Babyface

Released: October 29, 1996

Songwriter: Babyface Robbie Nevil Emanuel Officer Bradley Spalter

Producer: Babyface Bradley Spalter

[Verse 1]
I was born on the north side of a
Midwestern town
There was nine of us living in a
Three bedroom house, yeah
I didn't have much money
We made due
'Cause Momma worked all day long
And Daddy did too

[Pre-Chorus]
Did all they could
Made sure we had clothes and food, yeah
Went to public schools and we
Followed public rules
We used second hand books, oh
Oh, I didn't mind the books
Momma taught us early in life
Everybody's gotta struggle sometime

[Chorus]
Bring back those simple times of yesterday
When a man was a man
And a friend was a friend
Bring back those simple times of yesterday
When you said what you meant
And you meant what you said

[Verse 2]
Had a friend named Bobby
Who always kept his word
We went through schoolyard fights
Had a thing for pretty girls, yeah
Didn't cost much money
To see the picture show
So we hopped the bus into town
That's where all the girlies used to go, see

[Pre-Chorus]
Fifty cents would buy us, yes, popcorn for two
'Cause Bobby's girl, she worked there
And sometimes she'd break the rules, yes
Picnics in the summer
Wouldn't wake up 'til noon
And even though Bobby's gone now
I can still hear him laugh
In the middle of June

[Chorus]
Bring back those simple times of yesterday
When a man was a man (hey)
And a friend was a friend (was a friend, yeah)
Bring back those simple times of yesterday
When you said what you meant
And you meant what you said, yeah

[Bridge]
Sometimes I sit, I wonder
I reminisce, I think of all the good times
That we had in our lives
Sometimes I can't get over
How wonderful those days were
Back in our lives
Simple days for simple times

[Chorus]
Bring back those simple times of yesterday
When a man was a man
And a friend was a friend (was a friend, yeah)
Bring back those simple times of yesterday
When you said what you meant
And you meant what you said
(hey, bring 'em back now, yeah)

Bring back those simple times of yesterday
When a man was a man (a man was a man)
And a friend was a friend
(a friend was a friend, yeah)
Bring back those simple times of yesterday
When you said what you meant
And you meant what you said

Bring back those simple times of yesterday
When a man was a man
And a friend was a friend (was a friend, say yeah)
Bring back those simple times of yesterday
When you said what you meant
And you meant what you said
(meant what you said)

Bring back those simple times of yesterday
When a man was a man
And a friend was a friend...

Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds (born April 10, 1959 in Indianapolis, Indiana) is a Grammy Award-winning producer, singer, and songwriter responsible for a string of hits in the 1980s and 1990s. He has written and produced more than 20 number-one hits and won 11 Grammys—including three for Producer of the Year—for his work with Boyz II Men, Whitney Houston, Eric Clapton, Alicia Keys, and Toni Braxton, as well as his own work as an artist.

Babyface got his nickname from funk legend Bootsy Collins after joining his backing band in the 1970s. He joined the group Manchild in the late ‘70s—a group that also included his frequent collaborator Daryl Simmons—before moving out West and working with the group The Deele in the early 1980s, forming a bond with his bandmate and future production partner L.A. Reid. After producing the hit “Two Occasions” for The Deele, L.A. & Babyface broke off and became one of the biggest superproducer duos in R&B, rivaling the hits of fellow superproducer duo Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis.

L.A. & ‘Face had their hands in a string of #1 R&B hits in the late '80s and early '90s from artists such as Pebbles (“Girlfriend”), Karyn White (“Superwoman”), The Whispers (“Rock Steady”), Johnny Gill (“My, My, My”) and many more. They were also instrumental in the success of post-New Edition era Bobby Brown as they produced his #1 hits “Don’t Be Cruel,” “Every Little Step,” “On Our Own,” and “Humpin' Around.” They made history with Boyz II Men in 1992 as they wrote and produced “End of the Road,” which spent a record-breaking 14 consecutive weeks atop the pop chart.

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