They are best-known during the late 1960s and early 1970s for popularizing the hits "Up, Up and Away", "Wedding Bell Blues", "Stoned Soul Picnic", "One Less Bell to Answer", "(Last Night) I Didn't Get to Sleep at All", and "Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In", as well as the eponymous 5th Dimension and The Magic Garden LP recordings.
The five original members were Billy Davis, Jr., Florence LaRue, Marilyn McCoo, Lamonte McLemore, and Ron Townson. They have recorded for several different labels over their long careers. Their first work appeared on the Soul City label, which was started by Imperial Records/United Artists Records recording artist Johnny Rivers. The group would later record for Bell/Arista Records, ABC Records, and Motown Records.
Some of the songwriters popularized by The 5th Dimension later went on to careers of their own, especially Ashford & Simpson, who wrote "California Soul". The group is also notable for having more success with the songs of Laura Nyro than Nyro did herself, particularly in the cases of "Wedding Bell Blues", "Stoned Soul Picnic", and "Save the Country" The group also covered music by well known songwriters such as the song "One Less Bell to Answer", written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David. And perhaps best of all, they became great interpreters of the songs and music of Jimmy Webb, who penned their original mega-hit "Up, Up, and Away", including an entire recording of memorable Webb songs called The Magic Garden.
Blowing Away
The 5th Dimension Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You're my favorite one.
You got me cookin' with the fever,
Got me runnin' for the sun.
Uh-huh, runnin' for the sun,
I feel so high, I feel like I may
Go blowin' away (go blowin' away) blowin' away.
Blow, blow, blowin' away (blow, blow, blowin' away).
My well meaner, my day fancy dreamer
Oh, what can it be?
Well, it's something like a power,
Like a hold, and it's holdin' me.
Uh-huh, and it's holdin' me,
I feel so high, I feel like I may
Go blowin' away (blowin' away) blowin' away.
Blow, blow, blowin' away (blow, blow, blowin' away)
Blow, blow, blowin' away.
My long laster, my soft-hearted master
Ain't been born and bred.
But he's standin' in my doorway in my mind
Up above my, up above, up above my head,
Up above my head, up above my head,
I feel so high, I feel like I may
Go blowin' away, blowin' away, (blowin' away)
Blowin' away, blowin' away, blowin' away
Blow, blow, blowin' away, (blowin' away, blow, blow,
Blowin away, blow, blow, blowin' away), blowin' away,
Blow, blow, blowin' away, blow, blow, blowin' away,
Blow, blow, blowin' away...
In this song, The 5th Dimension is singing about the feeling of being completely overwhelmed by desire, be it for a person or a passion. The metaphor of being blown away is used to describe the intensity of the feeling. The lyrics contain a lot of hyperbole, as seen in lines like "You got me cookin' with the fever, got me runnin' for the sun". The singer is so consumed by their desire that they feel like they could be blown away at any moment.
The second verse introduces the idea that the object of the singer's desire might not be real. The lines "My well-meaner, my day fancy dreamer, oh what can it be? Well, it's something like a power, like a hold, and it's holdin' me" suggest that the desire might be a figment of the singer's imagination rather than a real person or thing. The final verse continues with this idea, with the lines "My long laster, my soft-hearted master, ain't been born and bred. But he's standin' in my doorway in my mind, up above my head". Here, we see that the singer's desire is something that exists only in their mind.
Overall, the song is a poetic exploration of the intense emotions that can be brought on by desire. The metaphor of being blown away is used to convey the power and intensity of this feeling.
Line by Line Meaning
You ole fire, I'm mad with desire,
You ignite a burning passion in me that I can't ignore.
You're my favorite one.
Out of all the things that excite me, you are my favorite.
You got me cookin' with the fever,
You have me so worked up and passionate that I feel like I have a fever.
Got me runnin' for the sun.
You make me want to run towards the sun, towards something brighter and better.
Uh-huh, runnin' for the sun,
Yes, I am running towards something brighter and better because of you.
I feel so high, I feel like I may
You make me feel so elevated and filled with emotion that I feel like I may
Go blowin' away (go blowin' away) blowin' away.
completely lose myself in the experience you provide me.
Blow, blow, blowin' away (blow, blow, blowin' away).
I am being blown away by the experience that you're providing me.
My well meaner, my day fancy dreamer
You are the one that I care for and dream about.
Oh, what can it be?
I wonder what it is about you that makes me feel this way.
Well, it's something like a power,
There's a force about you that has the ability to affect me deeply.
Like a hold, and it's holdin' me.
It's like you have a grip on me and I can't escape your influence.
Uh-huh, and it's holdin' me,
Yes, your power over me is very strong and I can't deny it.
Up above my, up above, up above my head,
Your power and influence is beyond me, it's like it's out of reach above my head.
I feel so high, I feel like I may
You make me feel like I'm on top of the world, so much so that I might
Go blowin' away (blowin' away) blowin' away.
lose myself in the experience that you are providing me.
Blow, blow, blowin' away (blow, blow, blowin' away)
I am being blown away by the experience that you are providing me.
Blow, blow, blowin' away.
I am being completely overwhelmed by the experience that you are providing me.
Lyrics Β© BMG Rights Management
Written by: LAURA NYRO
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind