Born in Los Angeles, California on 15th March 1947, Cooder first attracted attention in the 1960s, playing with Captain Beefheart & his Magic Band, after having worked with Taj Mahal in The Rising Sons.
He was a session guitarist on various recording sessions with the Rolling Stones in 1968 and 1969; Cooder's contributions most notably appear on the Stones' Beggars Banquet where he shares a prominent credit with pianist, Nicky Hopkins on the back cover. He continued to appear on the succeeding albums, Let It Bleed, and Sticky Fingers, on which he contributed the haunting slide guitar solo to "Sister Morphine". Cooder is reputed to have taught Keith Richards to play in open-G tuning, now a Richards hallmark, as well as to have written the open-G signature riff of "Honky Tonk Women". He was briefly considered to fill the departed Brian Jones' place in the Rolling Stones, but reportedly Cooder and Keith Richards did not get along very well. For some time after the sessions, Cooder accused Keith Richards of "ripping him off" musically, but now refuses to talk about his experiences with the Stones. Cooder played slide guitar for the 1970 film Performance, which contained Mick Jagger's first solo single, "Memo from Turner" on which Cooder played guitar.
Throughout the 1970s Cooder released a series of Warner Brothers albums that showcased his guitar work, to some degree. In this respect, Cooder's guitar work on these records is not unlike the guitar playing of Robbie Robertson on the Band's albums: Both virtuosos emphasized song over solo. Cooder's 1970s albums spotlight, more than anything, a wide-ranging taste in music. Cooder has been seen as almost a musicologist, exploring bygone musical genres with personalized and sensitive, updated reworkings of revered originals. Cooder's 1970s albums (with the exception of Jazz) cannot be neatly pigeonholed by genre, But - to generalise broadly - it might be fair to call Cooder's first album blues; Into the Purple Valley, Boomer's Story, and Paradise and Lunch, folk + blues; Chicken Skin Music and Showtime, a unique melange of Tex-Mex and Hawaiian; Jazz, 1920s jazz; Bop till You Drop 1950s R&B and blues; and Borderline an eclectic mix of Tex-Mex with blues, R&B, and country and Get Rhythm, with more rock-based excursions.
Cooder has worked as a studio musician and has also scored many film soundtracks, of which perhaps the best known is that for the 1984 Wim Wenders film Paris, Texas. Ry Cooder based this soundtrack, and the haunting title song "Paris, Texas" on Blind Willie Johnson's "Dark Was the Night (Cold Was the Ground)", which he described as "The most soulful, transcendent piece in all music from the US." His other film work includes Walter Hill's The Long Riders (1980) and Southern Comfort (1981).
In recent years, Cooder has played a role in the increased appreciation of traditional Cuban music, due to his collaboration as producer in the Buena Vista Social Club (1997) recording, which was a worldwide hit. Wim Wenders directed a documentary film of the musicians involved, Buena Vista Social Club (1999) which was nominated for an Academy Award in 2000. Cooder worked with Tuvan throat singers for the score to the 1993 film Geronimo: An American Legend.
Cooder's solo work has been an eclectic mix, taking in dust bowl folk, blues, Tex-Mex, soul, gospel, rock, and almost everything else. He has collaborated with many important musicians, including the Rolling Stones, Little Feat, the Chieftains, John Lee Hooker, Gabby Pahinui, and Ali Farka Toure. He formed the Little Village supergroup with Nick Lowe, John Hiatt, and Jim Keltner.
Cooder's 1979 album Bop till You Drop was the first popular music album to be recorded digitally. It yielded his biggest hit, a disco/R&B cover of Elvis Presley's 1960s recording "Little Sister".
Don
Ry Cooder Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And if you wanna have a little fun, oh baby, why don't you try me?
If you tote more that you can bear
If your troubles been more than your share
And if things are not going just right
Why don't you try a man like me tonight?
Why don't you try me tonight?
Why don't you try me tonight ?
Why don't you try me ?
Last night while I was trying to sleep
I heard a racket from the room next door, hum
And that was you and your man havin? a fight
Like you've done so many nights before
Woman, I?ll turn you every which way but loose
Is what I heard him shout, look out!
So I jumped out of the bed and I opened the door
Just as you came runnin? out
And I hollered why don't you try me tonight?
Why don't you try me?
Why don't you try me tonight?
Why don't you try me?
I ain't saying I'm all that you need
And I won't tell you, honey, you will be free
But all night, well, I will keep trying
And when I say I want ya, girl, you know I'm not lyin?
You see a good woman out on the streets these days, friends
A bad old man can't be hard to find, no, no
Kind of man who'd steal your heart
And call true love a crime
that's why I keep asking ya, baby
Why don't you try me tonight?
Do yourself a favor why don't you try me?
Regular man ain't treatin? you right
Why don't you try a man like me tonight?
Why don't you try me tonight?
Why don't you try me?
Why don't you try me tonight?
Why don't you try me?
The lyrics of Ry Cooder's song "Why Don't You Try Me" speaks to a woman who seems to be in a tumultuous relationship with her current partner. The song opens with an invitation from Cooder to the woman to try him if her man has her on the run and if she wants to have a little fun. He suggests that if she is carrying a load too heavy for her to bear or if she has had more than her share of troubles and things are not working out, she could try a man like him. The choruses of the song reiterate the invitation to the woman to try him tonight.
The second verse of the song tells a story that lends context to the singer's invitation to the woman. Cooder recounts how he was trying to sleep and heard a commotion next door, indicating that the woman was having a fight with her man. He goes on to suggest that he can offer her something different, that he can turn her every which way but loose and that he is different from the man she's with - he is not lying when he says he wants her. He further suggests that good women are hard to find, but bad men are not, and so she should try him tonight.
Overall, the lyrics of the song seem to be speaking to a woman who is unhappy in her current relationship and is perhaps seeking something different. Cooder offers himself as an alternative and invites her to take a chance on him.
Line by Line Meaning
If your man has got you on the run, why don't you try me ?
If your current partner is not treating you well, why not give me a chance?
And if you wanna have a little fun, oh baby, why don't you try me?
If you're looking for something exciting and different, why not try me?
If you tote more than you can bear
If you are carrying a heavier burden than you can handle
If your troubles been more than your share
If you've been dealing with more problems than you deserve
And if things are not going just right
If your life isn't going the way you want it to
Why don't you try a man like me tonight?
Why not give a man like me a chance tonight?
Last night while I was trying to sleep
The singer is recalling a recent experience with the person he is singing to
I heard a racket from the room next door, hum
He heard loud noises from the next room
And that was you and your man havin? a fight
The noise was caused by the person he is singing to and her current partner having an argument
Like you've done so many nights before
This is a common occurrence for them
Woman, I?ll turn you every which way but loose
The current partner is making threats towards the person he is singing to
Is what I heard him shout, look out!
These threats were shouted loudly
So I jumped out of the bed and I opened the door
The singer took action to intervene
Just as you came runnin? out
The person he is singing to left the room at the same time
And I hollered why don't you try me tonight?
The singer suggests that the person he is singing to should try being with him instead of her current partner
I ain't saying I'm all that you need
The artist is acknowledging that he may not be a perfect match for her
And I won't tell you, honey, you will be free
He is not making false promises to her
But all night, well, I will keep trying
He is willing to put in effort to make things work
And when I say I want ya, girl, you know I'm not lyin?
He is expressing his genuine feelings
You see a good woman out on the streets these days, friends
He acknowledges that it can be difficult to find a good partner
A bad old man can't be hard to find, no, no
However, there are plenty of poorly behaved men
Kind of man who'd steal your heart
He is suggesting that some men may seem charming but have bad intentions
And call true love a crime
These types of men may also not value true love
that's why I keep asking ya, baby
This is why the artist keeps suggesting that she try being with him
Why don't you try me tonight?
He is still encouraging her to take a chance on him
Do yourself a favor why don't you try me?
He believes that she will benefit from being with him
Regular man ain't treatin? you right
He is critiquing her current partner for not treating her well
Why don't you try a man like me tonight?
He is once again suggesting that she should try being with him instead
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
bonedaddy144
Wow! It's great to see a very young John Hiatt trading guitar licks and harmonies with Ry! Thanks for the great uploads!
TheReubstar
I love this song - does anyone have the tabs for this version? Would love to play it. Is the capo on the 2nd fret? Is he using any specialist tuning?
Clare Beatrice
thank you for all the Ry uploads !
mickey Mantell
so good it hurts...
Joe Gancher
Wish the tape wasn't so mangled but it does add an interesting sound patina. Be a great project for someone into restorations.
Craig Dees
I love this clip. And that's a very young and very slim John Hiatt to Ry's right.
John Karwacki
thx for posting... love love love...
AmazinTrace1
Love it
David Robinson
Makes it look so easy