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Yeah. I’m amateurish. I can play enough to write a song, or strum on a little guitar to write out a song. But, I don’t play well at all. I wouldn’t even attempt for a second to play in public.

Ben E. King

It doesn’t take me long to write songs.
BEN E. KING

Long Song Writing
When I got involved with The Five Crowns who later became The Drifters, and we got this hit record, I still was looking at this as kind of a fun thing.
BEN E. KING

Crowns Fun Records
I don’t care what studio I’m in, I don’t care what producers is producing it and I don’t care what song it is because they taught me those things I feel so protected wherever I go as far as music.
BEN E. KING

Care Song Taught
The Phil Spector that I would meet has always been a nice, quiet, little guy who’s very serious about his work; obviously you can tell that because each and everything he’s ever done has always been charted.
BEN E. KING

Done Guy Nice
I’m a songwriter. So I’m OK. But when I wrote “Stand By Me” as a song and to know that the song will probably be here for hundred and hundreds of years to come, it’s great, you know. And it was just simple lyrics.
BEN E. KING

Simple Song Years
You take a chance to do something and you realize in your heart it’s either going to be the greatest thing that ever happened or the worst thing that ever happened. It won’t be an in between, I almost made a hit. It will be an instant flop or an instant success.
BEN E. KING

Chance Heart Realizing
And, because there was an honesty about all that was going on. It connected with the people in the street.
BEN E. KING

Honesty People Streets
When the night has come and the land is dark and the moon is the only light we see. No, I won’t be afraid, no, I won’t be afraid, just as long as you stand, stand by me.
BEN E. KING

Dark Friendship Moon
I still perform it in all my shows. I’ll do it as long as I’m breathing. I’m so proud it has stood the test of time.
BEN E. KING

Breathing Long Proud
I still think my whole career was accidental. I didn’t pursue it. I feel like I’m cheating sometimes.
BEN E. KING

Career Cheating Thinking
Yeah. I’m amateurish. I can play enough to write a song, or strum on a little guitar to write out a song. But, I don’t play well at all. I wouldn’t even attempt for a second to play in public.
BEN E. KING

Guitar Song Writing
It’s a different thing when you go into a studio and you record with the intent of going somewhere and you’re marketing yourself for that direction.
BEN E. KING

Different Marketing Records
One of the hardest things in the world is to perform on record and get someone to enjoy and feel what you’re doing. It’s unlike, like TV you can, you can fake it with the face and the crying and the bits. Recording is completely different.
BEN E. KING

Different Fake Record
Many times I’ve gone on tours with Paul Anka. He would have someone sitting behind him to keep people from even talking to him. You were almost in a little restricted area there.
BEN E. KING

Gone People Talking
I do like what Alicia Keys and John Legend are doing. With their music, you keep your clothes on.
BEN E. KING

Clothes Keys Legends
It’s something that, songwriters just write songs. It’s like an artist that paints. They paint what they feel. It’s not, it’s not about how many of these painting I’ll sell it’s just how they feel at the moment. And that’s how I wrote “Stand By Me”.
BEN E. KING

Artist Paint Painting Sell Songwriter
If the sky that we look upon should tumble and fall. Or the mountain should crumble to the sea. I won’t cry, no I won’t shed a tear, just as long as you stand by me.
BEN E. KING

Fall Friendship Sea
I always felt I never chose music, it chose me.
BEN E. KING

Chose Felt Music
It never dawned on me at any particular time of my life that people are paid tremendous money to sing.
BEN E. KING

Particular People Time Of My Life
Those things don’t happen today. I feel sorry for the kids in the industry today. They have on sunglasses, eat caviar in jet planes, but they’ll never know the true feeling that we did.
BEN E. KING

Feelings Kids Sorry
Yeah. I’ve been pretty fortunate to travel I guess, all around the place.
BEN E. KING

Funny Travel Travel Yeah
There was no, there was no in between. And when I got to New York all the other musics that’s in the world just came into my head whether it was the classics, jazz, I never knew what jazz was about all, had heard anything about jazz.
BEN E. KING

Between Country Music Other
I do a lot of Vegas work and work with the comedians.
BEN E. KING

Comedians Comedy Time Work
I think that the song, the song “Stand By Me” is one of those songs that… and someone asked me, what was you thinking about or what was you feeling about?
BEN E. KING

Artist Song Writing
If there’s anything about the business that I love and that I’m extremely happy about, is that my career started at that time and that I met some of the greatest entertainers at that time and some are still here.
BEN E. KING

Careers Extremely Happy Mets
Of course, the kids who had never heard of a person called Ben E. King were then aware of the name associated with the song. That gave a tremendous lift to me as an artist.
BEN E. KING

Kids Kings Song
Most black singers like to slow the word down and, and go directly to your heart. They’re not interested in your ears, we just want to go directly to your heart.
BEN E. KING

Black Ears Heart

Yeah. I’m amateurish. I can play enough to write a song, or strum on a little guitar to write out a song. But, I don’t play well at all. I wouldn’t even attempt for a second to play in public.

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Yeah. I’m amateurish. I can play enough to write a song, or strum on a little guitar to write out a song. But, I don’t play well at all. I wouldn’t even attempt for a second to play in public.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

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