Davis graduated at 16 from Lubbock High School in Lubbock, Texas. He spent his childhood years with his sister Linda, living and working at the former College Courts, an efficiency apartment complex owned by his father, T. J. Davis, located at the intersection of College Avenue and 5th Street. Davis describes his father, who was divorced from Davis's mother, as "very religious, very strict, and very stubborn." Though Davis was physically small, he had a penchant for getting into fistfights. "In those days, it was all about football, rodeo, and fistfights. Oh, man, I got beat up so much while I was growing up in Lubbock," Davis said in a March 2, 2008, interview with the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal newspaper. "I was 5 feet, 9 inches, and weighed 125 pounds. I joined Golden Gloves, but didn't do good even in my (own) division." After he finished high school, Davis moved to Atlanta, Georgia, where his mother lived, to get out of Lubbock.
Once he was settled in Atlanta, he organized a rock and roll group called the Zots, and made two singles for OEK Records, managed and promoted by OEK owner Oscar Kilgo. Davis also worked for the Vee Jay record company (home to such R&B stars as Gene Chandler, Jerry Butler, and Dee Clark) as a regional manager, and later also served as a regional manager for Liberty Records.
Davis became famous as a songwriter and got his start as an employee of Nancy Sinatra's company, Boots Enterprises, Inc. Davis was with Boots for several years in the late 1960s. During his time there, he played on many of Sinatra's recordings, and she worked him into her stage shows. Boots Enterprises also acted as Davis's publishing company, publishing songs such as "In the Ghetto", "Friend, Lover, Woman, Wife", "Home", "It's Such a Lonely Time of Year", and "Memories", which were recorded by Elvis Presley, Nancy Sinatra, B. J. Thomas, and many others. Davis left Boots Enterprises in 1970 to sign with Columbia Records, taking all of his songs with him.
One of the songs he wrote in 1968, called "A Little Less Conversation", was recorded by Elvis Presley (and would become a posthumous success for Presley years later). Presley recorded "In the Ghetto" in sessions in Memphis. According to maverick record producer Jimmy Bowen, "Ghetto" was originally pitched to Sammy Davis, Jr. Mac, guitar in hand, played the song in a studio, with onlookers such as Rev. Jesse Jackson and other members of the black activist community. Mac Davis, the only white man in the room at the time, eventually told Bowen, "I don't know whether to thank ya, or to kill ya." Mac Davis eventually recorded the tune after Presley's version became a success, and was released in a Ronco In Concert compilation in 1975. It was later released on a campy Rhino Records Golden Throats compilation in 1991. The song became a success for Presley and he continued to record more of Davis's material, such as "Memories", "Don't Cry Daddy", and "Clean Up Your Own Backyard". Bobby Goldsboro also recorded some of Davis's songs, including "Watching Scotty Grow", which became a #1 Adult Contemporary success for Goldsboro in 1971. Other artists who recorded his material included Vikki Carr, O.C. Smith, and Kenny Rogers and The First Edition. "I Believe in Music", often considered to be Davis's signature song, was recorded by several artists (including Marian Love, B.J. Thomas, Louis Jordan, Perry Como, Helen Reddy, and Davis himself) before it finally became a success in 1972 for the group Gallery.
Later, he also became known as a country singer. During the 1970s, many of his songs "crossed over", successfully scoring on both the country and popular music charts, including "Baby, Don't Get Hooked on Me" (a number one Grammy-nominated success), "One Hell of a Woman" (pop no. 11), and "Stop and Smell the Roses" (a no. 9 pop hit). Also, during the 1970s, he was very active as an actor, appearing in several movies, as well as hosting a successful variety show.
Davis soon decided to pursue a career of his own in country music; he was signed to Columbia Records in 1970. After several years of enriching the repertoires of other artists, his big success came two years after signing with Columbia. He topped the Country and Pop charts with the song "Baby Don't Get Hooked on Me". It sold over one million copies and was awarded a gold disc by the Recording Industry Association of America in September 1972.
