He began his adult life as a young preacher in Philadelphia, where he hosted a gospel radio show. In the 1960s, he signed with Atlantic Records and began moving towards more secular music. His first hit was Just Out Of Reach Of My Open Arms, a cover of a country song. Though well-received by both peers and critics, and attaining a few moderate pop and several major R&B hits, Burke never could quite break through into the mainstream as did his contemporaries like Sam Cooke, Otis Redding and Aretha Franklin.
Nevertheless, his emotive delivery, polished production, as well as the touches of country and pop sensibility in his music won him admirers and imitators. In 1964 he wrote and recorded Everybody Needs Somebody To Love his most prominent bid for an enduring soul standard. Covered by the Rolling Stones the same year, other well-known versions include one by Wilson Pickett and another a decade and a half later in the 1980 feature film by The Blues Brothers. Burke's biggest hit was a 1969 cover of Creedence Clearwater Revival's Proud Mary.
His career was to some degree revived in 2002, with the release of the album Don't Give Up On Me, produced by Joe Henry, where he sang songs written specifically for the album by a roster of top-rank artists, including Bob Dylan, Brian Wilson, Van Morrison, Elvis Costello, Tom Waits and Joe Henry himself.
He is featured in the 2004 movie Lightning in a Bottle singing Turn on Your Love Light and Down in the Valley.
As of October 2002 Burke was the father of 14 daughters and 7 sons with 64 grandchildren and 8 great grandchildren. Several of his children and grandchildren have had successful careers in various facets of the music industry, though none as much so as their patriarch.
Burke died, arriving at Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam where he was supposed to perform with Dutch band De Dijk with whom he recorded an album, entitled Hold on Tight.
Rock icon Mick Jagger performed a tribute to Burke at the 2011 Grammy Awards, laying down Burke's classic hit "Everybody Needs Somebody To Love".
A cover of Everybody Needs Somebody To Love received huge exposure as the music for Amazon's 2019 Christmas commercial.
Atta Way To Go
Solomon Burke Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Atta way to go, we can't even talk or cry
Or even wonder why that a way to go
Didn't you believe me when I loved you
I guess you thought we were playing games
All this time I tried to think I've known you
I guess I really only knew your name
Atta way to go, you finally broke it off
Atta way to go, we can't even talk or cry
Or even wonder why that a way to go
I thought you knew I lived my life just for you
There was just no price to big to pay
And even though I know I still live for you
The feeling's that you show won't let me stay
Atta way to go, you finally broke it off
Atta way to go, we can't even talk or cry
Or even wonder why that a way to go
The lyrics of Solomon Burke's "Atta Way To Go" are about a relationship that has come to an end. The singer is addressing a former lover, congratulating them sarcastically for finally breaking things off. The singer is clearly hurt by this turn of events and is unable to understand why their former partner decided to leave.
The lyrics suggest that the singer was deeply invested in the relationship, but the other person was not. They accuse their former lover of not believing the singer's love and of thinking that the relationship was just a game. The singer implies that they thought they knew their partner well, but now they realize that they only knew their name.
The chorus repeats the sarcastic congratulations of "atta way to go," and notes that they can't even communicate or cry about the situation. The hurt feelings of the singer are palpable as they express their confusion and pain.
Overall, "Atta Way To Go" is a poignant commentary on the end of a relationship, with the singer expressing their hurt and confusion in a way that is both sarcastic and heartfelt.
Line by Line Meaning
Atta way to go, you finally broke it off
Congratulations on ending the relationship
Atta way to go, we can't even talk or cry
Well done, now we're not able to communicate or express our emotions
Or even wonder why that a way to go
And we don't even get the chance to understand why you did it, impressive
Didn't you believe me when I loved you
Were my feelings not enough to earn your trust?
I guess you thought we were playing games
Apparently you assumed this relationship was some kind of a game
All this time I tried to think I've known you
I believed I knew you all along
I guess I really only knew your name
Yet, in the end, all I knew was your name
I thought you knew I lived my life just for you
I assumed you knew that my life revolved around you
There was just no price to big to pay
I was willing to pay any cost to make you happy
And even though I know I still live for you
Nevertheless, my life still centers around you
The feeling's that you show won't let me stay
But I can't stay because of the way you treat me
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: DONALD R. WILLIAMS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind