Born and raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the Wilson brothers began singing and playing in their father's Pentecostal church, and it was also mandatory they practice their music lessons at home as well. They learned various instruments, which primarily included lots of playing the piano. As much as they despised the lessons at the time, it proved to be a value tool for all three. With Ronnie being the oldest, he established his own band when he was just a fourteen-year-old.
Charlie, a few years younger, joined a rival band a couple of years later. One particular night, the two bands were performing just across the street from one another. Ronnie stopped by to check out Charlie grooving on the organ. While there, Ronnie asked Charlie to join his band for $50 over what he was making. Though Charlie's band-mates doubled his offer, he joined his brother's band as fate would have it
At a gig not too long after the two had joined forces, the group's bass player quit; Ronnie and Charlie summoned their younger brother Robert, barely fourteen himself, to the group to play bass. For a short while, the group performed without a name. Musician Carlton Morales, co-writer of Julian Lennon's pop hit "Vallotte" played with the band shortly after leaving the outfit The Mighty Majors. Finally, the Wilson brothers began calling their outfit the "Greenwood, Archer and Pine Streets Band". As such a name proved too long for music posters, the band shortened their name to the "G.A.P. Street Band". Due to a typographical error, the group was actually advertised as "Gap Band" and "The Gap Band". That title stuck.
They performed at various venues around the Tulsa area, including country & western joints, tennis clubs, rock clubs, and wherever else called on their services. However, by the middle of the 70s, Charlie became interested in Los Angeles, California and left Tulsa to explore his possibilities; the country's big cities were in the middle of a soul music boom, and he wanted in.. A short time later, Charlie convinced his brothers to join him. The group floundered about L.A.; hitting and missing on record deals, gigs, and the like, the guys had a lot of talent but needed guidance. Still maintaining their interest in major label work, the group met entertainment businessman Lonnie Simmons through a friend, a musician D.J. Rogers, and their destiny was set. Simmons owned a nightclub called "The Total Experience" on Crenshaw Blvd and a recording studio at the time, and he signed the group to his company, which was called "Total Experience Records". Simmons would later start up a record label, also co-songwriting the Gap Band's tunes at times.
The Top Five single "Shake" followed in 1979, along with "Steppin' Out" (number ten) and "I Don't Believe You Want to Get Up and Dance (Oops, Up Side Your Head)" (number four) in 1980. The latter was inspired at a concert in Pittsburgh where some kids were chanting the groove and the Gap Band picked up on it. In December of 1980, the trio dropped its first number one single with "Burn Rubber (Why You Wanna Hurt Me)" and followed it with the Top Five ballad "Yearning for Your Love" (1981).
The group went on to score three more number one songs ("Early in the Morning" and "Outstanding" in 1982 and "All of My Love" in 1989), three more number two songs ("You Dropped a Bomb on Me" in 1982, "Beep a Freak" in 1984, and "Going in Circles" in 1986) and a horde of Top Ten hits. They also did the soundtracks for Leon Isaac Kennedy's Penitentiary III and Keena Ivory Waynans' I'm Gonna Get You Sucker. The group was given only 24 hours notice to complete the title song.
In 1984 Ronnie became a born-again Christian and started pastoring. He joined Melba Moore and David Peaston in the touring play Mama, I'm Sorry. Charlie went through rough times fighting a cocaine addiction until finally rehabilitating a few years later. Charlie has been one of most sought-after vocalists in the music industry. He has worked with Quincy Jones, Ray Charles, Eurythmics, Snoop Dogg, and scores of others. The Gap Band has recorded for various labels, including Mercury and Capitol Records. The group remained together for quite song time, enduring the good with the bad, and kept on touring into the new millennium.
The death of Robert Wilson, at the age of 53, on August 15, 2010 changed everything. Mourned by fans of the group across the world, many musicians cited his role in creating the band's funky soul sound. Numerous singles such as "Outstanding" and "You Dropped a Bomb on Me" remain radio classics to this day.
You Can Count On Me
The Gap Band Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A mask for all the world to see
It's so hard to know what is real
But baby, you can always count on me
A prickly thorn, can bear a rose
A sight for all of us to see
It seems that life is oh so strange
Life's solutions, and illusions
Things are seldom what they seem
Were surrounded by our confusions
But baby, you can always count on me
There will be trials and tribulations
And heartaches yeah And miseries
But when it's all over,
You can always count on me.
The lyrics to The Gap Band's song You Can Count On Me convey a message of unshakeable trust in relationships. The first stanza refers to a facade that people put up, their "face of stone" and "lips so cold." The second stanza suggests that even something painful like a "prickly thorn" can produce a beautiful "rose." Essentially, it’s trying to say that life is challenging and full of unknowns, but regardless of what we encounter, we can always count on the people that we love.
The chorus reaffirms this idea, stating that life is full of illusions and uncertainties, but we can always trust one person—namely, the singer of the song. He underscores it by saying that life will necessarily have hardships and obstacles, but in the end, his person is the one that his partner is going to count on. So, with its catchy rhythms, "You Can Count On Me" is overall a song about trust and loyalty in relationships.
Line by Line Meaning
Face of stone, and lips so cold
I may seem unapproachable or emotionless, but it's just a facade
A mask for all the world to see
I put on this front for everyone to see and it's not who I truly am
It's so hard to know what is real
The lines between reality and falsehood can blur and it's difficult to discern the truth
But baby, you can always count on me
However, you can rely on me to always be there for you
A prickly thorn, can bear a rose
Something that may appear unpleasant can have beauty within it
A sight for all of us to see
This duality can be observed by everyone
It seems that life is oh so strange
Life can be unpredictable and odd
But baby, you can always count on me
Despite the strange nature of life, I will always be here for you
Life's solutions, and illusions
Things that seem like solutions to our problems may actually be illusions or false promises
Things are seldom what they seem
Appearances can be deceiving and things are often not as they initially appear
Were surrounded by our confusions
Our own confusion can compound these misunderstandings
But baby, you can always count on me
Despite these uncertainties, you can trust me to always be there for you
There will be trials and tribulations
Life will present us with hardships and challenges
And heartaches yeah And miseries
These difficulties will cause us emotional pain and suffering
But when it's all over,
However, when we have made it through those tough times
You can always count on me.
You can be sure that I will still be there for you through it all.
Contributed by Stella C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@TheSterlpettis
Headphone on, Eyes closed, thinking back to when life was Easy and Fun... Sing it Charlie.. Classic!!
@artemise40
sterl pettis RIGHT ON MAN..✊🏿✊🏿
@byronlee4044
The best song ever by the Gap band that didn't become a major hit. I absolutely love this song.
@mabelv6650
My absolute FAVORITE Gap Band cut...the emotion that came thru Charlie Wilson's voice gets me every time smh
@ohara128
This song is such a great example of Charlie's true vocal talent. There are very few that could pull this off. Simply one of the best.
@kingporter67
Beautiful and a loving Gap Band song!!
@GloriaCurtis
This takes me back to their concert.
Great Memory. I Love The Gap Band
@TomKaren94
I absolutely wore out the vinyl track of this song, and the CD was in player for weeks at a time. I've been here numerous times, and this cut never gets old. What an incredible talent.
@larryhaywood4692
I can go to the car wash and play these tunes and. All the youngsters think its new smh lol.
@dragonmeddler2152
I like the '74 original and this later, more orchestral version with the strings and enhanced brass and backup vocals is beautiful, as well. It's a great piece of music, no matter what...