Stephanie Mills first came to fame as "the little girl with the big voice" as the star of the hit Broadway play, The Wiz, an adaptation of L. Frank Baum's classic book, The Wizard Of Oz. She had many R&B hits such as "I Have Learned to Respect the Power of Love," "I Feel Good All Over," "(You're Puttin') A Rush On Me," "Something in the Way (You Make Me Feel)" and "Home" along with one certified million selling single, "Never Knew Love Like This Before." In addition, she also had five gold albums: Whatcha Gonna Do With My Lovin', Sweet Sensation, Stephanie, If I Were Your Woman and Home.
Mills honed her rich vocals singing gospel music at Brooklyn's Cornerstone Baptist Church as a small child. At age 9, she began appearing in the Broadway play Maggie Flynn. She was presented with first prize after winning "The Amateur Hour" talent contest six weeks straight at New York's famed Apollo Theater when she was nine. That success led to her being chosen as the opening act for The Isley Brothers, eventually becoming good friends with lead singer Ronald Isley. Many years later, Isley would manage and later marry singer/songwriter Angela Winbush, who co-wrote one of her number one R&B hits. Mills' début album, Movin' In The Right Direction was recorded for ABC Records in 1974. A year later, she won the role of Dorothy in The Wiz. Her rendition of the beautiful ballad "Home" was a showstopper, mesmerizing audiences nightly for a number of years. The original cast recording of The Wiz was produced by Jerry Wexler and issued by Atlantic Records in spring 1975. Curiously, when The Wiz was made into a full length feature film by Motown Records' film division and Universal Pictures, Diana Ross played the role of Dorothy instead of Mills. The film ended up being a major flop.
Singer Jermaine Jackson referred Mills to Motown head Berry Gordy, who signed her to the label. Her Motown debut was For the First Time, written and produced by Burt Bacharach and Hal David, being issued in October 1976. For the First Time is a sweet affair with Mills convincingly covering Bacharach/David standards, most of which were originally recorded by Dionne Warwick. In 1978, she signed to 20th Century Records and was teamed with the hit production duo of James Mtume — later leader of Mtume, who had a gold single with "Juicy Fruit" — and Reggie Lucas. Her first LP for the label, Whatcha Gonna Do With My Lovin', went gold, going to number 12 R&B and number 22 pop on Billboard's charts in summer 1979 and spawned the singles, "Whatcha Gonna Do With My Lovin'" and "You Can Get Over." Her next LP, Sweet Sensation (#3 R&B, #16 Pop, spring 1980) yielded "Sweet Sensation," "Never Knew Love Like This Before," and the radio-aired LP track, "Try My Love." Around this time, she briefly married former Soul Train dancer Jeffrey Daniels of the group Shalamar. Next came the LP titled Stephanie in spring 1981, which also was a huge hit, peaking at #3 R&B and #30 Pop. The album included notable songs such as "Two Hearts" — a midtempo duet with Teddy Pendergrass — "Night Games" and the radio-aired LP cut, "Don't Stop Doin' What Cha Do."
In 1981, Mills switched to Neil Bogart's Casablanca Records. Her LPs for the label included Tantalizingly Hot, Merciless and I've Got The Cure. During 1983, she had her own NBC-TV daytime talk show and reprised on role in a Broadway revival of The Wiz. She also signed with MCA Records, where she released her Stephanie Mills album.
The first single from the Stephanie Mills album was "Stand Back," in late 1985, which also included the passionate ballad "I Have Learned To Respect The Power Of Love." "I Have Learned To Respect The Power Of Love" was initially written by Rene Moore and Angela Winbush — best known as the hit singing duo Rene & Angela — as a gospel song and originally was recorded by Alton McClain and Destiny on their self-titled 1978 Polydor LP. The original version is available on Polygram's Power of Love: Best of Soul Essentials Ballads. Because of its massive radio play as an album track, Mills' version of "I Have Learned To Respect The Power Of Love, — produced by Philly Soul keyboardist Ron Kersey — was reissued as an A side holding the #1 R&B spot for two weeks in spring 1986. Its follow-up, "Rising Desire" reached #11 R&B in summer 1986.
Her next LP's title cut was the Clay McMurray/Gloria Jones/Pam Sawyer song, "If I Were Your Woman," originally a 1971 #1 R&B, #9 Pop smash for Gladys Knight and the Pips. Philly-based producer Nick Martinelli gave Mills her second #1 R&B hit with "I Feel Good All Over," written by husband and wife songwriting duo, Gabriel Hardeman and Annette Hardeman. The song held the #1 R&B spot for three weeks in spring 1987. Originally submitted to Mills' fellow MCA labelmate Patti Labelle by the Hardemans, the track was included on Mills' LP If I Were Your Woman, issued June 1987 and peaked at #30 Pop in summer 1987. Paul Laurence produced and co-wrote with Timmy Allen the chugging '"(You're Putting) a Rush On Me" giving the singer her third #1 R&B hit in fall 1987. The single made it to #85 Pop and was followed by "Secret Lady," which landed at #7 R&B in late 1987. Her covers of "If I Were Your Woman" and "Where Is The Love" followed. All were included on her If I Were Your Woman album, which peaked at #1 R&B, #30 Pop in summer 1987. Following these hits, Mills contacted Ronald Isley about working with singer/songwriter/producer Angela Winbush who had hits as half of Rene and Angela and was forging a hit-filled career as a recording artist and producer for the group Body among others. The collaboration between Mills and Winbush resulted in another #1 R&B single, "Something In The Way You Make Me Feel," in summer 1989.
Having starred for five years in the smash Broadway show The Wiz and recorded the song "Home for the play's 1975 original cast soundtrack album, she wanted to record the song again as a posthumous tribute to the play's producer, Ken Harper, and the song's composer, Charlie Smalls. On her new version of "Home," Take 6 sung the background vocals. The song went to #1 R&B in late 1989 and was followed by "Comfort Of A Man" and "Real Love." The Home LP ended up peaking at #5 R&B, #82 Pop in summer 1989. She then recorded a charting single with J.T. Taylor titled "Heart To Heart" in late 1991. Her final MCA album, Something Real included the hit "All Day All Night" and "Never Do Wrong." Following this album, she recorded a gospel album, Personal Inspirations, for Interscope Records and recorded several tracks at Philadelphia International Records with Bunny Sigler among others in the late '90s.
After a hiatus from recording Mills returned with sixteenth album, "Born For This" in 2004. It includes the singles "Can't Let Him Go" and "Healing Time." Mills is currently working on her seventeenth album titled "Breathless." The lead single chosen is a song called, "Yesterday."
You Can Get Over
Stephanie Mills Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Everybody wants to make the rules
Got to get high [Higher]
You don't want to be nobody fool
And I believe that somehow
We can be the things we need to be
Don't let nobody tell you, you can't fly
Makin' it better [Better]
You can make it if you try
Gonna show you, get up and take your stand
Cause I know you got the power in your hand
Feel it glowin' in every child, woman, and man
Oohâ?¦oohâ?¦
Ey hey
Ohâ?¦
You can get over
The best if life is free
Takin' it higher
Open your eyes, you will surely see
Cause I believe this world can be
A place of peace and harmony
Gonna show you, get up and take your stand
Cause I know you got the power in your hand
Feel it glowin' in every child, woman, and man
Ooh oh
Ohâ?¦you got the power in your hand
Uh, don't you know that you got to take your stand, eee, hee [Get up]
You got the power in your hand
Don't you know that you got to take your stand, you hoo
You know you can make it, oh, yeah, youâ?¦ohâ?¦
You can make it, ohâ?¦
You gotta, gotta, gotta, gotta take your stand
[Get up, get down, get up]
[Get up, get down, get up]
[Ah yee ah yee ah]
[Get up, get down, get up]
[Get up, get down, get up]
[Ah yee ah yee ah]
[Get down, get up]
[Get up, get down, get up]
[Ah yee ah yee ah]
[Get down, get up]
[Get up, get down, get up]
[Ah yee ah yee ah]
[Get down, get up]
[Get up, get down, get up]
[Ah yee ah yee ah]
[Get down, get up]
[Get up, get down, get up]
[Ah yee ah yee ah]
[Get down, get up]
[Get up, get down, get up]
The lyrics of Stephanie Mills's song "You Can Get Over" convey the message of overcoming obstacles and rising above negativity. The first verse establishes the idea that everyone wants to make the rules but ultimately, we have the power to rise above and not be anyone's fool. The second verse encourages us to believe that we can be who we need to be and that we shouldn't let anyone tell us that we can't fly. The chorus emphasizes the idea that the best things in life are free and that we can make it better if we try.
The bridge reinforces the message that we have the power, and we need to take our stand and show the world what we're made of. The repeated phrase "you got the power in your hand" reminds us that we hold the key to our success and can accomplish anything we set our minds to. The final verse returns to the theme of believing in a better world and the hope for peace and harmony.
Overall, the song is a call to action to rise above negativity and believe in ourselves, our abilities, and the world's potential for good.
Line by Line Meaning
You can get over
You have the strength to move past your struggles and challenges.
Everybody wants to make the rules
People often try to control and dictate how others should live their lives.
Got to get high [Higher]
You need to elevate yourself and strive for higher levels of success and happiness.
You don't want to be nobody fool
You don't want to be taken advantage of or made to look foolish by others.
And I believe that somehow
The artist has hope and faith that something good can come out of difficult situations.
We can be the things we need to be
We have the ability to become the best versions of ourselves and achieve our goals.
Don't let nobody tell you, you can't fly
Don't let others discourage you from pursuing your dreams and reaching your potential.
Makin' it better [Better]
Striving to improve your situation and create a better life for yourself.
You can make it if you try
With effort and determination, you have the ability to overcome obstacles and succeed.
Gonna show you, get up and take your stand
Encouraging the listener to take action and stand up for themselves and their beliefs.
Cause I know you got the power in your hand
Belief that the listener has the strength to make positive changes in their life.
Feel it glowin' in every child, woman, and man
Suggesting that everyone has the potential for greatness and a bright future.
The best if life is free
The greatest things in life, such as love and happiness, cannot be bought with money.
Takin' it higher
Continuing to strive for greater heights and levels of success and happiness.
Open your eyes, you will surely see
Encouraging the listener to be aware of opportunities and possibilities for a better life.
Cause I believe this world can be
Hope and optimism for a better future for humanity and the world.
A place of peace and harmony
Desire for a world where all people can live together in peace and unity.
You gotta, gotta, gotta, gotta take your stand
Urging the listener to be assertive and take action to achieve their goals and dreams.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: LUCAS, MTUME
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@louisgonzalez8846
A most DRAMATIC frenzied track!!!!
We could never get enough of this!!!! Killer string arrangements, and fierce
Percussions. Truly memorable cut. For the
Devotees of the disco cathedrals.
Ken Hammond:
Totally agree with you,
Why gyms? When you hv
Talented musicians to help you peel off pounds on the floor. And all discos back then were spectacular (whether small or inmense)
Compared to the hole in the walls we hv nowadays.
@mannypintado8349
What a great voice. Awesome production by Mtume & Lucas. This is what Disco was in the 70's.
@franklofarojr.2969
This may very well be the greatest song of all time. Beautiful, catchy and uplifting with a great message. Stephanie really created a masterpiece. She is so wonderful!
@my101209
Man so many Dance Musique Party Song's Had A Message In Them. I'm Glad To See I'm Not The Only One Who Paid Attention!!!!
@henryc1006
SHE TOTALLY EXPLODED THE DANCE FLOOR WITH THIS HIT...
@EcstasyInSymphony
Another symphony-orchestral masterpiece representing the cultural and intellectual height of this civilization, the 1970s, with disco leading the way, the sole time in history when musical instruments and humans screamed in ecstasy over exquisite arrangements highlighting beautiful melodies. Note the Los Angeles Symphony Orchestra, Gerald Vinci, concertmaster.
@my101209
Thanks For The 411. Never Knew That!!!!
@amazinglife4music908
I agree
@amazinglife4music908
Exactly....Now everything is mechanized
@lenardshaw6037
🎶💝👍
@oscarmoriano1958
Antes si se tocaban con grandes artista instrumentalistas humanos pero tambien ya estaba en su mejor momentos en la cuspide perfeccion acústica de la historia