The group formed on December 25, 1970 with Randy Perry and his sisters Debbie and Libbi in Georgia. In the mid-80's, the group signed with former pianist for the Happy Goodman Family, Eddie Crook on his, then new, Morning Star Records label. Also during this time Libbi met and married Tracy Stuffle who would become the group's bass singer.
Eventually Debbie left the group to rear her family and the Perrys were joined by soprano singer Denise Helton. During this time the Perrys experienced enormous growth in their popularity with such songs as "I Remember The Day", "I'll Go On", "The Mountain", "He Knows How", "Get Involved", "This Is Just What Heaven Means To Me" (a remake of a classic Happy Goodman Family song) and "The Rock of Ages".
In the mid-90's, shortly after the release of the very popular "Grace" album, Randy Perry left the road to concentrate more on evangelistic work and Denise Helton would also leave the group to pursue other ventures. Nicole Watts and Barry Scott would come in to fill these spots. Barry Scott soon left the group and was replaced by Mike Bowling, a former member of the New Hinsons. In 1997, the group made a record label transition from their home of a dozen years, MorningStar Records, to Daywind records owned by Dottie Leonard Miller. They also signed an exclusive booking agreement with Harper and Associates. Their debut album on Daywind, "Crossings", included their first two #1 songs on the Singing News charts, "Not Even a Stone" and "By Faith I Can Touch Him Now."
Mike would also leave to join with the The Crabb Family and also pursue his own solo career; and Nicole Watts married and departed the group shortly after Mike's departure. David Hill joined the Perrys and held the lead position for approximately nine months. His only album with the group was, "Absolutely, Positively, Live!", which featured the #1 hit, "Praise God, It's Settled, I'm Saved." Loren Harris, formerly of the Wilburns, took the lead position shortly afterward. After Nicole's departure, this time marked a turning point for the Perrys.
Having always been a quartet consisting of two females and two males, the group was faced with a decision that many had been anticipating for some time. The group decided to not fill the position of Nicole Watts with another soprano but to turn that position over to a male- hence the hiring of baritone Curt Davis.The group has since became a 3 male, one female group and has gained very high status in the southern gospel community. After the departure of group pianist Dennis Horton in 2000, Adam Harman joined the group. Adam departed the group in 2002 to join the Dollywood based quartet, the Kingdom Heirs. It was during this time that the Perrys had their fourth #1 song, "I Rest My Case at the Cross" written by the great master songwriter Kyla Rowland. Justin Ellis, formerly of the Accords, took the pianist position and remained with the group until July 2004. In August 2003, Curt Davis resigned his baritone position with the Perrys. After the fill-in from the Perrys' producer Wayne Haun including National Quartet Convention 2003, the Perrys hired Joseph Habedank for the baritone position. Soon after Joseph Habedank joined the group, patriarch of the Perrys, George Perry, died in November 2003. Though this was a time of testing for Libbi and all of the Perrys, they managed to keep on singing for God's kingdom. After the departure of Justin Ellis to perform with the Crabb Family, the Perrys hired Matthew Holt as the group's pianist in September 2004 at the National Quartet Convention. It was around this time that the Perrys had their fifth and latest #1 song, "I Wish I Could Have Been There." Mr. Holt was hired as pianist approximately one day before the Perrys were awarded their first Singing News Fan Award for Favorite Mixed Quartet of the Year.
Fans and the Southern Gospel Music industry showed the Perrys support for their hard work by honoring them Singing News Fan Awards for the 2004, 2005, and 2006 Mixed Quartet Of The Year. The Perrys also received the Harmony Honors Awards for Favorite Album of the Year, This Is the Day, and for Favorite Song of the Year, I Wish I Could Have Been There written by Wayne Haun and Joel Lindsey. Libbi Perry Stuffle was awarded Singing News Fan Awards for the 2005 Female Vocalist and Alto Singer Of The Year and the 2006 Alto Singer of the Year. The Perrys were also awarded the Singing News Fan Award for Album of the Year in 2006 for their album Remembering the Happy Goodmans.
In August of 2006, the Perrys announced that longtime lead vocalist, Loren Harris, had resigned his position with the group in order to spend more time at home with his family. The decision was made by the Perrys to move Joseph Habedank to the vacant lead position and bring in Nick Trammell (son of legendary baritone Mark Trammell) to fill the baritone position. The first recording, entitled "Look No Further", under the new line-up was released in September 2007 at the National Quartet Convention. In addition to the release of the album, Nick Trammell received the Horizon Individual award by the Singing News Fans for 2007. Several months later in July 2008, Matthew Holt announced his departure from the group to pursue other interests. Bryan Elliott, formerly of the Anchormen and the Palmetto State Quartet, joined the Perrys as pianist in August 2008. His first concert with the group was August 8, 2008.
It was announced February 24 that Nick Trammell was departing as baritone singer. Former sound engineer Troy Peach was hired as Trammell's replacement. After Troy joined the vocal lineup of the Perrys, the group began work on a new album for Daywind Records. The album, "Almost Morning", features songs from the pens of Joseph Habedank, Rodney Griffin, Lonnie Combs, Kyla Rowland, Matthew Holt, Joel Lindsey, and Wayne Haun. Little did the group know that the first single, "If You Knew Him", would land the #1 position for December 2009 according to the Singing News magazine. In the meantime while at the 2009 National Quartet Convention, Libbi Perry Stuffle and Joseph Habedank were voted Favorite Alto and Favorite Young Artist respectively in the 2009 Singing News Fan Awards.