Some of Davis's lyrics invoked overtly sexual relationships. In the song "Baby Don't Get Hooked on Me", he pleads with a woman not to become too enamored with him, because he does not want to commit to a full-time relationship. Other successful songs, such as "Naughty Girl" and "Baby Spread Your Love on Me", contained similar lyrics.
In 1974, Davis was awarded the Academy of Country Music's Entertainer of the Year award. Some of Davis's other successes include the songs "Stop and Smell the Roses" (a number one Adult Contemporary success in 1974) (pop no. 9), "One Hell of a Woman" (pop no. 11), "Rock'n'Roll (I Gave You The Best Years Of My Life)" (pop no. 15), and "Burnin' Thing" (pop no. 53). At the end of the 1970s, he moved to Casablanca Records, which was best known at the time for its successes with disco star Donna Summer and rock'n'roll band Kiss. His first success for the company in 1980 was the novelty song "It's Hard To Be Humble", a light-hearted look at how popularity and good looks could go to one's head. The song became his first Country music top 10 and a rare top 30 hit in the UK. (It was translated into Dutch as "Het is moeilijk bescheiden te blijven" and became a hit for the Dutch singer Peter Blanker in 1981). Later that year, he also had another top 10 song with "Let's Keep It That Way". In November, "Rock'n'Roll (I Gave You The Best Years Of My Life)" was played by KHJ in Los Angeles as its last song before it switched from Top 40 to Country music. He achieved other successful songs, such as "Texas In My Rear View Mirror" and "Hooked on Music", which became his biggest Country music success in 1981, going to no. 2. In 1985, he recorded his last top 10 country music success with the song "I Never Made Love (Till I Made Love With You)".
On January 19, 1985, Davis performed "God Bless the USA" at the 50th Presidential Inaugural Gala, held the day before the second inauguration of Ronald Reagan.
Davis was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2000.
Lucus Was A Redneck
Mac Davis Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Drinkin' and fightin' was all the boy knew
Born with a corncob in his mouth
In Tupelo Mississippi way down south
His daddy died drunk with a belly fulla rum
His mama died waitin' for a miracle to come
People said
The boy's born to be a bum
Hangin' around with the rest of the riff-raff
Down at the pool hall on Main Street
Wearin' a red bandana and a sweaty ol' straw hat
Union-All coveralls, dirty bare feet
One half stupid and the other half dumb
Born to live and die in a sharecropper's slum
People said
The boy's born to be a bum
Who's gonna cry when ya die, Lucas
Who's gonna miss ya when you're gone
Will it be the black man you call the nigger
The hippie that'cha beat up just 'cause you was bigger
Will the riff-raff laugh at the epitaph on your tombstone
Betcha says "Here lies Lucas, born to be a bum...
...Died like his daddy with a belly fulla rum"
Now who's gonna cry when ya die, Lucas
Who's gonna miss ya when you're gone
Will it be the black man you call the nigger
The hippie that'cha beat up just 'cause you was bigger
Will the riff-raff laugh at the epitaph on your tombstone
I'll Betcha says "Here lies Lucas, born to be a bum...
...Died like his daddy with a belly fulla rum"
UHHHHHHHH!
Goodbye, Lucas...
Mac Davis's song "Lucas Was A Redneck" is a song about the life and death of a young redneck named Lucas. The song portrays Lucas as a person who grew up in poverty and was surrounded by drinking and fighting. Lucas was born in Tupelo, Mississippi and his father died drunk with a belly full of rum while his mother died waiting for a miracle. The people around Lucas believed he was born to be a bum and that he couldn't escape his fate.
Lucas was depicted as a person who hung out with the riff-raff and spent his time at the pool hall on Main Street. He wore a red bandana, a sweaty old straw hat, union-all coveralls, and had dirty bare feet. The song portrays that Lucas was only half stupid and the other half was dumb, and he was born to live and die in a sharecropper's slum.
