The band, initially located in Boise, Idaho, started as an instrumental rock outfit led by organist Paul Revere Dick (January 7, 1938 – October 4, 2014) (named in honor of the Revolutionary War hero), who in his early twenties already owned several restaurants in Portland, Oregon. Singer Mark Lindsay (March 9, 1942), joined in 1958. Originally called The Downbeats, their name was changed to Paul Revere & The Raiders in 1960 on the eve of their first record release for Gardena Records. The band scored their first Pacific Northwest regional hit in 1961 with "Like Long Hair", an instrumental. Revere was drafted, became a conscientious objector and worked at a mental institution for a year and half of deferred service. After reforming the band, they attracted national attention again with a cover of "Louie Louie", which was picked up by Columbia Records although beaten in the charts by The Kingsmen's version.
Known for their live high energy rock n' roll performances they consistently toured the Northwest - hitting the no-alcohol teen venues where the testosterone levels were as high as the high school beer buzzes that fueled the rowdy crowds of sweating dancers out for the transcendence of the music, or maybe just to get laid. The highlight of their gigs in the early 60's was the 6 foot high cardboard mock up of a can of Crisco that came on during the song "Crisco Party", which was about the delights of getting naked, smearing yourself and your teenage honey all over in Crisco and doing the diry boogie all night long. Never has an organ (Paul Revere's that is!) wailed so in tune with with the zeitgeist. Mark Lindsay was always out in front, on stage and into the crowds, but it was Paul Revere who lead the crowd involvement, bouncing the big Crisco barrel off the stage and into the dancehalls and dance floors of the teenage wastelands - before the Vietnam war changed the vibes and the audiences began to sit and listen to the lyrics and innocent horniness teenage was replaced by the searching for meaning in the midst of a war that threatened to kill them.
They would maintain a huge level of popularity in the mid-1960s beginning with "Just Like Me" (1965), which marked the beginning of a string of garage rock classics. The Raiders, under the guidance of producer Terry Melcher, increasingly emulated the sounds of British Invasion bands such as The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and The Animals albeit with an American R&B feel.
The band appeared regularly on national television, especially on Dick Clark's Where the Action Is, Happening '68, and It's Happening, the latter two of which were co-hosted by Paul Revere and Mark Lindsay. Here they were presented as the American response to the British Invasion. The group wore American Revolutionary War soldier uniforms and performed slapstick comedy and synchronized dance steps while the ponytailed Lindsay lip synched to their music. This farcical, cartoonish image obscured the proto-hard rock sound that their music often took.
Their hits from the mid-60's included "Kicks" (Billboard Pop Chart #4), "Him or Me - What's It Gonna Be?" (#7), "Good Thing" (#5), "Hungry" (#5), and "Great Airplane Strike" (#20). Of these, "Kicks" became their best-known song, an anti-drug message written by Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil that was especially akin to The Animals.
In mid-1967, with three gold albums to their credit, they were Columbia Records' top-selling rock band; their Greatest Hits album was one of two releases selected by Clive Davis to try out a higher list price for albums expected to be particularly popular, along with Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits.
Changing tastes in the late 1960s rendered the group unfashionable, but they still continued to have hits through the rest of the decade, "I Had A Dream" (1967 - #20), "Too Much Talk" (1968 - #18, and an illustration of their tendency towards Beatles imitations), and "Mr. Sun, Mr. Moon" (1969 - #18). Tensions between Lindsay and Revere increased during this time; Lindsay wanted to go more in the direction of hard rock acts like Led Zeppelin or the James Gang, while Revere sought a bubblegum pop direction. Lindsay's vision for the Raiders was represented on songs such as "Let Me" (1969 - #20 - Gold Single), "Powder Blue Mercedes Queen" (1972 - #54) and "Just Seventeen" (1970 - #70) and the 1970 album Collage. By the time of the release of Collage the band's name was officially shortened to The Raiders. "Freeborn Man", written by Lindsay and bassist Keith Allison, has since gone on to be a Country Rock standard, covered by The Outlaws, Junior Brown, and Glen Campbell amongst many others.
Ironically, their single release "Indian Reservation" (1971 - #1 - Platinum single) would be their biggest hit of all, after about a year and a half or so of no hits.
In 1972 The Raiders made one last attempt at a pop album with Country Wine but Columbia was sinking money into other acts, such as Mott The Hoople and Aerosmith, and Country Wine and The Raiders sank in the resulting quagmire.
Lindsay left the band in 1975 to continue his solo career as a country star of sorts, landing a hit single with Kenny Young's "Arizona". Country music was also the choice of short-lived member Freddy Weller, who had more success in this market. Revere continued to put together Raiders lineups with some success, but Lindsay had clearly been the star of the band.
The punk rock and New Wave eras would see a wave of interest in the Raiders' music; "I'm Not Your Stepping Stone" was covered by The Sex Pistols and Liverpool band The Farm (although The Monkees' cover version was more well known than the Raiders' original), and later "Just Like Me" would be covered by The Circle Jerks (as well as by more mainstream figures like Joan Jett and Pat Benatar). "Hungry" was also covered by Sammy Hagar. The Paisley Underground, garage rock revival, and grunge movements would all acknowledge the Raiders' influence.
Revere has continued to play shows on the oldies circuit and in Las Vegas with various Raiders. Lindsay is musically semi-retired and lives in Hawaii, but occasionally plays. Other members of the band constantly changed; bassist Keith Allison, who played in the Raiders from 1968 to 1975, is probably the best known of them, and has since gone into acting, and has appeared in the film Gods and Generals.
