Living for the City: Difference between revisions
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{{Infobox single |
{{Infobox single |
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| Name = Living for the City |
| Name = Living for the City |
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"'''Living for the City'''" is a 1973 hit single by [[Stevie Wonder]] from his ''[[Innervisions]]'' album. |
"'''Living for the City'''" is a 1973 hit single by [[Stevie Wonder]] for the [[Tamla]] ([[Motown]]) label, from his ''[[Innervisions]]'' album. Reaching #8 on the [[Billboard Pop Singles]] chart and #1 on the [[Billboard Black Singles|R&B]] chart,<ref>{{cite book |title= Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004|last=Whitburn |first=Joel |authorlink=Joel Whitburn |year=2004 |publisher=Record Research |page=635}}</ref> the record is driven by a slow bass synth groove (provided by the enormous [[Tonto's Expanding Head Band|TONTO]] modular synthesiser) that manages to exude a certain amount of tension, an appropriate soundscape for the angry social commentary of the song. ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' ranked the song #105 on their list of the ''[[The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time|500 Greatest Songs of All Time]]''. |
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== Meaning == |
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The song begins with Wonder describing the life of a boy born in "hard time [[Mississippi]]". His family is poor, but his parents work hard and encourage him, in spite of the dreadful conditions they live in, which include lack of food and money, as well as [[racism]]. As the track progresses, the tension and anger build in Wonder's voice, matching the growing frustrations of the subjects in the song. |
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A spoken interlude midway through the song has the young boy, now a young man, arriving in New York City for a new beginning. He is tricked into transporting drugs, arrested and sentenced to 10 years in jail. The tension in Wonder's voice boils over at this point into an angry growl, but then subsides again as he ends the song on a positive note. In commercial radio airplay, the spoken dialog is usually edited out{{cn|date=June 2013}}, possibly because the word "nigger" is used as he is thrown into a jail cell. Also, the last two verses, following this scenario, are omitted as well.{{cn|date=June 2013}} |
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The spoken interlude can be seen as an electro-acoustic experiment, exploring the composer's main sensory input. Stevie Wonder's growling voice reveals the inner rage that has been building throughout the song, accentuating the social commentary of the lyrics. |
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"A boy is born in hard time Mississippi |
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Surrounded by four walls that ain't so pretty |
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His parents give him love and affection |
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To keep him strong moving in the right direction |
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Living just enough, just enough for the city...ee ha! |
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His father works some days for fourteen hours |
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And you can bet he barely makes a dollar |
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His mother goes to scrub the floor for many |
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And you'd best believe she hardly gets a penny |
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Living just enough, just enough for the city...yeah |
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His sister's black but she is sho 'nuff pretty |
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Her skirt is short but Lord her legs are sturdy |
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To walk to school she's got to get up early |
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Her clothes are old but never are they dirty |
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Living just enough, just enough for the city...um hum |
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Her brother's smart he's got more sense than many |
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His patience's long but soon he won't have any |
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To find a job is like a haystack needle |
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Cause where he lives they don't use colored people |
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Living just enough, just enough for the city... |
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Living just enough... |
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For the city...ooh,ooh |
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[repeat several times] |
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His hair is long, his feet are hard and gritty |
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He spends his love walking the streets of New York City |
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He's almost dead from breathing on air pollution |
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He tried to vote but to him there's no solution |
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Living just enough, just enough for the city...yeah, yeah, yeah! |
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I hope you hear inside my voice of sorrow |
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And that it motivates you to make a better tomorrow |
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This place is cruel no where could be much colder |
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If we don't change the world will soon be over |
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Living just enough, just enough for the city." |
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== Chart performance == |
== Chart performance == |
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==References== |
==References== |
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{{reflist}} |
{{reflist}} |
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==External links== |
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* {{MetroLyrics song|stevie-wonder|living-for-the-city}}<!-- Licensed lyrics provider --> |
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Revision as of 11:20, 6 March 2014
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (December 2011) |
| "Living for the City" | |
|---|---|
| Song | |
| B-side | "Visions" |
"Living for the City" is a 1973 hit single by Stevie Wonder for the Tamla (Motown) label, from his Innervisions album. Reaching #8 on the Billboard Pop Singles chart and #1 on the R&B chart,[1] the record is driven by a slow bass synth groove (provided by the enormous TONTO modular synthesiser) that manages to exude a certain amount of tension, an appropriate soundscape for the angry social commentary of the song. Rolling Stone ranked the song #105 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
Meaning
The song begins with Wonder describing the life of a boy born in "hard time Mississippi". His family is poor, but his parents work hard and encourage him, in spite of the dreadful conditions they live in, which include lack of food and money, as well as racism. As the track progresses, the tension and anger build in Wonder's voice, matching the growing frustrations of the subjects in the song.
A spoken interlude midway through the song has the young boy, now a young man, arriving in New York City for a new beginning. He is tricked into transporting drugs, arrested and sentenced to 10 years in jail. The tension in Wonder's voice boils over at this point into an angry growl, but then subsides again as he ends the song on a positive note. In commercial radio airplay, the spoken dialog is usually edited out[citation needed], possibly because the word "nigger" is used as he is thrown into a jail cell. Also, the last two verses, following this scenario, are omitted as well.[citation needed]
The spoken interlude can be seen as an electro-acoustic experiment, exploring the composer's main sensory input. Stevie Wonder's growling voice reveals the inner rage that has been building throughout the song, accentuating the social commentary of the lyrics.
"A boy is born in hard time Mississippi Surrounded by four walls that ain't so pretty His parents give him love and affection To keep him strong moving in the right direction Living just enough, just enough for the city...ee ha!
His father works some days for fourteen hours And you can bet he barely makes a dollar His mother goes to scrub the floor for many And you'd best believe she hardly gets a penny Living just enough, just enough for the city...yeah
His sister's black but she is sho 'nuff pretty Her skirt is short but Lord her legs are sturdy To walk to school she's got to get up early Her clothes are old but never are they dirty Living just enough, just enough for the city...um hum
Her brother's smart he's got more sense than many His patience's long but soon he won't have any To find a job is like a haystack needle Cause where he lives they don't use colored people Living just enough, just enough for the city... Living just enough... For the city...ooh,ooh [repeat several times]
His hair is long, his feet are hard and gritty He spends his love walking the streets of New York City He's almost dead from breathing on air pollution He tried to vote but to him there's no solution Living just enough, just enough for the city...yeah, yeah, yeah!
I hope you hear inside my voice of sorrow And that it motivates you to make a better tomorrow This place is cruel no where could be much colder If we don't change the world will soon be over Living just enough, just enough for the city."
Chart performance
| Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Pop Singles | 8 |
| U.S. Billboard Black Singles | 1 |
| U.K. Singles Chart | 15 |
References
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 635.
External links
| Studio albums | |
|---|---|
| Posthumous studio creations | |
| Live albums | |
| Notable compilations | |
| Billboard Hot 100 top 10 singles | |
| Other Billboard Charts #1 singles | |
| Grammy Awarded Works (not included above) | |
| See also | |