I was once out strolling one very hot summer’s day
When I thought I’d lay myself down to rest
in a big field of tall grass
I lay there in the sun and felt it caressing my face
And I fell asleep and dreamed
I dreamed I was in a Hollywood movie
And that I was the star of the movie
This really blew my mind, the fact that me,
an overfed, long-haired leaping gnome
should be the star of a Hollywood movie
But there I was, I was taken to a place, the hall of the mountain kings
I stood high upon a mountain top, naked to the world
In front of every kind of girl, there was
black ones, round ones, big ones, crazy ones…
Out of the middle came a lady
She whispered in my ear something crazy
She said:
Spill the wine and take that pearl, Spill the wine and take that pearl
Spill the wine and take that pearl, Spill the wine and take that pearl
I thought to myself what could that mean
Am I going crazy or is this just a dream
Now, wait a minute
I know I’m lying in a field of grass somewhere
so it’s all in my head
and then. I heard her say one more time:
Spill the wine and take that pearl, Spill the wine and take that pearl
Spill the wine and take that pearl, Spill the wine and take that pearl
I could feel hot flames of fire roaring at my back
As she disappeared, but soon she returned
In her hand was a bottle of wine, in the other, a glass
She poured some of the wine from the bottle into the glass
And raised it to her lips
And just before she drank it, she said:
Spill the wine and take that pearl, Spill the wine and take that pearl
Spill the wine and take that pearl, Spill the wine and take that pearl
Hier die ganze Geschichte in vier Teilen:
Die Band: Eric Burdon & War – Spill The Wine, take that pearl
Ein Sond entsteht: Eric Burdon 1970 – Band-Session mit Drugs & Sex
Eric Burdon & War: Spill The Wine der deutsche Text
Spill The Wine der Original Text: Eric Burdon als Hollywood Movie-Star
The debut effort by Eric Burdon and War was an erratic effort that hinted at more potential than it actually delivered. Three of the five tunes are meandering blues-jazz-psychedelic jams, two of which, „Tobacco Road“ and „Blues for Memphis Slim,“ chug along for nearly 15 minutes. These showcase the then-unknown War’s funky fusion, and Burdon’s still-impressive vocals, but suffer from a lack of focus and substance.
A great moment
„Spill the Wine,“ on the other hand, is inarguably the greatest moment of the Burdon-fronted lineup. Not only was this goofy funk, shaggy-dog story one of the most truly inspired off-the-wall hit singles of all time, it was War’s first smash — and Eric Burdon’s last.
The odd closing track, a short piece of avant-garde sentimentality called „You’re No Stranger,“ was deleted from re-releases of this album for years due to legal complications, but was restored for its CD reissue.