The song's chorus highlights that nobody will cry for Lucas when he dies, and people will only remember him as someone who was born to be a bum and died like his father, with a belly full of rum. The song raises the question of who will miss Lucas when he's gone, and empathizes with those who Lucas had mistreated, such as the black man he called a "nigger" and the hippie he beat up just because he was bigger.
Overall, "Lucas Was A Redneck" is a poignant song that takes a critical look at the life of a young redneck who is stuck in poverty and unable to escape his fate.
Line by Line Meaning
Lucas was a redneck through and through
Lucas was a stereotypical Southerner, who identified with and embodied the redneck culture
Drinkin' and fightin' was all the boy knew
Lucas was known for being a brawler who loved getting into fights and who lived for drinking
Born with a corncob in his mouth
Lucas was born into poverty and suffering that he would have to endure throughout his life
In Tupelo Mississippi way down south
Lucas was from a small town in Mississippi in the southern part of the United States
His daddy died drunk with a belly fulla rum
Lucas' father was an alcoholic who drank himself to death
His mama died waitin' for a miracle to come
Lucas' mother passed away while hoping for a better life for herself and her son
People said
The local people believed
The boy's born to be a bum
Lucas was not viewed as being capable of doing anything worthwhile and was expected to live a life of poverty and aimlessness
Hangin' around with the rest of the riff-raff
Lucas spent time with others who were not respected by the community, often hanging out at the pool hall on Main Street
Down at the pool hall on Main Street
The pool hall where Lucas spent time was located on Main Street
Wearin' a red bandana and a sweaty ol' straw hat
Lucas' attire included a red bandana and a dirty straw hat
Union-All coveralls, dirty bare feet
Lucas wore coveralls that were often stained and had holes in them, and his feet were often dirty
One half stupid and the other half dumb
Lucas was seen as being unintelligent and having little common sense
Born to live and die in a sharecropper's slum
Lucas' destiny was to live and die in a place that offered him no hope or opportunities
Who's gonna cry when ya die, Lucas
Who will mourn the death of Lucas?
Will it be the black man you call the nigger
Lucas was known to be racist and often used the derogatory term 'nigger' to refer to black people, but would one of them mourn his passing?
The hippie that'cha beat up just 'cause you was bigger
Lucas was a bully who often targeted those who were weaker than him, such as the hippies who were his victims
Will the riff-raff laugh at the epitaph on your tombstone
Will the people he spent time with at the pool hall remember him with mockery, as happens when reading his epitaph?
Betcha says "Here lies Lucas, born to be a bum...
Lucas's tombstone will read, "Here lies Lucas, who was destined to live a life of poverty and aimlessness, just like his father before him."
...Died like his daddy with a belly fulla rum"
Lucas died the same way his father did: drunk, with his belly full of rum
Goodbye, Lucas...
A final farewell to Lucas
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@dianablevins2146
miss this music
@svnnx3216
Love this song hecc
@RaceFanDana
No soft a at the end, he went full tilt in the lyrics. This would never be played unedited on the radio today. Mac Davis was awesome, musician, actor (QB in North Dallas Forty) had a TV show regularly just like Sonny & Cher or Donnie and Marie or Tony Orlando and Dawn
@richardbranton7396
So what?there are thousands upon thousands of things that where once said ,did and used that aren't anymore
@joomomma9463
Wgaf
@RaceFanDana
@@joomomma9463 apparently you do, replying to a 4 year old comment.
@joomomma9463
@@RaceFanDana and you are responding to a 4 yr old comment lmfao
@RaceFanDana
@@joomomma9463 21 hours, doofus
@philobrandon5710
ATL 💯COUNTRY FUNK
@CoughHiccup
so why is the name Lucas on some songs.....and Rufus on others? it is the same song !