In 1997 the group's classic Midnight Ride lineup - Mark Lindsay, guitarist Drake Levin, bassist Phil "Fang" Volk, and drummer Mike "Smitty" Smith - reunited in full costume (though without Revere himself) for a one-off 30th anniversary performance in Portland. Smith died four years later.
Mark Lindsay performed as part of the "Happy Together" tour with the Turtles, Mickey Dolenz, the Grass Roots and the Buckinghams in 2010. The tour was well received in the US.
Lindsay was invited on stage by Mitch Ryder at the "Hippiefest" tour in Fort Lauderdale, FL, on July 31, 2010 and performed "Kicks" to a wildly appreciative audience at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts.
Ups & Downs
Paul Revere & The Raiders Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Everything was fine
You never made no sign
That you had changed your mind
I guess I was mistaken, girl
To count so on you
What else could I do
Well girl, I've been torn up before
But I can't handle that once more
Well I been down for a long long time
And now it's time to reach my mind
There's lots of pain upon this earth
Girl, I've had my money's worth
I have had my ups and downs and all around
Girl, I've tried to change your way of thinkin'
Tried to make you see
Well, livin' here with me
Is where you ought to be
But it didn't seem to make no difference
It never changed your world
Or stopped your social twirl
You're still the same old girl
And now, I've been torn up before
But I can't handle that once more
I been down for a long long time
But now it's time to reach my mind
'Cause there's lots of pain upon this earth
And girl, I've had my money's worth
I have had my ups and downs and all around
I've been up, down, all around now baby
I've been up, I been down, I been all around now baby
Yeah we've both been up and down and all around baby
You go up, you go down, you go all around now baby
Yes, I'm up, I'm down, all around now baby
Up and down and all around
The lyrics of Paul Revere & The Raiders's "Ups & Downs" describe the end of a relationship, as the singer realizes that his partner has changed her mind about their future together. The song begins with the singer reflecting on how everything seemed perfect before, and he had no signs that things were changing until it was too late. He admits that he made a mistake in trusting her and now it's time for him to pay the price.
The singer then goes on to explain that he's been through rough patches in the past, but he can't handle going through it again. He's been torn up for a long time, and it's time for him to get his head back on straight. He's had his fair share of ups and downs in life, and he's ready to move on from this particular low point.
As the song progresses, the singer notes that he tried to change his partner's mind about leaving him, but it didn't make any difference. She continued to live her life the same way, despite his efforts. He reaffirms that he's been down for a long time, but he's ready to come back up and tackle the pain that life throws his way.
Overall, "Ups & Downs" is a song about coming to terms with the end of a relationship and moving on from the pain of lost love.
Line by Line Meaning
Now, things was looking golden, baby
At one point, everything was going perfectly fine in our relationship.
Everything was fine
No problems existed, and everything was working out perfectly between us.
You never made no sign
I had no indication that you were feeling any differently about our relationship.
That you had changed your mind
I was unaware that you no longer felt the same way about us as you did before.
I guess I was mistaken, girl
It turns out that I was wrong about how you felt about our relationship.
To count so on you
I relied too much on the belief that our relationship was solid and that you felt the same way as I did.
What else could I do
In that moment, I didn't know what to do because everything was coming undone.
Time to pay my dues
I recognize that it's time for me to face the consequences of what has happened and take responsibility.
Well girl, I've been torn up before
I've been hurt in the past, and this experience is bringing those feelings back up.
But I can't handle that once more
I'm not sure if I'm emotionally capable of going through that pain again.
Well I been down for a long long time
I've been feeling sad and depressed for a while now.
And now it's time to reach my mind
I need to focus my thoughts and emotions and find a way forward.
There's lots of pain upon this earth
Life can be incredibly difficult and painful.
Girl, I've had my money's worth
I've experienced plenty of the struggles and hardships that come with life.
I have had my ups and downs and all around
My experiences have included both good times and bad, as well as a variety of different struggles.
Girl, I've tried to change your way of thinkin'
I've attempted to influence your perspective and beliefs in our relationship.
Tried to make you see
I wanted you to understand how I was feeling and what I needed from the relationship.
Well, livin' here with me
I thought that living with me was the solution to our relationship problems.
Is where you ought to be
I believed that we were meant to be together, and that living with me would make things better for us.
But it didn't seem to make no difference
Despite my efforts, things didn't change between us.
It never changed your world
Living with me didn't affect your feelings or mindset in the way that I hoped it would.
Or stopped your social twirl
You continued to socialize and engage in activities outside of our relationship, despite living with me.
You're still the same old girl
Ultimately, you didn't change, and our relationship didn't improve as a result of living together.
I've been up, down, all around now baby
I've experienced a wide range of emotions and experiences in this relationship.
Yeah we've both been up and down and all around baby
We've both been through a lot in this relationship, experiencing both positive and negative moments.
You go up, you go down, you go all around now baby
Our relationship has been characterized by its ups and downs, with a lot of uncertainty and inconsistency.
Yes, I'm up, I'm down, all around now baby
I, too, have been experiencing a lot of ups and downs in this relationship.
Up and down and all around
Our relationship has been characterized by a lot of emotional turmoil and inconsistency, with highs and lows mixed together in equal measure.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: MARK A. LINDSAY, TERRY MELCHER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind