Solomon Burke (born March 21, 1940 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA, died… Read Full Bio ↴Solomon Burke (born March 21, 1940 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA, died October 10, 2010 at Schiphol Airport, The Netherlands) was a soul music pioneer and member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Despite releasing numerous rnb chart hits in the 1960s, he never had a Top 20 hit on the pop charts. Burke's influence, however, has outstripped his mainstream commercial success. He is considered a legend of American music.

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.

Crawdad Hole
Solomon Burke Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

You get a line and I'll get a pole , honey
You get a line and I'll get a pole babe
You get a line and I'll get a pole we'll go down
To the crawdad hole honey, sugar baby mine

Sit on the bank til my feet get cold honey
Sit on the bank til my feet get cold babe
Sit on the bank til my feet get cold we'll go down

To the crawdad hole honey, sugar baby mine

Crawdad hole way down to the crawdad hole lets go (clap)
Crawdad hole way down to the crawdad hole lets go (clap)
Crawdad hole way down to the crawdad hole lets go (clap)
Crawdad hole way down to the crawdad hole lets go (clap)
Crawdad hole way down to the crawdad hole lets go (clap)

What will you do when the lake goes dry honey
What will you do when the lake goes dry babe
What will you do when the lake goes dry sit right there
Watch the crawdads die hone, sugar baby mine

You get a line and I'll get a pole , honey

Overall Meaning

Solomon Burke's "Crawdad Hole" is a fun and catchy tune about going fishing for crawdads. The song begins with the lines "You get a line and I'll get a pole, honey" repeated three times, with the fourth line adding "we'll go down to the crawdad hole honey, sugar baby mine." These lines set the scene of a fishing trip, where two lovers go down to the river with their fishing gear in tow. The chorus repeats the phrase "Crawdad hole way down to the crawdad hole lets go," adding claps after each line. This adds to the playful nature of the song and invites the listener to join in.

The second verse describes the couple sitting on the bank of the river, waiting for a bite. The line "Sit on the bank til my feet get cold honey" creates a cozy image of the couple spending the day fishing together. The verse ends with a repetition of the chorus. The third verse takes a darker turn, with the lines "What will you do when the lake goes dry honey / What will you do when the lake goes dry babe / What will you do when the lake goes dry sit right there / Watch the crawdads die hone, sugar baby mine." This verse brings up the idea of environmental concerns and the impact humans have on their surroundings.

"Crawdad Hole" was originally written by Bo Carter, a blues musician who performed in the 1930s and 1940s. The song was later covered by a number of artists, including Harry Belafonte and Doc Watson. Solomon Burke's version was released in 1963 and became a hit, reaching number 33 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Line by Line Meaning

You get a line and I'll get a pole , honey
Let's go fishing together and each catch our own meal, my dear

You get a line and I'll get a pole babe You get a line and I'll get a pole we'll go down To the crawdad hole honey, sugar baby mine
Let's head down to the crawdad hole together and catch some crawdads with our own fishing gear, my sweet love

Sit on the bank til my feet get cold honey Sit on the bank til my feet get cold babe Sit on the bank til my feet get cold we'll go down To the crawdad hole honey, sugar baby mine
Let's take our time and enjoy the outdoors, sitting by the riverbank until our feet get cold before heading down to the crawdad hole, my sweetheart

Crawdad hole way down to the crawdad hole lets go (clap) Crawdad hole way down to the crawdad hole lets go (clap) Crawdad hole way down to the crawdad hole lets go (clap) Crawdad hole way down to the crawdad hole lets go (clap) Crawdad hole way down to the crawdad hole lets go (clap)
Let's show our excitement and eagerness to go down to the crawdad hole by clapping and chanting together, my love

What will you do when the lake goes dry honey What will you do when the lake goes dry babe What will you do when the lake goes dry sit right there Watch the crawdads die hone, sugar baby mine
Let's not worry about the future and just enjoy our time catching crawdads now. Even if the lake does dry up, we'll stay and witness the natural cycle of life and death, my dear

Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: LOU WILLIE TURNER

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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