"Let it go!" That's the falsetto fallout that serves as the proverbial knockout punch on the 1980 Teddy Pendergrass hit "Love T.K.O." But have you ever listened closely to the rest of the lyrics, which serve as the body blows? I mean, really contemplated the words that were written by Cecil and Linda Womack along with their composing partner Gip Noble? Have you taken a moment to digest the meaty words Pendergrass feeds us so effortlessly with his baritone growl, the ones that speak of a two-time loser at love who just doesn't have the strength to put up any more of a fight? Peep a few bars:
Tried to take control of the love /
Love took control of me /
'Cause you lose all thoughts, sense of time
And have a change of mind
/ Takin' the bumps and the bruises
/ Of all the things of a two-time loser
Tryin' to hold on, faith is gone /
It's just another sad song
See? This song, released on the Philadelphia International album TP, takes me back to a time when Teddy played on my parent's stereo every Sunday, me being enraptured by the beat (which, of course, has been recycled numerous times over the years). I was young, and didn't fully grasp what Teddy P. was trying to say. Now I do, and as I listen to and identify with the lyrics, I feel Teddy's pain. Realize the hurt. The mental body blows that led to the heart-wrenching T.K.O. Now that I understand that, I'll hopefully never "let it go." Now peep one of Teddy's "live" performances on Soul Train.
