Right on Young Americans
1972 · RCA Victor 74-0650 · New York City, New York
- Artist
- Percy Mayfield
- Title
- Right on Young Americans
- Release
- Right on Young Americans / The Devil Made Me Do It
- Year
- 1972
- Label
- RCA Victor # 74-0650
- Format
- 7" · Single
- Language
- English
- Country
- New York City, New York, USA
- Songwriter
- Percy Mayfield
- Genre
- Blues · Soul · Blues
- Primary theme
- Peace, Protest & Anti-War
Annotation
Right On Young Americans (Mayfield, Percy) Soul/funk, protest. Born Minden, Louisiana, USA (12 August 1920) Died Los Angeles, California, USA (11 August 1984) Reference to protesters. Respect for their views. Vietnam-ers
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Annotation — Blues songs
Percy Mayfield, Electric Blues and Soul artist, born in Minden, Louisiana, USA (12 August 1920), and died in Los Angeles, California, USA (11 August 1984). The song "Right On Young Americans" (RCA Records # 74-0650) calls for respecting the views of the protesters and the younger generation, a nice reflection of the Vietnam-era generation gap: "talking to the students on campus... nobody want to listen to what they have to say".
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English: Wake up please America, you're the greatest / If you don't hurry up I said, we'll be the latest / Well... treatment our fellow man wrong, making some wishing they'd never been born / Make law, break law... we need to hurry up, get on our knees... / People killing one another, won't be nobody left to fight / I was talking to the students on campus one day / But nobody want to listen to what they have to say / Common sense... time marches on / The world being young... / You'll wake up one morning, be has-been overnight... / Right on young America / When you're in power, let me fade in style / Wake up please America... / So right on young American, it will be yours after a while...
Notes
RCA 74-0650 (APKM-5705), "Plug – Mono – Not for Sale" promo; "Right On Young Americans" (Mayfield), from the "Blues - And Then Some" album, 2:50 with a :10 intro, fade ending, Bucrenlis Music, BMI; arranged and conducted by Bert De Coteaux; produced by Getto Kitty Prod. Inc. (cat logo on label). Yellow RCA label in an RCA rainbow-and-clouds company sleeve (© 1971 RCA Records). [From the record sleeve and labels]
About the artist
Born 12 August 1920, Minden, Louisiana, USA. Died 11 August 1984, Los Angeles, California, USA