Born Richard Dean Taylor on the 11th May 1939 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, he began his career in 1961 as a pianist and singer with several bands in Toronto. He also made his first recordings in 1961, for the Audiomaster record label. The next year, Taylor's "At the High School Dance", a single for Amy-Mala Records, was a minor success. His next single, "I'll Remember", on the Barry label, reached number twenty-three for Toronto rock -and-roll radio station CHUM, and the singer decided to relocate to Detroit, Michigan to further his career.
In Detroit, Taylor was hired by Motown Records in 1964 as a songwriter and recording artist for the Motown subsidiary V.I.P. label. Taylor's scheduled first single (March 1964) for V.I.P. was the topical satire "My Ladybug (Stay Away from That Beatle)", but it was deemed too weak for release and was never issued.
It was not until November 1965 that Taylor's debut V.I.P. single, "Let's Go Somewhere", was issued. It was written by Taylor in conjunction with Brian Holland, and produced by the team of Holland and Lamont Dozier, who had already produced five number-one songs for The Supremes. However, the song was only a regional success, in several U.S. cities and Toronto.
Taylor's next single (1967's "There's a Ghost in My House") was written by the team of Holland–Dozier–Holland along with Taylor, and again produced by Brian Holland and Lamont Dozier. It was also a commercial disappointment in the U.S., but it reached number three in the U.K. in 1974. Taylor was also beginning to become a songwriter for other acts; for example "I'll Turn to Stone" by the Four Tops and "All I Need" by The Temptations were both charting U.S. singles in 1967, co-composed by him.
In 1968, Taylor's self-produced single "Gotta See Jane", (co-written with Brian Holland), became a top-twenty hit in the UK. However, his real success came as a member of the Motown writing and production team known as "The Clan". This production group were briefly the prime creators of material for Diana Ross & the Supremes after the Holland/Dozier/Holland team left Motown. Among Taylor's successful co-compositions and co-productions during 1968/69 as a member of The Clan were Diana Ross & the Supremes' number-one U.S. release "Love Child" and their number-ten releaset "I'm Livin' in Shame".
Taylor resumed his recording career in 1970, becoming one of the first artists assigned to Motown's new subsidiary Rare Earth, which was dedicated to Caucasian artists. In that year his first Rare Earth single, "Indiana Wants Me", reached number one in his native Canada. It reached number five on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and number two in the U.K.. "Gotta See Jane" was also reissued in 1971, and became a top-ten success in Canada. His 1972 single "Taos, New Mexico" did not do well on the Canadian charts.
Taylor continued recording for Rare Earth, and working as a writer/producer for other artists until Rare Earth was ended in 1976. Though he never again scored the charts as he had done with "Indiana Wants Me", his releases did moderately well, especially in Canada. As a Canadian citizen, he could be played on CKLW and other Canadian radio stations and counted towards the stations' Canadian content quotas.
Taylor attempted a comeback during the early 1980s, after which he had a hiatus from the music industry. He has recently established his own record company, Jane Records.
Sunday Morning Coming Down
R. Dean Taylor Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
With no way to hold my head
That didn't hurt
And the beer I had for breakfast wasn't
Bad so I had one more for dessert
Then I fumbled through my closet
For my clothes
And I shaved my face
And combed my hair
And stumbled down the stairs
To meet the day
I'd smoked my brain the night before
With cigarettes and songs
That I've been pickin'
But I lit my first and watched a small kid
Cussin' at a can that he was kickin
Then I crossed the empty street and
Caught the sunday smell
Of someone fryin chicken
And it took me back to something
That I'd lost somehow
Somewhere along the way
On the sunday morning sidewalk
Wishing lord that I was stoned
Cause there's something in a sunday
That makes a body feel alone
And there's nothing short of dying
Half as lonesome as the sound
On the sleeping city sidewalk
Sunday morning coming down
In the park I saw a daddy
With a laughing little girl
He was swingin
And I stopped beside the Sunday school
And listened to the song
That they were singing
Then I headed back for home
And somewhere far away
A lonely bell was ringing
And it echoed thru the canyon like
The disappearing dreams of yesterday
On the sunday morning sidewalk
Wishing lord that I was stoned
Cause therels something in a sunday
That makes a body feel alone
And there's nothing short of dying
Half as lonesome as the sound
On the sleeping city sidewalk
Sunday morning coming down
R. Dean Taylor's song "Sunday Morning Coming Down" is a reflection of a man's struggle with loneliness and regret on a Sunday morning. The lyrics paint a vivid picture of a man who wakes up feeling hungover and lonely, unable to escape the feeling of emptiness that comes with Sunday. The opening line "Well I woke up Sunday morning, with no way to hold my head that didn't hurt" sets the tone for the rest of the song. The singer proceeds to describe his morning routine of getting dressed, grooming himself, and heading out into the world, all the while feeling this emptiness.
The lyrics go on to describe various encounters the singer has had throughout his day, including watching a child kicking a can and smelling the aroma of someone frying chicken. These mundane events evoke a sense of nostalgia and longing, taking the man back to a time when life seemed simpler and he was not alone. The song culminates with the singer's encounter with a father and his daughter in a park, where he takes a moment to listen to the nearby Sunday school attendees singing. The song ends with the sound of a distant church bell ringing, a sound that echoes the singer's loneliness.
Line by Line Meaning
Well I woke up Sunday morning
With no way to hold my head
That didn't hurt
And the beer I had for breakfast wasn't
Bad so I had one more for dessert
The singer woke up on Sunday feeling terrible and drank beer for breakfast. Despite the hangover, they had another beer.
Then I fumbled through my closet
For my clothes
And found my cleanest dirty shirt
And I shaved my face
And combed my hair
And stumbled down the stairs
To meet the day
The singer got dressed, put on their cleanest dirty shirt, did their grooming routine, and went downstairs to start their day.
I'd smoked my brain the night before
With cigarettes and songs
That I've been pickin'
But I lit my first and watched a small kid
Cussin' at a can that he was kickin
The singer had smoked and played music the night before, but they still had their first cigarette of the day while watching a kid swear at a can he was kicking.
Then I crossed the empty street and
Caught the sunday smell
Of someone fryin chicken
And it took me back to something
That I'd lost somehow
Somewhere along the way
The artist smelled fried chicken and was taken back to a memory that they had lost at some point in their life.
On the sunday morning sidewalk
Wishing lord that I was stoned
Cause there's something in a sunday
That makes a body feel alone
And there's nothing short of dying
Half as lonesome as the sound
On the sleeping city sidewalk
Sunday morning coming down
The artist felt alone on the sidewalk on a Sunday morning and wished they were high to cope. They couldn't imagine a feeling worse than loneliness on an empty city street.
In the park I saw a daddy
With a laughing little girl
He was swingin
And I stopped beside the Sunday school
And listened to the song
That they were singing
The singer saw a father and his daughter enjoying the park. The singer also listened to a song being sung by people at Sunday school.
Then I headed back for home
And somewhere far away
A lonely bell was ringing
And it echoed thru the canyon like
The disappearing dreams of yesterday
The singer went back home while a lonely bell rang somewhere in the distance, reminding them of the past and how it fades away.
On the sunday morning sidewalk
Wishing lord that I was stoned
Cause therels something in a sunday
That makes a body feel alone
And there's nothing short of dying
Half as lonesome as the sound
On the sleeping city sidewalk
Sunday morning coming down
The artist was still feeling lonely on the empty streets on a Sunday morning and wished they were high again to cope with the feeling.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Kris Kristofferson
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
reallyrarestuff
I have this on my original 1970 LP and still listen often after 42 years. A great cover, and very fine instrumentation on it
fenellablue
I have the original LP as well. Best version ever of this great song
Paul Kearns
My wife & I first fell in love to this LP. She passed away last year - so many happy memories. I even recorded my own version of this song - which I dedicate to her.
barrygioportmorien1
Very nice version.
fenellablue
Best version of this great song
John Honeybell
Isn’t this typical of a great night out.
Leon Childs jr
Written by Kris Kristofferson (happy birthday, by the way). Done by Ray Stevens and then, Johnny Cash.