Imagine sitting in a room trying to come up with the right song for your demo. As you’re playing around with chords and trying to come up with the right words, the air is infused with the aroma of mama’s popcorn cooking upstairs. In a split moment, the light bulb flashes and you suddenly jot down the words:

“Pop, pop, pop, pop….”

It later occurs to you that you may be on to something – this could possibly be a great song. Well this is humorously how Gerald Levert gave birth to Levert’s 1986 hit, (Pop, Pop, Pop, Pop) Goes My Mind on their album, Bloodline with the help of fellow member and friend Marc Gordon.

From the 1990 album “Rope a Dope Style”, “Baby I’m Ready” reached #1 on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop charts. This cut has to be one of the best known if not the best known hit from the Levert catalog. The line in this song that has always caused me to pause and still causes me to pause is:

Girl I’m tired of playing games

So many loves I can’t even name

The song makes it clear that our hero has clearly been around the block, circled, and doubled back again. He is now ready to forget those nameless, faceless other women and settle down with the one. He is working hard to prove to his love that she is the only one who matters now. Will he be victorious?

“Baby I’m Ready” is available at Amazon.com as part of the cd “Rope a Dope Style“.