Joseph Arrington, Jr. (August 8, 1935 – August 13, 1982), better known as Joe Tex, was an American musician who gained success in the 1960s and 1970s with his brand of Southern soul, which mixed the styles of country, gospel and rhythm and blues.
His career started after he was signed to King Records in 1955 following four wins at the Apollo Theater. Between 1955 and 1964, he struggled to find hits and by the time he finally recorded his first hit, “Hold What You’ve Got”, in 1964, he had recorded thirty prior singles that were deemed failures on the charts. He went on to have four million-selling hits, “Hold What You’ve Got” (1965), “Skinny Legs and All” (1967), “I Gotcha” (1972), and “Ain’t Gonna Bump No More (With No Big Fat Woman)” (1977).
THE LOVE YOU SAVE
Joe Tex
People, I’ve been misled
And I’ve been afraid
I’ve been hit in the head
And left for dead
I’ve abused
And I’ve been accused
I been refused a piece of bread
But I ain’t never
In my life before
Seen so many love affairs
Go wrong as I do today
I want you to stop
And find out what’s wrong
Get it right
Or just leave love alone
Because the love you save today
Maybe will-l-l-l be your own
Listing to me
I’ve been pushed around
I’ve been lost and found
I’ve been given til sundown
To get out of town
I’ve been taken outside
And I’ve been brutalized
And I’ve had to always be the one to smile and apologize
But I ain’t never
In my life before
Seen so many love affairs
Go wrong as I do today
So stop
And find out what’s wrong
Get it right
Or please leave love alone
Because the love you save today
Maybe will-l-l-l be your own