Roy Ayers was born in Los Angeles. Thanks to his trombone playing father and piano teaching mother, he became immersed in music from day one and the story goes that he was given his first set of vibe mallets by his hero Lionel Hampton at the age of 5. Constantly performing and recording since the 1960s, he is one of the most famous jazz vibraphonists. He has produced some of the most loved modern soul-jazz records of all time such as, "Everybody Loves The Sunshine", most influential afro-jazz with musician Fela Anikulapo-Kuti (Africa - Centre Of The World) and the most seminal jazz-funk, such as "Running Away". And that's just the surface. 2004 saw the release of "Virgin Ubiquity: Unreleased Recordings 1976-1981" which were 'lost' sessions tapes that he had discarded. Gilles Peterson described this as the equivalent of finding a lost Beatles album. No doubt this helped him win the Gilles Peterson 2004 Worldwide Lifetime Achievement Award. Roy Ayers is ageless and evergreen and as per the title of another one of hits, remember "We All Live In Brooklyn Baby".
Timeline
Ayers started recording as a bebop sideman in 1962 and rose to prominence when he dropped out of City College and joined jazz flutist Herbie Mann in 1966.
In the early 70's, Roy Ayers started his own band called Roy Ayers Ubiquity, a name he chose because ubiquity means a state of being everywhere at the same time.
Ayers was responsible for the highly regarded soundtrack to Jack Hill's 1973 blaxploitation film Coffy, which starred Pam Grier. He later moved from a jazz-funk sound to R&B, as seen on Mystic Voyage, which featured the songs "Evolution" and the underground disco hit "Brother Green (The Disco King)", as well as the title track from his 1976 album Everybody Loves the Sunshine.
In 1977, Ayers produced an album by the group RAMP, Come into Knowledge, commonly and mistakenly thought to stand for "Roy Ayers Music Project". That fall, he had his biggest hit with "Running Away".
In late 1979, Ayers scored his only top ten single on Billboard's Hot Disco/Dance chart with "Don't Stop The Feeling," which was also the leadoff single from his 1980 album "No Stranger to Love", whose title track was sampled in Jill Scott's 2001 song "Watching Me" from her debut album Who Is Jill Scott?
In the late 70's, Ayers toured in Nigeria for six weeks with Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti, one of the Africa's most recognizable musicians. In 1980, Phonodisk released Music of Many Colors in Nigeria, featuring one side lead by Ayers' group and the other lead by Africa '70.
In 1981, Ayers produced an album with the singer Sylvia Striplin, Give Me Your Love (Uno Melodic Records, 1981). He has also worked in collaborations with soul songstress Erykah Badu.
Ayers performed a solo on John "Jellybean" Benitez's production of Whitney Houston's "Love Will Save The Day" from her second multi-platinum studio album Whitney. The single was released in July 1988 by Arista Records.
Ayers has played his live act for millions of people across the globe, including Japan, Australia, England and other parts of Europe.
Ayers is known for helping to popularize feel good music in the 70's, stating that "I like that happy feeling all of the time, so that ingredient is still there. I try to generate that because it's the natural way I am". The types of music that he used to do this consisted of funk, salsa, jazz, rock, soul and rap.
1990s to present
In 1992, Ayers released two albums, Drive and Wake Up, for the hip-hop label Ichiban Records.
In 1992, Ayers collaborated with Rick James for an album and is quoted to have been a very close friend of his.
In 1993, Ayers appeared on the record Guru's Jazzmatazz Vol.1 featuring on the vibraphone in the song "Take a Look (At Yourself)".
In 1994, Ayers appeared on the Red Hot Organization's compilation album Stolen Moments: Red Hot + Cool. The album, meant to raise awareness and funds in support of the AIDS epidemic in relation to the African-American community, was heralded as "Album of the Year" by Time Magazine.
During the 2000s and 2010s, Ayers ventured into house music, collaborating with such stalwarts of the genre as Masters at Work and Kerri Chandler.
Ayers started two record labels, Uno Melodic and Gold Mink Records. The first released several LPs, including Sylvia Striplin's, while the second folded after a few singles.
In 2004, Ayers put out a collection of unreleased recordings called Virgin Ubiquity: Unreleased recordings 1976–1981 which allowed fans to hear cuts that didn't make it onto the classic Polydor albums from his more popular years.
Roy Ayers hosts the fictitious radio station "Fusion FM" in Grand Theft Auto IV (2008).
In 2015, he appeared on Tyler, The Creator's new album Cherry Bomb on the track "Find Your Wings".
A documentary the Roy Ayers Project featuring Ayers and a number hip hop producers who have sampled his music and other people who have been influenced by him and his music has been in development for a number of years.
Pharrell Williams cites Roy Ayers as one of his key musical heroes.
Ayers is a recipient of the Congress of Racial Equality Lifetime Achievement Award.
http://www.royayers.com
http://www.bassics.de/ayers.html
http://www.discomuseum.com/RoyAyers.html
Don't
Roy Ayers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
What to do, how to move him
I've been changed, yes really changed
In these past few days, when I've seen myself
I seem like someone else
I don't know how to take this
I don't see why he moves me
He's a man, he's just a man
In very many ways
He's just one more
Should I bring him down
Should I scream and shout
Should I speak of love
Let my feelings out
I never thought I'd come to this
What's it all about
Don't you think it's rather funny
I should be in this position
I'm the one who's always been
So calm, so cool, no lover's fool
Running every show
He scares me so
I never thought I'd come to this
What's it all about
Yet, if he said he loved me
I'd be lost, I'd be frightened
I couldn't cope, just couldn't cope
I'd turn my head, I'd back away
I wouldn't want to know
He scares me so
I want him so
I love him so
The lyrics of Roy Ayers Ubiquity's song "Don" depict a woman's struggle to come to terms with her feelings for a man who scares her. The woman in the song confesses that she doesn't know how to love this man or how to move him. She has been changed in these past few days and in seeing herself, she feels like someone else. The woman has had many men before him but he is just one more. She questions whether she should bring him down, scream, shout or speak of love and let her feelings out. She never thought she'd come to this and wonders what it is all about.
The woman is surprised to find herself in this position as she has always been calm and cool, never a lover's fool, always running every show. This man, however, scares her. She wouldn't know how to cope if he said he loved her. She would be lost and frightened and wouldn't want to know. Despite her fear, she still loves him.
The song speaks to the inherent struggles of love and relationships. It touches on the overwhelming feeling of vulnerability and the innate fear that comes with opening up to someone else. The woman's love for the man is a complex mix of desire, fear, and uncertainty, which is an experience that is common to many people in relationships.
Line by Line Meaning
I don't know how to love him
I don't know how to show my love to him
What to do, how to move him
I'm unsure of how to make him feel my feelings for him
I've been changed, yes really changed
In these past few days, I've undergone a transformation
In these past few days, when I've seen myself
Recently, I've been introspecting and seeing a new side of me
I seem like someone else
I feel like a different person than I used to be
I don't know how to take this
I'm having trouble understanding my own emotions
I don't see why he moves me
I don't know why I'm attracted to him
He's a man, he's just a man
He's human, he's no different than other men I've been with
And I've had so many men before
I've had numerous romantic partners in the past
In very many ways
Each one of them has been unique in their own way
He's just one more
He's just another man that I'm romantically involved with
Should I bring him down
Maybe I should try to ruin his self-esteem
Should I scream and shout
Or perhaps I should express my anger in a loud and aggressive way
Should I speak of love
Alternatively, I could try expressing my feelings of love towards him
Let my feelings out
And let my emotions take over
I never thought I'd come to this
I never expected to find myself in this situation
What's it all about
I'm unsure of the purpose of all of this confusion
Don't you think it's rather funny
Do you find it amusing in any way that I'm going through this?
I should be in this position
This isn't where I expected myself to be
I'm the one who's always been
I'm usually the composed and self-assured person in my relationships
So calm, so cool, no lover's fool
I'm usually able to control my emotions and make rational choices regarding love
Running every show
I'm usually the one in charge in my relationships
He scares me so
However, this man makes me feel vulnerable and intimidated
Yet, if he said he loved me
Despite this, if he were to confess his love towards me
I'd be lost, I'd be frightened
I would feel confused and scared
I couldn't cope, just couldn't cope
I don't think I could handle the intensity of those feelings
I'd turn my head, I'd back away
I would try to avoid those emotions altogether
I wouldn't want to know
I wouldn't want to acknowledge those emotions and their potential impact on me
He scares me so
I'm just too afraid of what could happen if I let myself fall for him
I want him so
Despite all of this, I can't help but have a strong desire for him
I love him so
I have fallen deeply in love with him
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER, TIM RICE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@ronnieb1958
1979-80. It was a very good year. This was the joint that got the folks off the wall!. I'm 63 years old now and it will always be a banger!
@alanjaffe2724
Yes. '79-'83ish was the best time in music history. The variety of different kinds of great songs was at its peak.
@dannyboyd9462
No Doubt
@anthonydaniel3554
Classic, remember 😊 graduation and going to the Army, I'm 62 and it still sounds just as good.
@fieldahmaposa5935
The best disco track of the late 70s. Danced to this like crazy. Got the nickname Dont Stop. Still struggling to explain how i landed this nickname to my children. They cant believe i was a great dancer during my time
@4cchansemicircle944
Roy Ayers came to Nigeria in 1979 for a music tour. I still remember it like yesterday.
@marym5835
My mom use to wear this song out! Sleep in heavenly peace mommy. <3
@angelafisher299
My Pops did too!! He loved Roy Ayers. R. I. P. Dad.
@johnmilbourn8876
Nice tune
@abdulmuhammad8900
@Angela fisher thats whats up