Eric Burdon ''Spill The Wine'' (1970): another look

[Marcio**]

from
Spill the Wine - Wine Lyrics - Songs about Wine



''The group Eric Burdon and War wrote the Spill The Wine song back in the drug-induced haze of the 60s. These have got to be some of the most misquoted lyrics ever played on the radio, but they definitely involve wine!



For a group that only made 2 albums, Spill the Wine has got to be their most lasting legacy. If anything, half of its legacy is that few people can understand what the lyrics are saying! They talk about a guy walking in a field of grass on a hot summer's day. He fell asleep and dreamt about being in a mountain top, naked, surrounded by girls. And one says:


"Spill the wine and take that pearl,
Spill the wine and take that pearl.


Yes, those lyrics have been misheard in just about every manner possible. Often it's "dig that girl" or "take that girl"

The girl leaves and then comes back. The dreamer says -


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



and off into the lyrics it goes again.


Unfortunately for us wine drinkers, the lyrics actually have nothing to do with wine (or girls for that matter). The pearl referred to the pearl of the orient, i.e. heroin. Spilling the wine was a slang term for the blood that dripped when you were doing the drugs. A similar song is Mother of Pearl, by Roxy Music, where the singer says


"Oh mother of pearl
I wouldn’t trade you
For another girl"


So yes, this is a song that mentions wine, but it's definitely not *about* wine! ''

[Mixmachine]

WHat ?? Pearls?

To me the lyrics was always about "getting it on" about Sex

"Spill the wine and take that GIRL"

To me this meant Drop the bottle of wine (stop been a drunk) and get the girl (instead) for more fun.

But I'm no Shakespeare

But if the lyrics' meaning was about 'heroin' what was the girl in the song supposed to represent?

I will pull out my 7" and give it a fresh listen from a different perspective.

[boogyjuice]

There is an upcoming reunion-concert including Eric , Lonnie and some new members :

Eric Burdon, WAR Reuniting In London

The rest of the original members formed another band :

Lowrider Band

There seems some kind of beef/feud going on concerning copyright/management-issues , as it is with so many groups right now which splitted in 2 ( if not more ) camps ( Klymaxx , Mary Jane Girls , MFSB , Slave , A Taste Of Honey , Temptations , etc ... )

[Mark Res]

Dear all fellow spotters and black music lovers - My name is Mark Res - I'll already be known to soem of you thru my various record dealing down the years - hi - and to others on here who may not know me - a big HELLO...

Ok - 'Spill The Wine' - what a great song - I just wanted to make people on here who may not already be aware of some other (good/great) versions of this song:

- Johnny Frigo on 'The Electric Jazz Of Johnny Frigo' (Orion LP)
- Fungus II on UK Baal 7" - 1970s

I can post a clip of the Fungus II if anybody's interested in hearing it - it's well worthy...the Frigo is s very tuff piece - not really 'disco' as such - it was used in dance instruction in Chicago in the 70s - mostthis guy's output is interesting...