Gypsy Woman
The Impressions Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

From nowhere through a caravan
Around the campfire light
A lovely woman in motion
With hair as dark as night
Her eyes were like that of a cat in the dark
That hypnotized me with love

She was a gypsy woman,
She was a gypsy woman

She danced around and round to a guitar melody
From the fire her face was all aglow
How she enchanted me
Oh, how I'd like to hold her near
And kiss and forever whisper in her ear

I love you, gypsy woman
I love you, gypsy woman

All through the caravan
She was dancing with all the men
Waiting for the rising sun
Everyone was having fun
I hate to see the lady go
Knowing she'll never know
That I love her, I love her





She was a gypsy woman
A gypsy woman, a gypsy woman, a gypsy woman

Overall Meaning

The Impressions' song Gypsy Woman is a classic soulful ballad that speaks of a man's enchantment with a mysterious gypsy woman. The song begins by describing the woman's arrival, seemingly out of nowhere, through a caravan. She dances around a campfire to the tune of a guitar melody and the man is captivated by her beauty. The woman's hair is as dark as night and her eyes are described as those of a cat in the dark, which hypnotizes the man with love.


The song's chorus repeats the phrase "She was a gypsy woman", representing the woman's free-spirited and mystical nature. Throughout the song, the man expresses his desire to hold her near, kiss her, and tell her he loves her. However, the woman dances with all the men in the caravan, and the man knows deep down that she will never know of his love for her. The song comes to a bittersweet end, as the man notes how he hates to see her go, but accepts that their paths will never cross again.


Overall, the song speaks to the universal human experience of falling in love with someone unattainable, with whom one can only share a fleeting moment in time. The gypsy woman represents a free-spiritedness that the man finds intriguing and irresistible, but ultimately unattainable.


Line by Line Meaning

From nowhere through a caravan
A woman of mystery appeared out of nowhere as she passed through a group of traveling caravans.


Around the campfire light
The woman was present when the caravan members gathered around their campfire.


A lovely woman in motion
The woman had graceful and captivating movements.


With hair as dark as night
The woman's hair was as dark as the night sky.


Her eyes were like that of a cat in the dark
The woman's eyes shone like that of a cat's eyes in the dark, captivating the person looking into them.


That hypnotized me with love
The person was deeply enamored by the woman, feeling as though they were under a spell of love and attraction.


She was a gypsy woman,
The woman was described as a gypsy, implying she was from a nomadic group of people and had a certain sense of mystery and magic to her.


She danced around and round to a guitar melody
The woman danced to the music being played by a guitar around the campfire.


From the fire her face was all aglow
The light from the fire illuminated the woman's face and made it look radiant.


How she enchanted me
The woman's beauty and captivating movements mesmerized the person telling the story.


Oh, how I'd like to hold her near
The person felt a strong desire to be close to the woman and hold her.


And kiss and forever whisper in her ear
The person wanted to express their love and affection to the woman by whispering sweet nothings in her ear.


I love you, gypsy woman
The person declares their love for the woman, calling her by the term that encapsulates her mysterious nature.


All through the caravan
The woman danced with all the people in the caravan.


She was dancing with all the men
The woman was seen dancing with all the male members of the caravan.


Waiting for the rising sun
The caravan was waiting for the morning sun to rise so they can continue their journey.


Everyone was having fun
The caravan members were enjoying themselves and having a good time.


I hate to see the lady go
The person telling the story feels sadness at the thought of the woman leaving.


Knowing she'll never know
The person is aware that the woman will never know of their feelings or love towards her.


That I love her, I love her
The person reaffirms their love for the woman, knowing that it will remain unrequited.


She was a gypsy woman
The song ends with a repeat of the line that introduced the mysterious woman, emphasizing her captivating and magical nature.




Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Curtis L Mayfield

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

Genre not found
Artist not found
Album not found
Song not found
Most interesting comments from YouTube:

@rogerrrubin

From nowhere through a caravan
Around the campfire light
A lovely woman in motion
With hair as dark as night
Her eyes were like that of a cat in the dark
That hypnotized me with love

She was a gypsy woman,
She was a gypsy woman

She danced around and round to a guitar melody
From the fire her face was all aglow
How she enchanted me
Oh, how I'd like to hold her near
And kiss and forever whisper in her ear

I love you, gypsy woman
I love you, gypsy woman

All through the caravan
She was dancing with all the men
Waiting for the rising sun
Everyone was having fun
I hate to see the lady go
Knowing she'll never know
That I love her, I love her

