Born Kiplin Simpson, Linen grew up in the district of Red Bank, where he attended the Red Bank Primary and Red Bank High schools. Being the first child for his mother, his grandparents raised him, while his mother went out to hustle to put food on the table for him and his five siblings. In his early years, Linen’s father migrated to England. Eventually, Terry moved from the quiet district of Red Bank, to the sleepy bustle of Mandeville, to live with his mother who had remarried.
After graduating from school, Linen hooked up with the legendary Black Kat sound system where he cut dubs. It was during those inspirational Black Panther days, that Linen became good friends with local artistes who were on the rise, including General Degree, Tony Rebel and Garnet Silk, who had a tremendous influence on the impressionable singer. Linen also met two of the most influential people of his career, Tyrone Taylor & Courtney Melody. Eventually, Linen's close bond with General Degree began to pay dividends, as Degree invited Linen to the studio with him on several occasions, introducing him to influential movers and shakers in the music business. In the meantime, Linen also met a wealthy local bus owner from Southfield, St. Elizabeth called 'Million' who persuaded him to join his sound of the same name, where he went on to cut the tune Sweet Cassandra on Million's own label. It was not until 1996, when he recorded Rainbow Never Touch the Ground on the Kutchie rhythm for producer/songwriter Anthony Red Roze that people began to take notice of the young singer. After moderate success with this song, Anthony Red Roze began to take on the mantle as Terry Linen's manager.
With Red Roze managing Terry Linen, Linen began to put out numerous reggae gems such as the ultra-popular Couldn't Be the Girl for Me and Jah Jah You Save Me. In 1999, he recorded his monster hit, a cover of Whitney Houston's Your Love Is My Love. On this project, Linen received assistance from the musicians Sly Dunbar, Robbie Shakespeare, Gitsy, Jazzwad and Dean Fraser. Your Love Is My Love hit the top of the reggae charts in Miami, and in New York for 12 straight weeks. The song also hit reggae charts in the Caribbean.
With all that chart success, Terry Linen had still not become a household name. "The problem is", said Linen, "is that I did not get the proper promotion, even with my hit songs, there was no video done, people did not know me because is not everyone attends stage shows, even though people loved the songs." Later on, on his musical journey, Terry did a collaboration with the German star Gentleman on the single Jah Jah Never Fail, which appeared on Gentleman's 1999 album, Trodding On. Linen then recorded another popular single with Capleton entitled, Love is Coming at You. More and more, Linen would be heard on the radio in Jamaica.
In 2001, Linen’s first full album, self-titled Terry Linen, distributed by VP Records, received rave reviews from music critics and fans. On the strength of this album, Linen toured North America and Japan. He performed on many major stage shows such as True Juice Rebel Salute, Western Consciousness, Stars in Action and the Love Symbol Show. He distinguished himself at the True Juice Rebel Salute show in 2001 earning two encores, with the songs such as Call On A Friend and the perennial crowd favorite, Couldn't Be The Girl For Me. Terry continued to work hard, and in the year 2004, he scored again with his song Counting Hours, which was produced by Beres Hammond's on his Harmony House Records label. This song has been featured on many reggae compilation albums worldwide.
Terry Linen continued working hard, residing in Junction, St. Elizabeth and his beloved Mandeville, in the parish Manchester, Jamaica. Signed to Uplifting Music International in the latter part of 2007, Terry Linen witnessed the rising of his stocks. His new single Mood For Love, was number one on the Richie B Reggae chart for three weeks, and is still getting heavy rotation on FM radio in Jamaica. Internationally, the song No Time To Linger on the Joe Fraser label was number one for three weeks on the South Florida Reggae charts, and also number one on the New York Reggae charts. His new hit single A Better Man, is also the name of his upcoming album. A Better Man is getting heavy rotation all over, and is climbing the Richie B charts. Indeed, Terry Linen has become "a better man", and he continues to grow musically and please his fans. "I can see where my career is moving forward once again, and connecting the right way. I feel like my career is rejuvenated," he said. People, who have been to Jamaica, know first hand how Terry Linen is dominating the airwaves more and more. Destiny is now smiling on the artist Terry Linen, as his songs are loved and embraced by his people in Jamaica, and more and more, the people of the world.
Couldn't Be The Girl For Me
Terry Linen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
it hurt me so much,
my whole life fell apart,
how could this be,
your cheating on me,
at first i was sad,
but now i am glad.
couldn't be the girl for me,
couldn't be the girl for me,
couldn't be the girl for me.
Love make you blind as a bat,
but now i can see,
i thought you were special,
the only girl for me,
you've been telling me lies,
with your foolish allerbys,
now i recognise,
the unfaithfulness in your eyes.
With a second time,
comes another lie,
girl you never learn,
you look me in the eyes,
tellin me a pack of lies,
a when you gona learn,
with another lie,
when you gona learn,
you look me the eyes,
tellin me a pack of lies.
Love make you blind as a bat,
but now i can see,
i thought you were special,
the only girl for me,
you've been telling me lies,
with your foolish allerbys,
now i recognise,
the unfaithfulness in your eyes.
The lyrics to Terry Linen's song "Couldn't Be the Girl for Me" tell the story of a man who catches his partner cheating on him and the subsequent breakdown of their relationship. The opening lines express his shock and heartbreak at seeing her in the arms of another man, and the line "my whole life fell apart" suggests that this betrayal has thrown everything into chaos. The singer then interrogates his partner, asking how she could have been unfaithful to him. He initially feels sadness, but as time goes on, he realizes that his partner is not the right person for him and he is ultimately glad to be rid of her.
The chorus repeats the message that this person "couldn't be the girl" for him, emphasizing his realization that their relationship was not meant to be. The second verse further explores the theme of blindness and deception, suggesting that love can make people overlook faults in their partners. However, the singer has now seen through his partner's lies and recognizes the "unfaithfulness in [her] eyes." The final stanza returns to the idea of a repeated pattern: the partner's continued lying is evidence that she has not learned from her mistakes.
Overall, the song is a powerful expression of a painful breakup and the slow process of coming to terms with a partner's infidelity. The repeated refrain of "couldn't be the girl for me" serves as a kind of mantra for the singer, reminding him that he deserves better and ultimately leading him towards healing and moving on.
Line by Line Meaning
I caught you romancing in another mans arms,
I saw you being romantic with another man which made me feel hurt and completely ruined my life.
it hurt me so much,
The pain I felt as a result of your actions wavered me emotionally.
my whole life fell apart,
Your actions completely turned my life upside down and changed everything for me.
how could this be,
I couldn't believe that you, the person I thought would never hurt me could cheat on me and break my trust.
your cheating on me,
Your act of infidelity proved to me that you were unfaithful and not the person I thought you were.
at first i was sad,
Initially, I was emotionally involved and felt sorrowful about the situation.
but now i am glad.
However, after some time, I am glad that I found out about your infidelity and can move on from this toxic relationship.
You couldn't be the girl for me,
You are not the kind of girl I was looking for and I no longer need your presence in my life.
couldn't be the girl for me,
It has become clear that you are not the type of person I want to be with.
Love make you blind as a bat,
Love can make a person completely oblivious to the actions and misdeeds of their partner.
but now i can see,
But after seeing your true colours, I am no longer blinded by love and can see the reality with clarity.
i thought you were special, the only girl for me,
I idolized you as someone special and believed that you were the only person I wanted to spend the rest of my life with.
you've been telling me lies, with your foolish allerbys,
I now realize that the lies and excuses you gave me were foolish and untrue.
now i recognise, the unfaithfulness in your eyes.
The look in your eyes betrayed your unfaithfulness and it finally dawned on me that you could never be the girl for me.
With a second time, comes another lie,
I realized that each time you committed infidelity, it came with another lie to hide the fact.
girl you never learn,
You seem to never learn from your mistakes and continue to make the same foolish choices.
when you gona learn, with another lie,
I wonder when you will learn that your actions have consequences and that one lie will always beget another.
when you gona learn, you look me the eyes, tellin me a pack of lies.
I can see right through your façade of lies and recognize that you are unfaithful and untrustworthy.
Writer(s): Anthony Cameron
Contributed by London N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@mdavis3524
My mom used to play this song back in Guyana. I was probably 15 at the time and every single Saturday when were cleaning she would play this. I’m now 23 and I just came across this song on fb omg! I had a rush of emotions. Sadly my mom has passed away a little over a year ago and mannnnn😭 I miss Guyana and my family. 🥺
@StunnLegacy
🙏🏾
@bwana_ya_mtu
Where are you now
@darrenthompson8020
Condolences
@letsdothistogether2417
💚
@ajaooguntola930
Stay 💪 strong 💯❤
@bharatrahaman9493
A legendary song to comfort a dude who is heart broken.
@bernadettebradley7951
Like us all💚🔥😆
@flowgift2470
12 years and I still love this song this is a master piece ho agree this is never getting old 🇬🇾🇬🇾
@maseseone.5006
Terry Linen classic..love from Kenya🇰🇪