The Tavares brothers — Arthur Tavares, Ralph Vierra Tavares, Perry Lee Tavares, Antone Tavares, and Feliciano Tavares nicknamed "Pooch," "Tiny," "Chubby," and "Butch" — started the group in 1964 as Chubby and the Turnpikes in New Bedford, MA. Their grandparents taught them traditional Cape Verde folk songs, while their older brother John schooled them on doo wop singing. In 1969, the group became Tavares. They began singing in New England clubs and were signed to Capitol Records in 1973. Their debut album, Check It Out , was issued in early 1974. The title track slow jam single went to number five R&B on Billboard's charts in summer 1973. The next single, the ballad "That's the Sound That Lonely Makes," hit number ten R&B in early 1974. Check It Out was followed by Hard Core Poetry in summer 1974, helmed by songwriting/production duo Dennis Lambert & Brian Potter (the Four Tops' "Aint No Woman Like the One I Got"). It listed the soaring number ten hit "Too Late," the number one hit "She's Gone," and "Remember What I Told You to Forget," which hit number four in 1975. Lambert & Potter produced In the City (summer 1975), which yielded the driving number one hit "It Only Takes a Minute," "Free Ride" (a 1973 pop smash for the Edgar Winter Group), and "The Love I Never Had." Take That's 1993 cover of "It Only Takes a Minute" was a U.K. hit.
Tavares' album Sky High (spring 1976) was the group's first collaboration with producer Freddie Perren. Perren seemed to have an affinity for family singing groups, having had hits with the Jackson 5 ("I Want You Back," "ABC," "The Love You Save") as a member of the Motown arrangers/songwriters/producers collective The Corporation, and would later go to have hits with the Sylvers ("Boogie Fever"). Sky High boasted the sparkling number three R&B hit "Heaven Must Be Missing an Angel (Part 1)" from summer 1976. Their fifth LP, Love Storm was issued in spring 1977 and included the clever number one R&B hit "Whodunit" in spring 1977.
"More Than a Woman" was specifically written for Tavares by the Bee Gees and was issued as a single from the 11-million-selling Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. "More Than a Woman" was also on their Future Bound LP released in spring 1978. A greatest hits set, The Best of Tavares, was released in fall 1977. On 1979's Madame Butterfly LP, the group worked with Philly soul arranger/producer Bobby Martin (the Manhattans, LTD). The sweet ballad "Never Had a Love Like This Before" went to number five R&B in early 1979.
In 1994, Canadian label Unidisc released The Best of Tavares Revisited, which had re-recordings by the group of their past hits.
It Only Takes A Minute
Tavares Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Yeah, yeah
Ah, ha, yeah
Once an hour of the day
We threw at least fun away
Walk the streets half a year
Tryin' to find a new career
For thirty days you're on your back
Through the night I've seen you dance
Baby, give me half a chance
It only takes a minute, girl
To fall in love, to fall in love
It only takes a minute, girl
To fall in love, let's fall in love
Ooh, ooh
Ooh, ooh
Now in the unemployment lines
You can spend your life readin' signs
Waitin' for your interview
They can shoot the whole day for you, yeah
Now winter's gonna turn to spring
And you haven't accomplished a thing (haven't accomplished a thing)
So baby, leave a little time
'Cause you never know what's on my mind, yeah
It only takes a minute, girl
To fall in love, to fall in love
It only takes a minute, girl, yeah
To fall in love, let's fall in love
Boom, boom, boom, boom, fall in love
Boom, boom, boom, boom, fall in love
Boom, boom, boom, boom, fall in love
Boom, boom, boom, boom, fall in love
Boom, boom, boom, boom, fall in love
Boom, boom, boom, boom fall in love
It only takes a minute, girl, baby
To fall in love, to fall in love
It only takes a minute, girl
To fall in love, let's fall in love
It only takes a minute, girl
To fall, to fall, to fall in love, yeah fall in love
It only takes a minute, girl, come on, now, fall in love, fall in love
Tavares's song "It Only Takes a Minute" is about the fleeting nature of love and the importance of seizing the moment to fall in love before it's too late. The lyrics speak to the idea that time can slip away easily without us even realizing it, and that if we don't take advantage of the opportunities before us, we may miss out on them altogether.
The first verse speaks to the idea of wasting time: "Once an hour of the day / We threw at least fun away / Walk the streets half a year / Tryin' to find a new career." The singer is reflecting on a time when they were less focused on their goals, and instead spent their time in pursuit of something more immediate - a good time. But, as they note later in the song, time can easily slip away from us if we're not careful: "And you haven't accomplished a thing / So baby, leave a little time / 'Cause you never know what's on my mind, yeah."
Despite the song's somewhat somber message, it's ultimately hopeful. The chorus repeats the sentiment that it only takes a minute to fall in love - a reminder that we should always be open to love and to new experiences, no matter how short-lived they may be.
Line by Line Meaning
Once an hour of the day
At any given hour of the day
We threw at least fun away
We wasted some of our time having fun
Walk the streets half a year
We walked around for six months
Tryin' to find a new career
Looking for a new job
Now if you get a flu attack
If you get sick
For thirty days you're on your back
You'll be bedridden for a month
Through the night I've seen you dance
I've watched you dance all night
Baby, give me half a chance
Give me a chance to prove myself
It only takes a minute, girl
Falling in love can happen quickly
To fall in love, to fall in love
One minute is all it takes to fall in love
Now in the unemployment lines
Waiting in line for unemployment benefits
You can spend your life readin' signs
You can spend a lot of time waiting for opportunities
Waitin' for your interview
Waiting for a job interview
They can shoot the whole day for you, yeah
The interview can take all day
Now winter's gonna turn to spring
The seasons will change from winter to spring
And you haven't accomplished a thing (haven't accomplished a thing)
You haven't achieved anything
So baby, leave a little time
Give me a chance
'Cause you never know what's on my mind, yeah
Because you don't know what I'm thinking
It only takes a minute, girl, yeah
Falling in love only takes a short amount of time
Boom, boom, boom, boom, fall in love
The rhythm of falling in love
It only talk a minute, girl, baby
Falling in love only takes a short amount of time
To fall in love, to fall in love
One minute is all it takes to fall in love
It only takes a minute, girl
Falling in love can happen quickly
To fall, to fall, to fall in love, yeah fall in love
To quickly become deeply in love
It only takes a minute, girl, come on, now, fall in love, fall in love
Falling in love doesn't take much time at all
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Brian Potter, Dennis Earle Lambert
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Hermann Heraux
Brings back to memory the great disco era which coincided with my adolescence and prime time!
GARY Juliano
Hermann Heraux jo
Manny Pintado
One great classic heard everywhere in The Globe.
Brandy Stone
I miss this kind of music playing at the clubs and roller staking rings. I sure wish I could go back.
skip win
WE all wish we could go back
Mike Murphy
Nothing like old school R&B !!!!!
Heather Baldwin-Mc Dowell
I love this song.
Annette Reyes
memories of the disco days! love your Video! you have some classics on here! that there is music!!
nelson monteiro
Dancing music orchestrated with strings. Can't get any better than this.
TangentJim
The words and the music are great .