She was a gypsy woman
A gypsy woman, a gypsy woman, a gypsy woman



@smokinjz

From nowhere through the caravan
Round the campfire light
A lovely woman in motion
With hair as dark as night
Her eyes were like that of a cat in the dark
That hypnotized me with love
She was a gypsy woman
She was a gypsy woman
She danced around and round
To a guitar melody
From the fire her face was aglow
How she enchanted me
Oh how I'd like to hold her near
And kiss and forever whisper in her ear
I love you gypsy woman
I love you gypsy woman
All through the caravan
She was dancing with all the men
Waiting for the rising sun
Everyone was having fun
I hate to see the lady go
Knowing she will never know
That I love her
That I love her
Gypsy woman
She was gypsy woman
Gypsy woman
Gypsy woman
All through the caravan
She was dancing with all the men
Waiting for the rising sun
Everyone was having fun
I hate to see the lady go
Knowing she will never know
That I love her
I love her
Gypsy woman
Gypsy woman
She was gypsy woman
Gypsy woman
She was gypsy woman
She was gypsy woman



@sauquoit13456

On this day in 1961 {December 24th} "Gypsy Woman"* by the Impressions peaked at #2 {for 1 week} on Billboard's Hot R&B Singles chart, for the week it was at #2, the #1 record for that week was "Please Mr. Postman" by the Marvelettes...
"Gypsy Woman" peaked at #20 on Billboard's Top 100 chart...
Between 1958 and 1987 the Chicago-based soul group had forty-six records on the Billboard's R&B chart, fifteen made the Top 10 with three reaching #1, "It's All right" for two weeks in November of 1963, "Choice of Colors" for one week in August of 1969, and "Finally Got Myself Together (I'm A Changed Man)" for two weeks in June of 1974...
Curtis Mayfield, who left the group in 1970, passed away at the young age of 57 on December 26th, 1999...
May he R.I.P.
* "Gypsy Woman" was the group's only #2 record, but they had six records peak at #3...
And from the 'For What's It Worth' department, the remainder of the Hot R&B Singles Top 10 on December 24th, 1961:
At #3. "Turn On Your Love Light" by Bobby Bland
#4. "Soothe Me" by the Sims Twins
#5. "Just Got To Know" by Jimmy McCracklin
#6. "I Know" by Barbara George
#7. "Lost Someone" by James Brown and the Famous Flames
#8. "Unchain My Heart" by Ray Charles
#9. "In The Dark" by 'Little' Junior Parker
#10. "There's No Other (Like My Baby)" by the Crystals



All comments from YouTube:

@cedricliggins7528

Pure Genius. RIP Mr Mayfield. Your voice and messages are sorely missed.

@bellestarr4040

Take me back to better day

@johnconway9882

The "Gentle Genius" as he was known 🙂

@paulblawie2616

Curtis Mayfield's haunting tenor gives me chills to this day - truly a genius who gifted us this rare gem.

@darrenringer9811

In the words of Wayne and Garth, we're not worthy.

@dudleylowe3831

HAUNTING VOICE: ABSOLUTELY CORRECT, A TRUE WORDSMITH 👍

@mcclendonreport

So mystical and mysterious, enchanting and enthralling. I remember this as a toddler. And I kept playing the record through my teen years. The sound is so well arranged; the bass singer, the harmony and Curtis' silky voice. Black music has got to get back to this kind of rarefied air. Absolutely sublime.

@waaziz2008

when this song was released, the Gypsies of Eastern Europe tried every way possible to bring the Impressions to their part of the world to sing this tune. In 1981, Curtis Mayfield and his band, sans the Impressions, gave a series of concerts in Eastern Europe, to the delight of the local populations of that region. Whether you like this version or not, it shows the beauty and attraction that good music has everywhere!

@josephleone8054

We sang this song so many times on hot summer nights, under the street lamps of Audobon Park to street corner Acapella harmony. The word means “without music” in singer’s harmony. At times harmony, in the right notes sounded as if there was music, none was needed, at least we thought. To have the soul of these African American singers was a trend from NY to LA across the USA. The first time I heard a group I was 9 or 10, from my block, mostly Italian and African American. I was so taken i got some friends years later and sang and drank all night.

@TheGoodWitchLolipop

​@@josephleone8054 I am that black cat! That gypsy woman! The Dark Crystal!That Dark Stone of Light! That Good Witch Lolipop! Be Blessed!

More Comments

More Versions