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).
Know Me Good
Toots & The Maytals Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Know me, know me, know me, know me good
This is my time, my time, my time, yeah
This is my time and I am feeling fine, yeah
This is my six, my six, my six, six, yeah
So you can see how I am feeling fine, yeah
Know me, know me, know me, know me good
Come dance with me while you are so free, yeah
You will see how happy we will be, yeah
This is my six, my six, and my nine, sixty nine
So you can see how I am feeling fine, yeah
Know me, know me, know me, know me good
He's my papa, he's my papa, he's my papa
He's my papa, he's my papa, mama
In the lyrics to Toots & The Maytals' song "Know Me Good," the singer states that someone "sure do know me good," suggesting that this person has a deep understanding of the singer's personality or identity. The repetition of "know me" emphasizes the importance of the understanding between the two individuals. The second stanza speaks to the singer's current state of being, declaring that it's their time to shine and that they are feeling good. The line "this is my six, my six, my six" is open to interpretation but could refer to the number six being associated with balance and harmony in some spiritual belief systems.
The third stanza encourages the listener to dance with the singer and enjoy themselves freely. The mention of the numbers "six" and "nine," with the latter being upside-down in the lyrics as "sixty-nine," is a nod to sexual intimacy between the two people. The repetition of "know me good" at the end of the song implies that the sexual encounter has deepened their understanding of each other even further.
Overall, it seems that the song is about two people deepening their connection and being completely open with each other physically and mentally. The lyrics suggest that this level of openness leads to a greater understanding and enjoyment of one another.
Line by Line Meaning
You sure do know me
The singer is acknowledging that the person he is addressing knows him well
Know me, know me, know me, know me good
Repeating that the person knows him well
This is my time, my time, my time, yeah
The singer is emphasizing that this is his moment to shine
This is my time and I am feeling fine, yeah
He is feeling good about himself and his situation
This is my six, my six, my six, six, yeah
He is making a reference to a specific number, possibly his lucky number
So you can see how I am feeling fine, yeah
He is explaining that the specific number he mentioned earlier is tied to his current mood
Come dance with me while you are so free, yeah
The singer is inviting someone to dance with him while they are both feeling carefree
You will see how happy we will be, yeah
He is promising that they will have a good time dancing together
This is my six, my six, and my nine, sixty nine
He is now referencing two numbers, possibly to suggest a sexual connotation
So you can see how I am feeling fine, yeah
He is still tying his mood to the numbers he has mentioned
He's my papa, he's my papa, he's my papa
The singer is repeating that someone referred to as "papa" belongs to him
He's my papa, he's my papa, mama
He is possibly indicating that his mother is somehow involved with the "papa" figure
Know me, know me, know me, know me good
Repeating again that the person he is addressing knows him well
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: FREDERICK HIBBERT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind