Category: Culture

Opening Lyrics To Songs That I Love

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Bonus: Anita Baker, I Apologize

Operator, get my baby on the line/
‘Cause just the other night we had a horrible fight/
I admit that I, I was out of control/
But I still love my man with my body and soul/

Anita Baker, I Apologize via YouTube

This has been one of my favorite segments on my blog in a very long time! Thank you for joining me for Opening Lyrics to Songs That I Love!

“I Apologize” is a song by American recording artist Anita Baker, released in October 1994 as the second single from her fifth album, Rhythm of Love (1994). The song peaked at number eight on the US Billboard Hot R&B Singles chart and number 74 on the Billboard Hot 100. It won her a Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.

“I Apologize” entered Billboard‘s Hot R&B Airplay chart on November 5, 1994, and rose up to number 5 at the end of February 1995. The song hit number 1 on Billboard‘s Adult R&B Airplay chart on February 4, 1995, spending 38 weeks on the chart. At the same time, the song peaked at number 8 on the R&B chart.[1] In the UK, “I Apologize” broke into the pop singles chart at number 80 on July 2, 1995, and dropped out the next week.[2]

British magazine Music Week gave the song three out of five, writing, “Baker goes jungle? But her strong vocals retain the original feel of these tracks, creating a soulful jungle splice-up.”[3] Chuck Campbell from Knoxville News Sentinel felt that here, the singer “glides into the subtlety of a more refined arrangement”.[4] Jonathan Bernstein from Spin declared it as “a request-line perennial-in-the-making”.[5]—Wikipedia

If you’ve watched the video, I should not have to say much about this song. It’s soft. It’s mellow. It’s beautifully arranged. And Anita’s voice is the Chef’s kiss. Everything it needs to be, it is, and I appreciate its classic and timeless existence. I always will.

Thank you for joining me on this musical journey. It has been fun sharing some of my favorite songs and their captivating opening lyrics.

catastrophic love & have we come far enough?

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Two poems shared on Substack notes

catastrophic love

his blithesome
demeanor captured
me.

I lost all of my
selves swimming
in the depths of his
eyes.

I was disruption;
a distraction…
we bombed before
we could elevate.

catastrophic love.

have we come far enough?

although I am the
eldest child, if this
were the 1500s or
I was of royal blood,
my arrival to first
would mean
nothing because the
next born has the
package; male
primogeniture cut me
to the quick.

imagine being the
first, most
dependable, always
responsible, and a
doer without being
prompted, yet your
earned position in
life depends on
what’s between your
legs.

that’s not a life I
would have enjoyed
living, but when I
assess modern
times and the fight
women constantly
battle, the system
is still rigged to
embrace the least
educated, the most
aggressive, and the
overly-praised, so…

how far have we
come, really?

Have you gotten your copy of my new book: a collection of serial tales & flash fiction, Séduire (E-Book and Paperback) yet?

I recently signed up to write on Substack as well. Poking the Bear’s Belly for Fun is a place of healing as I speak about the most recent events with my place of employment, as it pertains to racism and discrimination. I welcome your visit.

Opening Lyrics To Songs That I Love

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#10: Sam Smith & Kim Petras, Unholy

Lucky, Lucky Girl, she got married/
To a boy like you/
She’d kick you out if she ever, ever knew/
‘Bout all the shit you/
Tell me that you do/

Sam Smith & Kim Petras, Unholy. YouTube, via Vevo

This will probably be my favorite segment on my blog in a very long time! Welcome to Opening Lyrics to Songs That I Love!

“Unholy” is a song by British singer Sam Smith and German singer Kim Petras. It was released on 22 September 2022 through EMI Records and Capitol Records as the second single from Smith’s fourth studio album Gloria (2023) and as a bonus track on Petras’ debut studio album Feed the Beast (2023). It was teased by Smith on their TikTok account a month before its release and went viral due to its use in thirst trap-style videos. Produced by Ilya, Omer Fedi, Blake Slatkin, Jimmy Napes, and Cirkut and written by them alongside Smith and Petras, “Unholy” is a sexually charged electropop, dance-pop, and synth-pop song with choral and hyperpop influences. It uses the Phrygian dominant scale and its lyrics are about a family man who cheats on his wife at a strip club.

