Born in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn, Havens moved to Greenwich Village in 1961 in time to get in on the folk boom then taking place. Havens had a distinctive style as a folksinger, appearing in such clubs as the Cafe Wha? His guitar set to an open tuning, he would strum while barring chords with his thumb, using it essentially as percussion while singing rhythmically in a gruff voice for a mesmerizing effect. Havens was signed to Douglas Records in 1965 and recorded two albums that gained him a local following. In 1967, the Verve division of MGM Records formed a folk section (Verve Forecast) and signed Havens and other folk-based performers. The result was Havens's third album, Mixed Bag. It wasn't until 1968 and the Something Else Again album, however, that Havens began to hit the charts -- actually, Havens's fourth, third, and second albums charted that year, in that order. In 1969 came the double album Richard P. Havens 1983. Havens' career benefited enormously from his appearance at the Woodstock festival in 1969 and his subsequent featured role in the movie and album made from the concert in 1970. His first album after that exposure, Alarm Clock, made the Top 30 and produced a Top 20 single in "Here Comes the Sun." These recordings were Havens's commercial high-water mark, but by this time he had become an international touring success. By the end of the '70s, he had abandoned recording and turned entirely to live work.
Havens came back to records with a flurry of releases in 1987: a new album, Simple Things; an album of Bob Dylan and Beatles covers; and a compilation. In 1991, Havens signed his first major-label deal in 15 years when he moved to Sony Music and released Now.
On April 22, 2013, Havens died of a heart attack at home in Jersey City, New Jersey. He was 72.
Discography
* A Richie Havens Record (1965)
* Electric Havens (1966)
* Mixed Bag (February 1967)
* Something Else Again (1968)
* Richard P. Havens, 1983 (1969)
* Stonehenge (1970)
* Alarm Clock (1971)
* The Great Blind Degree (1971)
* Richie Havens On Stage (1972)
* Portfolio (1973)
* Mixed Bag II (January 1975)
* The End of the Beginning (1976)
* Mirage (1977)
* Connections (1980)
* Common Ground (1983)
* Simple Things (1987)
* Sings Beatles and Dylan (1987)
* Live at the Cellar Door (1990)
* Now (1991)
* Cuts to the Chase (1994)
* Time (1999)
* Wishing Well (April 2002)
* Grace of the Sun (2004)
Guest appearances
* Please Don't Touch by Steve Hackett (1978)
* Starlight Express Music and Songs from (1987)
* OVO by Peter Gabriel (2000) (Soundtrack to the Millennium Dome Show)
* "Freedom" on The Best of The Jammy's Volume One w/ The Mutaytor
* "The Long Road" (Duet with Cliff Eberhardt) on Cliff's 1990 album "The Long Road")
If I
Richie Havens Lyrics
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Of those who have gotten the glory
And those who went to hell
If I could show the pictures,
Of the faces I believed
They'd all be children smiling
With nothing up there sleeves,
I'd remember ever detail, I'd remember every flaw
And every time we failed to open every door
If I could change the ending, no one would ever lose
Id keep this road from bending, no one should have to choose
We walked this line together, then share what can share
Then we'd all do this forever, then that should get us there
In Richie Havens's song "If I," the singer lists what they would do if they could tell a story, show pictures, remember every detail and flaw, and change the ending. The song has a wistful quality, as if the singer is yearning for something that cannot be. The lyrics suggest that the singer wants to tell a story about those who have "gotten the glory," but also those who have "gone to hell." This suggests that the singer wants to tell a more nuanced story about life that includes both struggle and triumph.
The following lines suggest that the singer wants to show pictures of "the faces I believed" and that these faces would all be "children smiling with nothing up their sleeves." This may imply that the singer wants to show a more innocent side of life, one where children are happy and carefree. The final stanza of the song suggests that the singer wants to change the ending of this story so that "no one would ever lose" and "no one should have to choose." This suggests that the singer imagines a world where everyone can be happy and fulfilled, without experiencing any difficulty or hardship.
Line by Line Meaning
If I could tell a story, what secrets I would tell
If given the chance to recount a tale, imagine the amount of knowledge I could reveal about the ones who achieved success and the ones who faced failure and condemnation.
Of those who have gotten the glory
The individuals who achieved greatness in their lives and received recognition and fame.
And those who went to hell
The people who were condemned, denied success and faced failure in their lives.
If I could show the pictures,
If I had the power to present pictures or images
Of the faces I believed
The facial expressions of people that I believed
They'd all be children smiling
All of them would be innocent, childlike and happy in the pictures
With nothing up there sleeves,
Without conducting deception or performing any trickery
I'd remember ever detail, I'd remember every flaw
I would recall every intricate detail, and even every flaw that existed in the situation or the people.
And every time we failed to open every door
I would recollect every instance when we failed to succeed in opening every possibility or option available for us.
If I could change the ending, no one would ever lose
If I had the authority to alter the conclusion, no one would face defeat, agony, or sufferings.
Id keep this road from bending, no one should have to choose
I would maintain the path, preventing it from becoming complicated or taking unexpected turns, and no one would have to face making a difficult decision.
We walked this line together, then share what can share
We traversed this journey together, and we should share all of our experiences and knowledge with one another.
Then we'd all do this forever, then that should get us there
If we continue doing this always, and carry on sharing and supporting each other, then we will reach our destination, whatever it might be.
Lyrics © SCHUBERT MUSIC PUBLISHING INC.
Written by: RICHIE HAVENS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind