Originally called simply The Maytals, are considered legends of ska and reg… Read Full Bio ↴Originally called simply The Maytals, are considered legends of ska and reggae music. They are from Kingston, Jamaica. Their sound is a unique, original combination of gospel, ska, soul, reggae and rock. Frederick "Toots" Hibbert, the leader of the group, was born in May Pen in the Parish of Clarendon, Jamaica. He was the youngest of seven children. He grew up singing gospel music in a church choir, but moved to Kingston in 1961 at the age of sixteen.

In Kingston, he met Henry "Raleigh" Gordon and Nathaniel "Jerry" McCarthy, forming a group whose early recordings were attributed to "The Flames" and, possibly, "The Vikings". Having renamed the group the Maytals, the vocal trio recorded their first album, "Never Grow Old - presenting the Maytals", for producer Clement "Coxsone" Dodd at Studio One in 1962-63. With musical backing from Dodd's house band, the legendary Skatalites, the Maytals' close-harmony gospel singing ensured instant success for the 1964 release, overshadowing Dodd's other up-and-coming gospel trio, The Wailers. The original album augmented by studio out-takes from the Studio One sessions was re-released by Heartbeat/Rounder Records in 1997, and is essential listening for Maytals and Skatalites fans.

After staying at Studio One for about two years, the group moved on to do sessions for Prince Buster (released in 1974) before recording their second album produced by Byron Lee in 1965. However, the band's musical career was rudely interrupted in late 1966 when Hibbert was arrested and imprisoned on drugs possession charges.

Following Hibbert's release from jail towards the end of 1967, the band officially changed their name to Toots and the Maytals and began working with Chinese-Jamaican producer Leslie Kong, a collaboration which produced three classic albums and a string of hits throughout the late sixties and early seventies - "Do the Reggay", a 1968 single widely credited with coining the word reggae, "Pressure Drop", "54-46 was my number" and "Monkey Man", the group's first international hit in 1970. The group was featured in one of reggae's greatest breakthrough events - The Harder They Come, the 1972 film and soundtrack starring Jimmy Cliff.

Following Kong's death in 1971, the group continued to record with Kong's former sound engineer, Warwick Lyn; produced by Lyn and Chris Blackwell of Island Records, the group released three best-selling albums, and enjoyed international hits with "Funky Kingston" in 1973 and "Reggae Got Soul" in 1976.

The compositions of Toots & the Maytals (also known as Toots and the Maytals) would be given a second airing in 1978-80 during the reggae-punk and ska revival period in the UK, when the Specials included "Monkey Man" on their 1979 debut album and the Clash produced their version of "Pressure Drop", with other Maytals' covers being recorded by Sublime. Having toured throughout the world for many years, Toots and the Maytals disbanded in the early 1980s, but reformed in the early 90s to continue touring and recording successfully.

The band recently won the 2005 Grammy award for reggae for the album True Love, an album consisting of re-recorded versions of their classics alongside popular and legendary musicians such as Bonnie Raitt, Willie Nelson, Eric Clapton, and Keith Richards, as well as popular artists today such as No Doubt, Ben Harper, The Roots, and Shaggy.

They also contributed to the album 'Radiodread' (a tribute to Radiohead's OK Computer).

Gonna Need Somebody
Toots & The Maytals Lyrics

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Every morning, every night you make me cry
Just because you know I love you
You told me to always wait for you there
Want me to lose my mind?

Then I'll start my crying around
All I do is cry while you just sit and you lie
You told me you really loved me

You loved me, loved me, loved me, loved me true

Want me to lose my mind?
Then I'll start my mind around
Sick and tired of wasting my time
Called you on the phone and you was not at home

That's too bad
You got me way deep down in a soul
That can make you more

Gonna need somebody now
Need somebody true

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Toots & The Maytals's song "Gonna Need Somebody" seem to describe a tumultuous and dysfunctional relationship where the singer is constantly made to cry by their partner but can't help their love for them. The partner in question seems to give mixed signals, telling the singer to always wait for them and professing their love for them, but also lying and being unavailable when called. The singer is tired of wasting their time and being hurt by this person, and it seems like they're finally ready to move on and find somebody who will be true to them. The repetition of the line "Want me to lose my mind?" seems to suggest that the singer is feeling overwhelmed and possibly even on the brink of losing their sanity due to the stress of the relationship.

Overall, the song paints a vivid picture of the emotional toll that a toxic relationship can take on a person. It's clear that the singer is deeply invested in their partner, but they're also aware that this person can't be relied on and is causing them a great deal of pain. The repeated demands of "Gonna need somebody now/Need somebody true" at the end of the song suggest that the singer is ready to move on and find somebody who will treat them better and be there for them in a genuine way.

Gonna Need SomebodyToots & The Maytals Lyrics

Gonna Need Somebody
Toots & The Maytals Lyrics