Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, she entered the music business at the age of 13, regularly performing live. In 1961 she was signed to the fledgling Scepter Records (later Wand Records), recording under the name "Tammy Montgomery". After coming to the attention of James Brown she recorded one single apiece for Brown's own Try Me record label and, in 1964, Checker Records. The year after that, she was spotted by Berry Gordy Jr. while playing live, and signed to his Motown label. Attractive and talented, she became romantically linked with both James Brown and David Ruffin, lead singer of The Temptations.
Tammy Montgomery changed her name to "Tammi Terrell" at the time of her Motown signing, and was teamed with producers Harvey Fuqua and Johnny Bristol. After releasing a pair of minor R&B chart hits, "I Can't Believe You Love Me" and "Come On and See Me," Terrell was chosen to replace Kim Weston as Marvin Gaye's duet partner. The duo recorded a number of successful hits which remain popular today: "Ain't No Mountain High Enough", "Your Precious Love," "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing," and "You're All I Need to Get By", all written (and in the case of the latter two, produced by) Ashford & Simpson.
While on tour with Gaye in Virginia in mid-1967, Terrell fainted on stage, and was later diagnosed as having a malignant brain tumor. While Terrell endured several operations and continued to record new material, her health steadily deteriorated. Fuqua and Bristol resorted to having Gaye overdub archived Terrell solo tracks to fill out the Gaye/Terrell duets albums. The final album attributed to Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell, "Easy" (1969), actually features co-producer Valerie Simpson subbing for Terrell on all but two of the tracks.
Twelve of Tammi Terrell's solo Motown recordings, including "I Can't Believe You Love Me", "Come On and See Me," and a minor hit cover of The Isley Brothers' "This Old Heart of Mine (Is Weak for You)", were issued as Terrell's only solo album, "Irresistible," in January 1969. Terrell died of brain cancer at age 24 on March 16, 1970.
Voice Of Experience
Tammi Terrell Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
(I know)
I know
(I know)
I know
(I know)
Yes, I know
I know he will never be true
I love him too
Now don't you kiss him
On your very first date
(Listen to the voice of experience)
Girl, now, don't you kiss him
'Til you make him wait
(Listen to the voice of experience)
Well now, too quickly
Too quickly did I give him my heart
And just as quickly
He tore my heart apart, oh, yes, he did
I think you ought to take a second look
(Listen to the voice of experience)
I know this lover like an open book
(Listen to the voice of experience)
Believe it, too quickly
Too quickly did I give him my heart
And just as quickly
He tore my heart apart, hmm he did
Listen to the voice of experience
Listen to the voice of experience
Well now, too quickly
Too quickly did I give him my heart
And just as quickly
He tore my heart apart, oh, yes, he did
Don't you kiss him
On your very first date
(Listen to the voice of experience)
No, girl, don't you kiss him
'Til you make him wait
(Listen to the voice of experience)
In the song "Voice Of Experience" by Tammi Terrell, the lyrics revolve around a woman's cautionary tale about love and heartbreak. She reveals that she knows the man she loves will never be true to her, but she loves him nonetheless. However, she learned her lesson the hard way and advises other women not to make the same mistake. She warns against acting too quickly and giving your heart away too soon, only to have it torn apart just as quickly. Instead, she advises women to wait before they kiss on their first date in order to make sure they are worth the risk of giving their heart away.
The repetition of "I know" at the beginning emphasizes the singer's conviction in her experience and knowledge about love. This adds a sense of authority to her advice, as if she has been through the journey of love and can now guide others through it. The repeated "listen to the voice of experience" highlights the importance of heeding the advice of those who have learned from their mistakes.
Overall, the song is a cautionary tale that teaches the listener to be cautious with their heart and not to fall too hard and too quickly. By sharing her own painful experience, the singer hopes to save others from heartbreak.
Line by Line Meaning
I know
I am aware
Yes, I know
I am positive
I know he will never be true
I am aware that he will not be faithful
I love him too
I have strong feelings for him despite his infidelity
Now don't you kiss him
Do not show affection towards him
On your very first date
During your first encounter with him
Girl, now, don't you kiss him
I am warning you
'Til you make him wait
Delay being intimate with him
Well now, too quickly
I acted hastily
Too quickly did I give him my heart
I became emotionally attached too soon
And just as quickly
Soon after
He tore my heart apart, oh, yes, he did
He hurt me emotionally
I think you ought to take a second look
You need to reconsider your actions
I know this lover like an open book
I know him very well
Believe it, too quickly
It is true that I acted hastily
Don't you kiss him
Do not show him affection
No, girl, don't you kiss him
I am warning you again
Listen to the voice of experience
Take heed of my advice
Contributed by Peyton E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
campbell hair
Nice to hear this again after so many years. I used to have this cheap PYE album back in 1969 although it went missing many years ago. At that time PYE had the license for Scepter/Wand in the UK. Excatly the same backing track was used on the Shirelles version which appeared on their "Baby it's You" album. In fact Scepter often used the same backing tracks with different lead vocals. Difficult to choose between this and Shirelles version as they are similar, simply depends on which lead vocal appeals to this listener most.
Ujima Jame
From my understanding, Tammi did the demo for the Shirelles. That is why she also did "Make The Night A Little Longer" and "Big John."