The group featured drummer Bill Bateman (The Blasters), Paul "The Kid" Size on lead guitar, pianist Gene Taylor and blues harmonica player and singer Lester Butler.
The Red Devils were known for backing Mick Jagger on the Rubin produced sessions for the album Wandering Spirit, though those tracks were not issued at the time (they have since cropped up on various bootlegs, and one track was officially released on a Mick Jagger compilation on Rhino Records in 2007). The band also backed actor and sometime musician Bruce Willis, when the action star performed at his Planet Hollywood clubs. The Devils also backed Johnny Cash on music that was not released until the country singer's death, on the boxed set Unearthed.
After the break up of The Red Devils, Butler also fronted the band 13 featuring Lester Butler, releasing one self-titled record on Hightone Records in 1997.
He achieved his greatest fame in Europe and especially The Netherlands, where the Lester Butler Tribute Band still performs.
Butler died of a drug overdose on 10 May 1998, at the age of 38; two people went to prison for putting cocaine in his body when he was out.
Dinah
Red Devils Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Gave me Dinah;
I'm the proudest one
Beneath the Dixie sun.
News is spreadin'
'Bout our weddin';
I hear church bells ringin',
Dinah,
Is there anyone finer
In the state of Carolina?
If there is and you know her,
Show her!
Dinah,
With her Dixie eyes blazin',
How I love to sit and gaze in
To the eyes of Dinah Lee!
Yet, every night,
My, how I shake with fright,
Because my Dinah might,
Change her mind about me!
But if Dinah,
Ever wandered to China,
I would hop an ocean liner,
Just to be with Dinah Lee!
Dinah,
Is there anyone finer
In the state of Carolina?
If there is and you know her,
Show her!
Dinah,
With her Dixie eyes blazin',
How I love to sit and gaze in
To the eyes of Dinah Lee!
Yet, every night,
My, how I shake with fright,
Because my Dinah might,
Change her mind about me!
But if Dinah,
Ever wandered to China,
I would hop an ocean!,
Just to be with Dinah Lee!
The song "Dinah" by Red Devils is a love song that speaks about the singer's love interest, Dinah. The song begins by indicating that Carolina gave the singer Dinah, therefore making him the proudest man under the Dixie sun. As news spreads about their wedding, the singer reflects on how his heart sings about Dinah because he sees no one finer in the state of Carolina than her.
The chorus of the song celebrates Dinah and her beauty. The singer describes her Dixie eyes as blazin', and how he loves to sit and gaze into them. However, despite his great love for Dinah, the singer is filled with fear every night that she might change her mind about him. The song ends with the singer proclaiming his willingness to go to great lengths to be with Dinah, including traveling to China if she ever wandered there.
Overall, the song's lyrics are straightforward in their expression of love for Dinah, and the singer's commitment to her. The chorus of the song notably repeats twice, further emphasizing Dinah's significance to the singer.
Line by Line Meaning
Carolina
Referring to the state of Carolina where the singer has met Dinah
Gave me Dinah;
The singer met Dinah in Carolina and fell in love with her
I'm the proudest one
The singer is proud to have Dinah as his partner
Beneath the Dixie sun.
The singer is happy and content with Dinah in Carolina
News is spreadin'
Word has gotten around
'Bout our weddin';
News about their upcoming marriage is spreading
I hear church bells ringin',
The singer is imagining the sound of church bells ringing on their wedding day
Here's the song my heart keeps singin':
The song that the singer's heart constantly sings is about Dinah
Dinah,
Referring to Dinah, the singer's love interest
Is there anyone finer
The singer considers Dinah to be the finest person in Carolina
In the state of Carolina?
The singer is asking if there is anyone finer than Dinah in Carolina
If there is and you know her,
If there is someone finer than Dinah in Carolina and you know her
Show her!
The singer is challenging the listener to show him this person
With her Dixie eyes blazin',
The singer is describing Dinah's eyes as being full of life
How I love to sit and gaze in
The singer loves staring into Dinah's eyes
To the eyes of Dinah Lee!
The singer is in love with Dinah and her eyes specifically
Yet, every night,
Despite his love for Dinah, the singer is still plagued by fear
My, how I shake with fright,
The singer is frightened that Dinah might leave him
Because my Dinah might,
The cause of the singer's fear is Dinah potentially leaving him
Change her mind about me!
The singer is worried that Dinah might fall out of love with him
But if Dinah,
Despite his fear, the singer's love for Dinah is strong
Ever wandered to China,
The singer is hyperbolically saying that even if Dinah were to go to the other side of the world, he would follow her
I would hop an ocean liner,
The singer would go to great lengths to be with Dinah
Just to be with Dinah Lee!
The singer loves Dinah and wants to be with her no matter what
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Harry Akst, Samuel M. Lewis, Joseph Young
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind