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.
I'll Be Doggone
Solomon Burke Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And I'll Be Doggone if I would bring you my pay
But if I ever caught you running around,
blowing my money all over this town
Then I wouldn't be doggone
Hey, Hey! I'd be long gone.
Then I wouldn't be doggone (Baby!)
I'd be long gone. mm mm
I'll be Doggone if you ain't a pretty thing
And I'll be Doggone if you ain't warm as a breath of spring
And if we live to be a hundred year old,
if you ever let that spring turn cold
Then I wouldn't be doggone
Hey, Hey, Hey! I'd be long gone.
Oh, I wouldn't be doggone (Baby)
I'd be long gone. mm mm
Now, did you hear me?
Well, now, what I say oh, believe me.
Well, ev'ry woman should try to be whatever her man wants her to be.
And I don't want much, all I want from you is for you to be true to me.
I'll be Doggone if love ain't a man's best friend
Oh, baby, And I'll Be Doggone if you ain't the loving end
Though I know you make me feel like nobody could,
if I ever found out that you're no good
Then I wouldn't be doggone
Well, I wouldn't be doggone (Baby!)
I'd be long gone.
I wouldn't be doggone
(gonna catch me a train)
Naw, baby, I wouldn't be doggone
I wouldn't be doggone
(gonna catch me a plane)
The song "I'll Be Doggone" by Solomon Burke is a track that encapsulates the frustration and anger that the singer feels towards his partner for squandering his hard-earned money. The opening lines of the song express that the singer is unwilling to work all day or hand over his paycheck to his partner for her to waste on frivolous things. He warns her that if he ever caught her spending his money around town while he was working hard, he would not just be simply annoyed with her ("wouldn't be doggone"), he would leave her ("I'd be long gone").
In the second verse, the singer changes his tune and speaks more lovingly of his partner. He compliments her beauty and expresses his hope that they will love each other forever. However, he adds that if she were to be unfaithful ("if you ever let that spring turn cold"), he would not hesitate to end the relationship. He reiterates this idea in the final verse, saying that despite the fact that she makes him feel loved and appreciated, if he found out that she was not loyal, he would leave her.
Overall, the song uses the metaphor of a dog to depict the idea of being trapped and controlled by someone else's actions. The metaphorical leash is not a physical one, but represents the trust and faith that the singer has in his partner. If she breaks that bond by being unfaithful or spending his money recklessly, then he will no longer be "doggone" to her - he will be free.
Line by Line Meaning
Well, I'll Be Doggone if I would work all day
I refuse to work hard all day.
And I'll Be Doggone if I would bring you my pay
I'm not going to give you all of my hard-earned money.
But if I ever caught you running around,
blowing my money all over this town
If I caught you spending my money on other people in this town then...
Then I wouldn't be doggone
Hey, Hey! I'd be long gone.
...I wouldn't stick around much longer.
Then I wouldn't be doggone (Baby!)
I'd be long gone. mm mm
I'm serious. I'd leave.
I'll be Doggone if you ain't a pretty thing
You're beautiful, there's no denying it.
And I'll be Doggone if you ain't warm as a breath of spring
You have a kind heart and a warm personality.
And if we live to be a hundred year old,
if you ever let that spring turn cold
But if you ever turn cold and stop being warm and kind...
Then I wouldn't be doggone
Hey, Hey, Hey! I'd be long gone.
...I'd have to leave you.
Oh, I wouldn't be doggone (Baby)
I'd be long gone. mm mm
It's not something I want to do, but I will if I have to.
I'll be Doggone if love ain't a man's best friend
Oh, baby, And I'll Be Doggone if you ain't the loving end
Love is so important in a man's life, and you have been everything I could ever want in a partner.
Though I know you make me feel like nobody could,
if I ever found out that you're no good
But if I ever found out that you're not who I thought you were...
Then I wouldn't be doggone
Well, I wouldn't be doggone (Baby!)
I'd be long gone.
...I would have to leave.
I wouldn't be doggone
(gonna catch me a train)
Naw, baby, I wouldn't be doggone
I wouldn't be doggone
(gonna catch me a plane)
I'll leave and I won't be looking back.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: MARVIN TARPLIN, SMOKEY ROBINSON, WARREN MOORE, WILLIAM ROBINSON JR.
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind