Kirk was born Ronald Kirk on 7th August 1935, in Columbus, Ohio, but felt compelled by a dream to transpose two letters in his first name to make Roland. After another dream in about 1970 he added Rahsaan to his name.
His playing was generally rooted in soul jazz or hard bop, but Kirk's encyclopedic knowledge of jazz history allowed him to draw convincingly on any element of the music's history, from ragtime to swing and free jazz. Kirk also regularly explored classical and pop music.
Kirk played and collected a vast number of musical instruments, mainly various saxophones, clarinets, and flutes. His main instruments were tenor saxophone, and two obscure saxophones: the manzello (similar to a soprano sax) and the stritch (a straight alto sax lacking the instrument's characteristic upturned bell). Kirk modified these instruments himself to accommodate his simultaneous playing technique. He typically appeared on stage with all three horns hanging around his neck, as well as a variety of other instruments, including flutes and whistles. Kirk also played harmonica, cor anglais, recorders, and was a competent trumpeter. He often used unusual instruments or combinations of instrument parts, using a saxophone mouthpiece on a trumpet or playing nose flute. He additionally used many extramusical sounds in his music, such as alarm clocks, whistles, sirens, and even primitive electronic sounds (before such things became commonplace).
In addition to the saxophones, Kirk was also an influential flautist, employing several novel techniques that he developed himself. One technique was to sing or hum into the flute at the same time as playing. (This technique was adopted later by many other players, including Jeremy Steig and Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull.) Another was to play the standard transverse flute at the same time as a nose flute.
Ain't No Sunshine
Rahsaan Roland Kirk Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
That you know you shouldn´t have
The more you know you shouldn´t have it
The more you want it
And then one day
You get it
And it´s so good to you
When she´s around me
I just feel so good
So good
But right now I just feel cold
So cold
Right down to my bones ´cause
Hee
Ain´t no sunshine when she´s gone
It´s not warm when she´s away
Ain´t no sunshine when she´s gone
And she always gone to long anytime she goes away, hay
? love this time where she's gone
? if she´s gone to stay
Ain´t no sunshine when she´s gone
And this house just ain´t no ?
Anytime she goes away (anytime she goes away)
Hmmm
Ooh, no, no, no, no
Ooh, no, no, no, no
Ooh, no, no, no, no
Ooh, no, no
All I need (all I need)
I ought to leave her alone
Ain´t no sunshine when she´s gone (ain´t no sunshine when she's gone)
Ain´t no sunshine when she´s gone (ain´t no sunshine when she's gone)
? ? darkness everyday (? ? darkness everyday)
Ain´t no sunshine when she's gone
And this house just ain´t no ?
Anytime she goes away (anytime she goes away)
Do, do, do, do, do, ooh (ain´t no sun)
Do, do, do, do, do (ain´t no sun)
(no, no, no, no, no, no, no) ooh
(no, no, no) ooh, ooh
Anytime she goes away
Ain´t no sunshine when she´s gone (ain´t no sunshine when she´s gone)
(It´s not warm when she goes away) It´s not warm when she away
(Ain´t no sunshine when she's gone)
And she´s always gone too long
Anytime she goes away (ain´t no sunshine when she gone)
Anytime she goes away
? she goes away
Anytime she goes away (ain´t no sunshine when she goes)
Anytime she goes away (? ? ? everyday)
Anytime she goes away
Anytime she goes away (ain´t no sunshine when she goes)
Anytime she goes away (ain´t no sunshine when she goes)
The lyrics of Rahsaan Roland Kirk's song Ain't No Sunshine depict the despair of a man who is deeply in love with a woman who is not reciprocating his feelings. The singer knows that he shouldn't want her, but the more he tries to resist, the more he falls for her. When he's with her, he feels good, but when she leaves, it's like the world loses all its warmth and light, and he's left alone in the darkness. The repetition of the phrase "ain't no sunshine when she's gone" emphasizes the depth of his longing for her and the hopelessness of his situation.
The introduction of the song features Kirk's signature technique of playing two or more wind instruments at the same time. The combination of saxophone and flute creates a haunting atmosphere that sets the mood for the sad lyrics. Throughout the song, Kirk's playing reflects the emotions of the lyrics, with slow and mournful lines during the verses and more upbeat and lively sections during the chorus.
Line by Line Meaning
You ever want something
Have you ever desired something?
That you know you shouldn´t have
You are aware that you cannot have it
The more you know you shouldn't have it
As your awareness increases, so does your desire
The more you want it
Your longing for it intensifies
And then one day
Unexpectedly one day
You get it
You finally have it
And it's so good to you
It feels great to possess it
But it's just like my girl
But my girlfriend is the same
When she's around me
I feel very comfortable when she's near
I just feel so good
I become happy and content
So good
Really good
But right now I just feel cold
But currently, I feel cold and indifferent
So cold
Very cold
Right down to my bones 'cause
Because I am deeply affected
Ain't no sunshine when she's gone
It's always gloomy when she's not around
It's not warm when she's away
It's not comforting when she's absent
And she always gone too long
And she always stays away for far too long
Anytime she goes away
Whenever she leaves
Love this time where she's gone
I don't like the time she spends away
If she's gone to stay
If she's planning on staying away
And this house just ain't no home
And my house becomes a miserable place to be
Every time she goes away
Whenever she's not here
All I need
What I require
I ought to leave her alone
Perhaps I should separate from her entirely
(It's not warm when she goes away)
(It's not comforting when she's absent)
And this house just ain't no home
And my house becomes a dreadful place to be
? love this time where she's gone
I don't like the time she spends away
? darkness everyday
? I experience darkness every day
Anytime she goes away
Whenever she's not here
? she goes away
? she leaves
Do, do, do, do, do, ooh
Instrumental solo
No, no, no, no
No
Anytime she goes away
Whenever she's not here
Do, do, do, do, do
Instrumental solo
No, no, no, no, no, no, no
No
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Bill Withers
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Gene Dent
Blew me away in 1972 and still does. The best cover of this song anywhere!
jimmy gray
Conga pattern and arrangements Superb
Saptech
I have to agree with the rest. This is one of the best cover for this song I've heard. RRK and his talking flute!
salt1ne
Rahsaan was amazing. He was an innovator. Nothing less.
BrassMonkey534
to everyone here, cheers to good and real music. we remember rahsaan
Ethan Hill
Impressed by your comment and your name.
Tony Arnold
Agree with Gene's comment below. Album is superb. Remember clearly a fried telling me to listen to it
Nadir Demirel
Awesome!
Glen Boyle
so just damm funky dig the flute and conga,s man.
Joseph Bertolino
BRIGHT MOMENTS EVER ONWARD N UPWARDS !!!! 😱😎🎷🎷🎷🎶🎺🎼🎹🎵🎸🎶🎻🎼🥁🎵🎤🎶💣🌋💥💨😉✌️🇺🇸😍