“Unholy” received mostly positive reception from critics, many of whom considered the song a standout from Gloria and praised its sound as catchy yet unusual, while others found the song less transgressive than it was intended to be and criticized Petras’s verse. —Wikipedia

Sam Smith is such a versatile artist. I am taken aback by the range he displays musically, and he never ceases to amaze with his song arrangements and the collaborators he chooses. This song has a banger for a beat; instrumentally, it could stand alone and still get all the accolades it has accumulated.

I blast this baby at wild decibels every time I hear it. I make no apologies for it.

If I can feel the music and the lyrics speak to me, too, you’ve instantly lasso’d me in as a fan.

Thank you for joining me on this musical journey. I said I would share 10 songs and their opening lyrics; however, I feel like a bonus song should be shared. And it will be–next week!

See you then!

Laughter Is STILL the Best Medicine

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And the cure-all to what’s ailing me

EJ Speaks YouTube Channel

No matter how heavy & hectic my day has been or how the drama of the world gets me down, EJ never fails to make me laugh. And I love her for this!

Have you gotten your copy of my new book: a collection of serial tales & flash fiction, Séduire (E-Book and Paperback) yet?

I recently signed up to write on Substack as well. Poking the Bear’s Belly for Fun is a place of healing as I speak about the most recent events with my place of employment, as it pertains to racism and discrimination. I welcome your visit.

T-Shirt Message #4

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Encouraging messages that have been AI-generated as I grow through the messes and joys of life.

AI-Generated Image: A young White girl wearing glasses with blonde shoulder-length hair, brown eyes. She is also wearing a shirt that says, “Let’s Help One Another Toward Greatness.” Created with Canva. T-Shirt Message #4

“Those who are happiest are those who do the most for others.” – Booker T. Washington 

“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is: What are you doing for others?” – Martin Luther King, Jr.

Have you gotten your copy of my new book: a collection of serial tales & flash fiction, Séduire (E-Book and Paperback) yet?

I recently signed up to write on Substack as well. Poking the Bear’s Belly for Fun is a place of healing as I speak about the most recent events with my place of employment, as it pertains to racism and discrimination. I welcome your visit.

Opening Lyrics To Songs That I Love

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#8: Marvin Gaye, You Sure Love to Ball

Oh, baby, please turn yourself around/
Oh, baby, so I can love you good/
Oh, baby, I’ll make you feel so good/
Aw, sugar, just like you want me to/

Marvin Gaye: You Sure Love to Ball. YouTube

This will probably be my favorite segment on my blog in a very long time! Welcome to Opening Lyrics to Songs That I Love!

“You Sure Love to Ball” is a song released by Marvin Gaye on January 2, 1974. It was the third and final single released from his album “Let’s Get It On”.

The song was issued as a single on January 2, 1974. Initial radio airplay was good enough for the song to peak at 13 on the Hot Soul Singles chart and 50 on the Billboard Hot 100.[4] However, “You Sure Love to Ball” soon peaked out allegedly due to the controversial nature of the track, making the song the least successful of the three tracks released on Let’s Get It On. Its b-side included the solemn ballad closer of the album, “Just to Keep You Satisfied”. –Wikipedia

I find it hard to believe this song couldn’t reach the top ten of any musical chart-topping list. Sure, the lyrics are sensual and overwhelmingly sexy, but this is Marvin Gaye. People were used to his overuse of sexually-charged songs.

Not only that, the melody is catchy and the chorus is unforgettable. If I want to take it further, I’d say even the instrumental is worth listening to repeatedly.

And if I’m willing to listen to an instrumental over and over again, that tells you a lot about the actual song.

Marvin was strategic in developing and crafting his lyrics and took his presentation of them seriously. He played up shows and wooed the panties off women faster than a bullet train. The man was a gift to creating music for baby-making.

Don’t believe me? Listen to this song. The opening lyrics are enough to reel you in. The rest of the song will keep you in its grip.

For the next two Sundays, I’ll share with you my favorite opening lyrics to songs I truly love. Maybe you’ll enjoy it. Maybe you won’t. Perhaps you’ll share your favorite opening lyrics to songs you love as well. Perhaps you won’t. Either way, we’re going to have a good damn time.

See you next week!