - 1971, #17
* "You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine" - 1976, #2 (also #1 R&B and #1 Adult Contemporary); certified Gold for sales of one million copies
* "Lady Love" - 1978, #24
You're the One
Lou Rawls Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And I've seen all kinds of girls
But baby, let me tell you
You're the one
Well I met a girl in Hong Kong
And she said her name was Susie Go On
But baby, let me tell you
I'm trying to tell you that you're the one
Baby I see you are the one
I'm trying to say you're the one
Yeah baby, you're the one
You know, I've done all kinds of ladies
New all kinds of things to me
But baby, let me tell you
You're the one
I want to tell you that you did something to me
Oh baby, nobody else could ever do
Oh baby, let me tell you
You're the one
I'm trying to say that you are the one
Baby you are the one
I've said that you're the one
Trying to tell you, you are the one love
Yeah you are the one
(sax solo)
(piano solo)
Won't you listen to me you're the one
You are the one
You are the one
Baby you're the one
I might go on around the world
But I'll never find another girl
Someone who can love me like you do
Oh baby, you're the one
Oh oh you are the one
Yes you are baby
Now baby, let me tell you
You're the one
(guitar solo)
When I wake up in the morning you're right by my side
You know what to fix me baby to give me in my stride
Baby, baby, baby, baby, baby, baby you're the one
Oh when I go to work and work all day long
I come home in the evening
You know what to put down on me to eat baby
You're the one, ah you're the one
You know that I love your good home cookin'
I love it when you start cooking, baby
You're the one, ah huh you're the one
Ah, huh, you're the one (x2)
You, you, you, ah huh you're the one
(bass solo, fade out)
The lyrics of Lou Rawls's song "You're the One" express the singer's appreciation and admiration for his romantic partner. The song starts with Rawls describing how he has traveled the world and experienced different women, but none can compare to the one he is addressing. He mentions meeting a woman named Susie Go On in Hong Kong, but quickly dismisses her in favor of his beloved. He goes on to say that he has had all sorts of ladies and experiences but found that nothing compares to the love he shares with his partner.
The lyrics are poetic in how they capture the depth of the relationship, with lines like "you did something to me, nobody else could ever do." The song is a declaration of love and a recognition that she is the one who completes him. The sax and piano solos add to the romantic feel of the song, while the guitar and bass solos towards the end bring the music to a soulful finish.
Overall, "You're the One" is a classic love song that celebrates the uniqueness of an individual and how they can impact one's life in profound ways.
Line by Line Meaning
I have been all over the world and
I've traveled the world and explored, seen girls of all kinds
And I've seen all kinds of girls
I've seen girls with different traits
But baby, let me tell you
But what I'm trying to say is
You're the one
You're the one I love the most
Well I met a girl in Hong Kong
I met someone in Hong Kong
And she said her name was Susie Go On
She said her name was Susie Go On
But baby, let me tell you
But what I'm trying to say is
You're the one
You're the one I love the most
I'm trying to tell you that you're the one
I'm trying to say that you're the one I love
Baby I see you are the one
I see that you are the one I love
I'm trying to say you're the one
I'm trying to say that you're the one I love
Yeah baby, you're the one
Yes, baby, you're the one I love
You know, I've done all kinds of ladies
I've been with different kinds of women
New all kinds of things to me
I've learned different things from them
But baby, let me tell you
But what I'm trying to say is
You're the one
You're the one I love the most
I want to tell you that you did something to me
I want to say that you made an impact on me
Oh baby, nobody else could ever do
No one else could ever replace you
Oh baby, let me tell you
What I'm trying to say is
You're the one
You're the one I love the most
I'm trying to say that you are the one
I'm trying to say that you're the one I love
Baby you are the one
You are the one I love
I've said that you're the one
I've said that you're the one I love
Trying to tell you, you are the one love
Trying to tell you that you're the one I love
Yeah you are the one
Yes, you are the one I love
Won't you listen to me you're the one
Listen to me, you're the one I love
You are the one
You're the one I love the most
Baby you're the one
You are the one I love the most
I might go on around the world
I may travel around the world
But I'll never find another girl
But I'll never find another girl like you
Someone who can love me like you do
Someone who can love me the way you do
Oh baby, you're the one
You're the one I love the most
Oh oh you are the one
Oh, you are the one I love the most
Yes you are baby
Yes, you are the one I love the most, baby
Now baby, let me tell you
What I'm really trying to say is
You're the one
You're the one I love the most
When I wake up in the morning you're right by my side
When I wake up, you're there beside me
You know what to fix me baby to give me in my stride
You know how to make me feel energized and motivated
Oh when I go to work and work all day long
When I go to work and work a nine-to-five job
I come home in the evening
I return home in the evening
You know what to put down on me to eat baby
You know what I like to eat and make it for me
I might go on around the world
I may travel around the world
But I'll never find another girl
But I'll never find another girl like you
You know that I love your good home cookin'
You know that I appreciate your home-cooked food
I love it when you start cooking, baby
I love it when you start cooking, baby
Ah, huh, you're the one (x2)
You're the one I love the most
You, you, you, ah huh you're the one
You're the one I love the most
Contributed by James E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.