Toots and The Maytals are from Kingston, Jamaica. It was the producer Byron Lee who 1971 renamed them Toots & the Maytals. Frederick "Toots" Hibbert, the leader of the group and the lead singer, 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 drug possession charges.
Following Hibbert's release from jail towards the end of 1967, the band 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" 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.
Toots and the Maytals' compositions 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.
In 2005, the band won a Grammy award for best reggae album for True Love, consisting of re-recorded versions of their classics alongside legendary musicians such as Bonnie Raitt, Willie Nelson, Eric Clapton, and Keith Richards, as well as popular artists such as No Doubt, Ben Harper, The Roots, and Shaggy.
They also contributed to the Easy Star All-Stars album 'Radiodread' (a dub tribute to Radiohead's OK Computer).
In 2016 Toots and the Maytals announced a return to the stage with their first tour in 3 years,[35] and on June 15 at The Observatory North Park in San Diego the group returned to the stage for the first time since 2013.
In 2017 Toots and the Maytals played Coachella Fest April 16 and 23 at 4:20 pm. They became the second reggae-based group to perform at the Coachella festival, after Chronixx in 2016.
In 2018, Toots and the Maytals launched a 50th anniversary tour with concert appearances in North America from April to August, moving to dates in the UK starting in October.
On July 25, 2018 Toots and the Maytals debuted an original song entitled "Marley" live on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, and also played the classic "Funky Kingston".
On August 24, 2018 Toots and the Maytals performed at Lockn’ Festival in Arrington, Virginia, where guest Taj Mahal accompanied them on the song “Monkey Man”.
Frontman "Toots" Hibbert died on 12 September 2020.
Gonna Need Somebody [
Toots and The Maytals Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
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
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
The lyrics to Toots and The Maytals’ song Gonna Need Somebody discuss the emotional turmoil caused by a toxic and manipulative relationship. The singer is deeply in love with their partner but is constantly left in tears due to their partner’s unpredictable and hurtful behavior. The partner enjoys having the power over the singer, as evidenced by telling them to always wait for them, and lies to them despite professing their love. The singer is left feeling like they are losing their mind due to the emotional abuse.
The singer eventually reaches their breaking point and decides to move on from the relationship, stating that they are “sick and tired of wasting my time.” They try to reach out to their partner but are met with disappointment as they are not able to make contact. The singer is left feeling powerless and desires someone who will treat them with love and respect.
Overall, the lyrics to “Gonna Need Somebody” address the painful experience of being in a toxic relationship and the importance of recognizing when it’s time to move on in search of happiness.
Line by Line Meaning
Every morning, every night you make me cry
You make me cry all the time, day and night.
Just because you know I love you
You purposely make me cry because you're aware I love you.
You told me to always wait for you there
You instructed me to wait for you at a particular place all the time.
Want me to lose my mind?
Are you trying to drive me crazy?
Then I'll start my crying around
If you want to make me suffer, I'll make sure to cry no matter where I happen to be.
All I do is cry while you just sit and you lie
I'm constantly crying and you're just sitting there lying to me.
You told me you really loved me
You claimed to genuinely love me.
You loved me, loved me, loved me, loved me true
You repeatedly emphasized that you truly loved me.
Sick and tired of wasting my time
I'm fed up with wasting my time on you.
Called you on the phone and you was not at home
I called you on the phone but you were not at home.
That's too bad
That's unfortunate.
You got me way deep down in a soul
You've got me completely caught up in your soul.
That can make you more
That could lead to even more suffering.
Gonna need somebody now
I'm going to need someone else now.
Need somebody true
I need someone who is genuine and honest.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: FREDERICK HIBBERT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind