“I was always a writer," says the man formerly known as Aaron Livingston. "Before I really learned music, I was serious about writing. Didn’t matter what it was. Just playing with words.”
Considering how long he's been making music, that's saying something. Born in Los Angeles to a preacher and a teacher, as a kid he absorbed songs from dusty family records and learned saxophone and piano, though he felt more at home inventing his own language on those instruments rather than following the lesson plan. Adapt or die, as they say.
Cycling through jazz, rock and R&B history, the hungry young son was beginning his true education. A few years later, the Livingstons moved to Queens, introducing Aaron to the active arts of hip-hop, basketball and city life. High school in suburban Jersey left him wanting more, so he headed to Manhattan and Columbia University, where he discovered art, recreational substances, and girls, girls, girls. He dropped out, got a job, got sad, kept journals. He moved to Philly, enrolled at Temple University, met the legendary Roots crew, even played music with them; they put his voice on an album, undun. He had a daughter, then a son. He was happy, still writing all the while.
Then, slowly, the music stalled. Faded. He got another dead end job. He checked out of days. He got sad again. He forgot how to adapt.
But, as it has the ability to do, the songwriting saved him. It was in his blood, he remembered. Coltrane. Hendrix. Santana. Tribe. And this time he vowed to never let it go. That's not to say he's always happy; he's human, after all. But making music helps keep things in perspective.
"I feel the weight of life as I always did, as everyone does," he says. "But I feel the weight lifted, because I love doing this. And the more I do it, the more I love it."
Son Little writes everywhere, every day, finding inspiration on the train, in a car, on the street, in the supermarket, with his children. Sometimes the ideas are fresh. Sometimes a tune comes from his past, a single spark. Nothing is off limits.
"It could be just a thought, and everything else comes from that," he says. "In one of my books could be a phrase that later is a song, and then the song becomes a whole catalog. It’s gotta germinate from somewhere."
Inspiration firmly struck, the song begins to bloom. There are many channels to Son Little's broadcast, varied stops on the dial, from blues to soul to funk to folk, and jook-joint jazz and chamber pop and back again. His voice—raw, weary yet alert, grave and gravelly, Marvin and Otis and Stevie all at once—soars and creeps, cracks and moans. His songs haunt, thrill, yearn and stomp like all the best work of his heroes.
And the learning never stops. Little has collaborated with highly respected artists like The Roots and the producer/DJ RJD2, mentoring under the former and creating a duo with the latter called Icebird, which allowed him to flex his considerable vocal chops and song arrangement skills.
"I've always loved the studio, but RJ helped me see how I can use it more effectively and find ways to challenge myself, and be inventive with sound. And The Roots, it’s hard to quantify what I’ve learned from them. Everything from how to rehearse to how to occupy the stage and command it…two things that are very fundamental in this business, and they are masters."
This fall sees the release of the first recorded output from Son Little for Anti- Records, an EP called, wouldn't you know it, Things I Forgot. Six songs: three babies (released first as videos), two twins, and an RJD2 remix. It's all there, all those misremembered things: Triumph and trophies, hardship and heartache, soft sentences, loud chapters, facts and birthdays, faces and places and scrapes and scales, nights and weeks and years all lost, gone into the ether, slipped away, out-sizing our normal human bandwidth.
"The singles, 'Cross My Heart' and 'Your Love Will Blow Me Away When My Heart Aches' and 'The River,' were more or less written consecutively," he says. "And so I think they were sort of internal responses to one other, complements. It's harder to place but I’ve been tinkering with the other two, 'Joy' and 'Alice,' for a long time. They’re sort of akin to one another in terms of mood. This is a small collection and maybe it's not as much a singular vision...it's more of a handful.”
A grip of memories; Things He Forgot. Son Little writes to remember, matching the disparate vibes of his full, full life with a patchwork blanket of sound, experience and inspiration. Inventing, observing, adapting. And still, it grows.
"I don’t see any end to the learning," he says. "And to understanding more of something that you immerse yourself in. Could be anything, again. Right now I’m immersed in this music and I feel that my understanding appreciates and changes scope and perspective. It's really rewarding in its own way."
The River
Son Little Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Many a moon come and shine her light
Taking her clothes off it break my mind
Taking her clothes off gone take all mine
Want you so bad it's like I'm out of time
Want you so bad I had to break your mind
Gimme your love baby all the time
Now walk me to the River darlin'
Rock me in the river darlin'
(I now feel you)
Start to shiver darlin'
Walk me to the river darlin'
Most of my friends now are blown me off
Most of my friends gone and blown me off
Can't really blame em baby I got lost
Can't even blame em baby I feel love
Deep in the woods girl while we get off
Deep in the woods girl while we get lost
Run with wolves girl I'm never lost
Run with wolves girl ain't never lost
Now walk me to the River darlin'
Rock me in the river darlin'
(I now feel you)
Start to shiver darlin'
Walk me to the river darlin'
Twenty to seven baby time to rise
Twenty to seven baby time to rise
Heart is blazing blue electric fire
Heart is blazing blue electric fire
Want you so bad it's like I'm out of time
Want you so bad I had to break your mind
Gimme your love baby all the time
Gimme your love baby you got mine now
Now walk me to the River darlin'
Rock me in the river darlin'
(I now feel you)
Start to shiver darlin'
Walk me to the river darlin'
The first verse of Son Little's song "The River" describes a woman who has come to visit the singer in the deep of the night. He describes the many times that she has come and left her mark on the surroundings. However, he becomes fixated on her when as she begins to disrobe, and this is where the first hints of a theme emerge. The singer seems to be becoming lost in his lust for the woman, and he describes it as "breaking his mind". He wants her so badly and sees his desires as a ticking clock.
The second verse begins with the singer's experiences with his friends, who have blown him off because he is lost in his love. He then describes going deep into the woods with the woman, where they get off and become lost. He likens himself and the woman to wolves running together, and he acknowledges that he is never lost with her. The third verse reiterates the singer's desire for the woman and his need for her love. He describes his heart as a "blazing blue electric fire", which seems to represent the intensity of his emotions.
Overall, "The River" seems to be a song about the way that desire for another person can consume you. The singer is lost in his lust for the woman who comes to visit him, and he can't seem to get enough of her. However, there are hints that this kind of desire might not be entirely healthy, as the singer's friends have all blown him off because of it.
Line by Line Meaning
Many a moon come this way at night
Many nights have passed along this way
Many a moon come and shine her light
Many nights have come and gone, but they still shine on
Taking her clothes off it break my mind
Seeing her undress has a strong effect on my mind
Taking her clothes off gone take all mine
Her disrobing will take all of my attention
Want you so bad it's like I'm out of time
I desire you so much that time seems to have no meaning
Want you so bad I had to break your mind
I wanted you so much that I had to make you want me too
Gimme your love baby all the time
I want your love all the time
Gimme your love baby you got mine
You have my love, now give me yours
Now walk me to the River darlin'
Take me to the river, my love
Rock me in the river darlin'
Hold me tight while we're in the river
(I now feel you)
I feel your presence
Start to shiver darlin'
Your touch gives me chills
Most of my friends now are blown me off
Most of my friends have abandoned me
Most of my friends gone and blown me off
Most of my friends have moved on from me
Can't really blame em baby I got lost
I can't blame them, I've lost my way
Can't even blame em baby I feel love
I can't blame them, I'm in love
Deep in the woods girl while we get off
We're getting lost in the woods
Deep in the woods girl while we get lost
We're losing ourselves in the woods
Run with wolves girl I'm never lost
I feel at home among the wolves
Run with wolves girl ain't never lost
I feel like I belong with the wolves
Twenty to seven baby time to rise
It's almost seven o'clock, time to wake up
Heart is blazing blue electric fire
My heart is burning with electric blue fire
Want you so bad it's like I'm out of time
I desire you so much that time seems to have no meaning
Want you so bad I had to break your mind
I wanted you so much that I had to make you want me too
Gimme your love baby all the time
I want your love all the time
Gimme your love baby you got mine now
You have my love, now give me yours
Now walk me to the River darlin'
Take me to the river, my love
Rock me in the river darlin'
Hold me tight while we're in the river
(I now feel you)
I feel your presence
Start to shiver darlin'
Your touch gives me chills
Walk me to the river darlin'
Take me to the river, my love
Lyrics © MOTHERSHIP MUSIC PUBLISHING
Written by: AARON LIVINGSTON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Dana
Many a moon come this way at night
Many a moon come and shine her light
Taking her clothes off it break my mind
Taking her clothes off gone take all mine
Want you so bad it's like I'm out of time
Want you so bad I had to break your mind
Gimme your love baby all the time
Gimme your love baby you got mine
Now walk me to the River darlin'
Rock me in the river darlin'
(I now feel you)
Start to shiver darlin'
Walk me to the river darlin'
Most of my friends now are blown me off
Most of my friends gone and blown me off
Can't really blame em baby I got lost
Can't even blame em baby I feel love
Deep in the woods girl while we get off
Deep in the woods girl while we get lost
Run with wolves girl I'm never lost
Run with wolves girl ain't never lost
Now walk me to the River darlin'
Rock me in the river darlin'
(I now feel you)
Start to shiver darlin'
Walk me to the river darlin'
Twenty to seven baby time to rise
Twenty to seven baby time to rise
Heart is blazing blue electric fire
Heart is blazing blue electric fire
Want you so bad it's like I'm out of time
Want you so bad I had to break your mind
Gimme your love baby all the time
Gimme your love baby you got mine now
Now walk me to the River darlin'
Rock me in the river darlin'
(I now feel you)
Start to shiver darlin'
Walk me to the river darlin
Jennifer Graham
I just heard this song this month, I just found out that it's 6 years old today. It's so good.
no no
Why is real music like this not charting #1 on the radio?
josh ogdan
because you gotta go see it live and forget about what is "real" in this society.
Sugar is Magic
HELL YEAH !!! THIS DUDE IS A HIDDEN GEM FOR REAL WHY ARTIST LIKE HIM AREN'T ON TOP LIKE MAN THIS DUDE IS DANGEROUS HE CAN CHANGE MUSIC BACK REAL SOUL
Mac’s Midas touch
Sad part is all the real good ones never get there flowers 🌺 he cold blooded!!!
TaterTodtStudio
SOMEBODYGOTSTOSAYIT Patterson yet we're stuck with katy perry and justin beiber
LoquaciousApe
My biggest problem with this man is that he doesn't have more songs.
Brian Williams
He also used to be in an awesome band called The Mean. I met him back in the early 2000s while he was in that band. I had a little jam session he used to come thru. Such a talented dude.
I Love
Thanks for that. I would have been asleep way longer if you wouldn't have taken the time to write that comment.
no no
His project with RJD2 (Icebird: The Abandoned Lullaby) is honestly one of the best albums of the last 25 years.