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".
He
Ry Cooder Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Let's pretend that we're together, all alone.
I'll tell the man to turn the jukebox way down low,
And you can tell your friend there with you he'll have to go.
Whisper to me, tell me do you love me true,
Or is he holding you the way I do?
Tho' love is blind, make up your mind, I've got to know,
You can't say the words I want to hear
While you're with another man,
If you want me, answer "yes" or "no,"
Darling, I will understand.
Put your sweet lips a little closer to the phone.
Let's pretend that we're together, all alone.
I'll tell the man to turn the jukebox way down low,
And you can tell your friend there with you he'll have to go.
Ry Cooder's "He'll Have to Go" is a song that reveals the complexity of love and the painful process of making difficult decisions. The song starts with a request to put the sweet lips closer to the phone and pretend to be together, all alone. The singer then tells the man to turn the jukebox way down low, indicating a desire for privacy. However, there is someone with the person being called, and the singer asks to tell the friend they will have to go.
The song communicates the dilemma of someone caught in a love triangle. The singer asks if the person loves them truly or whether the person being called is being held like the way they hold the significant other. The singer acknowledges that love is blind, but they still want to make up their mind, they need the assurance to hang or continue. The difficult decision is to either hang up, or the person being called must tell the friend that he has to go because the singer cannot take it anymore.
The lyrics evoke a sense of yearning, sadness, and hopefulness. It's a song that's easy for someone to relate to, particularly when faced with a painful decision. Love is never simple, and the lyrics present the reality of unavoidable difficult choices.
Line by Line Meaning
Put your sweet lips a little closer to the phone.
Come closer to the phone and talk to me as if we're right beside each other.
Let's pretend that we're together, all alone.
Imagine that we're in each other's company without any interference from anyone or anything else.
I'll tell the man to turn the jukebox way down low,
I'll ask the person in charge to reduce the volume of the background music so we can talk better.
And you can tell your friend there with you he'll have to go.
Inform the person who's accompanying you that he has to leave because we want to have private conversations.
Whisper to me, tell me do you love me true,
Quietly speak about your feelings towards me and tell me if it's honest love or not.
Or is he holding you the way I do?
Is he holding you the way I do when we're together or better than me?
Tho' love is blind, make up your mind, I've got to know,
Even if love is irrational, please decide whether you love me or not because I need to know.
Should I hang up, or will you tell him he'll have to go?
Should I end this call or are you going to ask your companion to leave so we can continue talking?
You can't say the words I want to hear
You can't say 'I love you' like how I want to hear it.
While you're with another man,
If you're with another man, it's impossible for me to hear what I want to hear.
If you want me, answer 'yes' or 'no,'
If you want to be with me, answer directly with a 'yes' or 'no.'
Darling, I will understand.
I will comprehend what you're going through and respect whatever decision you make.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Joe Allison, Audrey Allison
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Peter McFadden
Gorgeous version of a lovely song. Thanks.
Jaynee Harpe
I've loved Ry Cooder's version for years! Thanks!
Seriannie H
Oldies never last...Bravo and Kudos for you Ry....Awesome and brilliant to play this song on ur own
michael burke
The pleading in his voice is exquisite and Flaco Jiminez adds to the experience. 10/10
gloria tatsapaugh
I LOVE this music, I am using it in my line dance class and teaching a cha cha line dance to it. So much fun!
Paul Pellicci
love this rendition...first heard it on Saturday Night Live....I heard the name from Album covers but never actually knew anything.....
John Benn
WOW
This guy is so,so brilliant!!!!!!!
From a 71yo Aussie fan.
Peter Rech
totally agree with you, listened to ry cooder since 70's, im 64 yr old aussie.
B Cascadas Crane
Ry is a great one for us elders and would love the world to listen to him today!
diane krstulovich
Big in Hollywood most recently
Awesome, as USUAL!