Tighten Up
Roosevelt Matthews Lyrics


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Hi everybody. I'm Archie Drell and the Drells from Houston, Texas. We don't
only sing but we dance just as good as we walk. In Houston we just started a
new dance called the Tighten Up. This is the music we tighten up to.

First tighten up on the drums. Come on now drummer. I want you to tighten
it up for me now. oh yeah
Tighten up on that bass now. Tighten it up. ha ha Yeah
Now let that guitar fall in. Oh yeah
Tighten up on that organ now.

Ya, do the tighten up. Yeah now.
I said if you can do it now,
It sure would be tough.

Now look here. Come on now. Make it mellow.
Let's tighten up now. Do the tighten up.
Everybody can do it now. So let's do it.
We're gonna tighten up. Let's do the tighten up.
You can do it now. So baby get to it.

Let's do your left now. Let's do your right.
You can do it. But don'tcha just do it light.
Come on and tighten up. Tighten it up now.

Come on now drum. Tighten it up.
Tighten up that bass. Oh yeah
Now look here. I want that guitar to fall in on that.
Tighten it up now. Oh yeah
Now tighten it up organ.
There everybody, tighten it up.

Now look here. We gonna make it mellow for ya now.




We gonna make it mellow now.
Tighten up. You can tighten up.

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Roosevelt Matthews's song Tighten Up provide a call and response structure in which the lead singer, Archie Drell, encourages the musicians to tighten up and, subsequently, the listeners to do the same. The song is about a new dance craze, the Tighten Up, that has emerged in Houston, Texas. The song begins with a request to the drummer to tighten up the beat, followed by the bass, guitar, and organ. The lyrics then encourage the listeners to join in on the dance and tighten up their movements. The song ends with a mellow section in which the lyrics continue to encourage the listeners to tighten up.


The song Tighten Up was released in 1968 and became a hit single. It was written by Archie Bell, who was a member of the music group Archie Bell & the Drells. The song's popularity led to the creation of a popular dance routine known as the Tighten Up dance. The dance routine was performed on popular music shows such as Soul Train, and its popularity spread throughout the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom.


Line by Line Meaning

First tighten up on the drums. Come on now drummer. I want you to tighten it up for me now. oh yeah
Begin by tightening up the drums, drummer. I need you to do it for me right now.


Tighten up on that bass now. Tighten it up. ha ha Yeah
Now tighten up the bass. Go ahead and do it. Yes!


Now let that guitar fall in. Oh yeah
Let the guitar come in now. Yes!


Tighten up on that organ now.
Now focus on the organ and tighten it up.


Ya, do the tighten up. Yeah now.
Come on and do the tighten up. Yes, right now.


I said if you can do it now, It sure would be tough.
It may be difficult, but if you can do the tighten up now, that would be impressive.


Now look here. Come on now. Make it mellow. Let's tighten up now. Do the tighten up. Everybody can do it now. So let's do it. We're gonna tighten up. Let's do the tighten up. You can do it now. So baby get to it.
Listen up. Let's make it smooth and then we'll tighten up. Everyone can do it, so let's go. We're going to tighten up. Let's do it - you can do it too, baby.


Let's do your left now. Let's do your right. You can do it. But don'tcha just do it light. Come on and tighten up. Tighten it up now.
Let's move your left and your right now. You can do it, but don't be too gentle. Come on and tighten up. Do it now!


Come on now drum. Tighten it up. Tighten up that bass. Oh yeah Now look here. I want that guitar to fall in on that. Tighten it up now. Oh yeah Now tighten it up organ. There everybody, tighten it up.
Drummer, come on and tighten it up. Then tighten up the bass. Look here, I want the guitar to come in and tighten up now. Then tighten up the organ. Everyone, let's tighten up!


Now look here. We gonna make it mellow for ya now. We gonna make it mellow now. Tighten up. You can tighten up.
Listen, we're going to make it smooth now. We're going to smooth it out. But don't forget, you can still tighten up.




Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: ARCHIE BELL, BILLY BUTTIER

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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