Mere Words Cannot Express

We’ve explored how rich the history of musical acts from Jacksonville, so rich that maybe words cannot say it all. How right you are! Let’s dive into some of the great musical moments that are lyric-free but say a bunch.


Forward to 4:33

1. “ah-brop-brop-eah”  - uttered by Danny Joe Brown of Molly Hatchet in “Flirtin’ with Disaster”

Molly Hatchet received national attention from the rock world with their debut album, but really hit their stride with their second album. The title track gave Hatchet their biggest hit and one of the great sing-along moments as everyone (in my car at least) gave a big a capella “ah-brop-brop-eah” toward the end.  


Forward to 3:14

2. “Erh  (erh) ohhh (ohhh) erh(erh) oh(oh)” –you get the idea- uttered by Ray Charles and the Raelettes in “What’d I Say”

As Ray Charles invented soul music, we learned he combined gospel elements with the blues and R&B. Gospel music, especially, relied on call-and-response to strengthen the song. Usually the response is different than the call. For example: “Jesus gonna come” is the call, “Gonna come someday” the response. Brother Ray’s grunts received more of an echo, but the result is the same: participation of the “congregation” to break the song down, only to build it back to a peak.