Wait
The Perrys Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
For the Love of Strange Medicine
(Columbia Records 44287)
1994 Street Talk Tunes, Lincoln Brewster Music,
Paul Taylor Music LTD, Jortunes)
(Steve Perry, Lincoln Brewster, Paul Taylor, Moyes Lucas,
J. Pierce, G. Hawkins)
Someone to hold on
Only a child
Someone to believe in
Only a child
Someone to love
Ah........
She was "17"
Beauty queen
I met her in a magazine
Heart of fire
Loves desire
Reachin' out
Higher, higher
Runaway
One more day
A broken hearted child at play
I pray for you
Baby blue
In the name of love
I reach for you
In the darkness comes
The evil of the night
Think about it
You better wait
Stop yourself before you fall
You better wait
Stop before you lose it all
Somewhere there's love
Oh somewhere, somewhere
Precious girl
Little pearl
Temptation is a lonely world
Eyes deceive
They believe
In everything they wanna see, yeah
And the neon lights
Reflect your life
Only you know
Where you hide baby
You better wait
Stop yourself before you fall
You better wait
Stop before you lose it all
'Cause somewhere there's love
You better wait
Stop before you start
Don't look back
Don't lose heart
(guitar solo)
Don't look
Don't look
Don't look back baby
Ah......
Don't
Ah......
Don't look
Don't look
Don't look back baby
The Perry’s song “Wait” is about a young girl who is struggling to find herself in a world full of temptation, and the singer is urging her to wait before making any hasty decisions. The song describes how the girl is just a child looking for someone to believe in, to love, and to hold on to. It highlights how she falls prey to the seductive nature of the world around her, represented by the neon lights, only to realize too late the consequences of her actions. The lyrics talk about how she is a beauty queen who came into the singer’s life through a magazine, and how he sees her as a broken-hearted child at play, who needs to hold on before she falls too far.
The song also touches on the themes of love and loss, as the singer urges the girl to stop before she loses it all. He sings that there is somewhere love out there for her and that she needs to stop herself before she falls. The chorus repeats the words “You better wait” multiple times to emphasize its message, and the guitar solo at the end drives the sentiment home.
In essence, “Wait” is a cautionary tale about the dangers of giving in to temptation and urges listeners to think twice before making any life-altering decisions.
Line by Line Meaning
She was only a child
She was young and naive
Someone to hold on
Someone to support and lean on
Only a child
Still a child and not yet grown
Someone to believe in
Someone to have faith in
Only a child
Still innocent and pure
Someone to love
Someone to care for deeply
She was '17'
She was a teenager
Beauty queen
A girl admired for her looks
I met her in a magazine
Saw her in a publication
Heart of fire
Intense passion
Loves desire
Strong romantic longing
Reachin' out
Reaching for something beyond herself
Higher, higher
Striving for something greater
Runaway
Escaping from reality
One more day
One more chance
A broken hearted child at play
A child pretending not to be heartbroken
I pray for you
Asking God to watch over her
Baby blue
Referring to her blue eyes
In the name of love
For the sake of love
I reach for you
Trying to connect with her emotionally
In the darkness comes
During dark times
The evil of the night
The negativity present in the darkness
Think about it
Reflect on it
You better wait
Take your time
Stop yourself before you fall
Stop and think before making a mistake
Stop before you lose it all
Stop before losing everything
Somewhere there's love
Hopeful that love exists somewhere
Precious girl
A girl worth cherishing
Little pearl
A young girl shining brightly
Temptation is a lonely world
Giving in to temptation can lead to loneliness
Eyes deceive
Appearances can be misleading
They believe
Believing what they want to believe
In everything they wanna see, yeah
Seeing only what they desire
And the neon lights
All the flashy lights around her
Reflect your life
Reveal the reality of her situation
Only you know
The truth is known only to her
Where you hide baby
Where she goes to escape from the world
'Cause somewhere there's love
Reminding her that love still exists
Stop before you start
Think before beginning something
Don't look back
Don't dwell on the past
Don't lose heart
Don't give up hope
(guitar solo)
Instrumental interlude
Don't
A warning against doing something
Ah......
Vocal expression of emotion
Don't look
Don't gaze upon something
Don't look
Repeated warning to not look
Don't look back baby
Don't look back on previous mistakes or choices
Lyrics © Wixen Music Publishing, BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Stephen Ray Perry, Lincoln Lee Brewster, Paul Taylor, Moyes Lucas Jr., George M. Hawkins, John Pierce
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Deron Orbison
on Come On And Join Us
Question: What Are The "ABSOLUTELY POSITIVELY" (Live) Song (Lyrics) To: The (Song:) "ABSOLUTELY POSITIVELY" (By) THE PERRYS? I Would Really Like To Have The (Lyrics) To That Song. That Song Really Excites Me. It Really Does. Dear (LIBBI,) Of THE PERRYS, I Have A NEW email Address Of (My Own) On My (MOM'S Computer. LIBBI, Please email Me (Individually) The (Lyrics) To "ABSOLUTELY POSITIVELY" Being Performed (Live!) Okay? THANK YOU LIBBI. (DERON ORBISON) From KANNAPOLIS, NORTH CAROLINA (CABARRUS COUNTY) LIBBI, My NEW (email) Is: dlorace1987@windstream.net