"Maybe the Last Time" is a song written by

James Brown James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, musician, and record producer. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th-century music, he is referred to by Honorific nick ...

(under the

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true meaning ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individual's o ...

Ted Wright) and recorded by Brown and

the Famous Flames The Famous Flames were an American rhythm and blues, soul vocal group founded in Toccoa, Georgia, in 1953 by Bobby Byrd. James Brown first began his career as a member of the Famous Flames, emerging as the lead singer by the time of their fir ...

in 1964. It was released as the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...

of "

Out of Sight ''Out of Sight'' is a 1998 American action comedy film directed by Steven Soderbergh and written by Scott Frank, adapted from Elmore Leonard's 1996 novel. The first of several collaborations between Soderbergh and actor George Clooney, it was ...

" and was also included on the ''Out of Sight'' album. Brown described it as "a heavy

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christianity, Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the second century Anno domino, AD the term (, from which the English word originated as a calque) came to be used also for the books in which the message w ...

-based number, all about appreciating friends and everything while you can because each time you see somebody may be the last time, you don't know." It was the last studio recording Brown made with the Famous Flames, although the singing group continued to perform live with him for several more years. "Maybe the Last Time" charted on the Bubbling Under the Hot 100, peaking at No. 7 the week of October 17, 1964. It became a frequent part of Brown and the Famous Flames' concert repertoire in the 1960s. Live performances appear on the albums ''

Live at the Garden ''Live at the Garden'' is the fourth DVD release by the American alternative rock band Pearl Jam, recorded on July 8, 2003 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. It was released on November 11, 2003. Overview The DVD documents Pearl Jam on i ...

'', ''

Live at the Apollo, Volume II ''Live at the Apollo, Volume II'' is a 1968 live double album by James Brown and The Famous Flames, recorded in 1967 at the Apollo Theater in Harlem. It is a follow-up to Brown's 1963 recording, '' Live at the Apollo''. It is best known for the l ...

'', and '' Say It Live and Loud: Live in Dallas 08.26.68'', and in the concert film ''

Live at the Boston Garden ''Live at the Boston Garden: April 5, 1968'' is a concert film starring James Brown. Recorded at the Boston Garden by WGBH-TV the night after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., it was Live television, broadcast live in an effort to quel ...

''. The song has gospel antecedents, particularly an earlier recording by the Staple Singers, and similarity to a later track by the Rolling Stones called “The Last Time”, which borrowed its name and theme from the Brown/Famous Flames song.

Personnel

* James Brown - lead vocal, piano ''and The Famous Flames:'' *

Bobby Byrd Bobby Howard Byrd (August 15, 1934 – September 12, 2007) was an American rhythm and blues, soul and funk singer, songwriter, musician, record producer, bandleader, and talent dedicated. He played a part in the development of soul and funk m ...

- vocals * Bobby Bennett - vocals * "Baby Lloyd" Stallworth - vocals ''with the James Brown Band:'' * Mack Johnson - trumpet * Ron Tooley - trumpet * Joe Dupars - trumpet * Robert Knight - trumpet * Les Buie - guitar *

Bernard Odum Bertrand Odom (June 10, 1932 – August 17, 2004), known professionally as Bernard Odum, was an American bass guitar player best known for performing in James Brown's band in the 1960s. Biography Odum started playing with Brown in 1956 and ...

- bass * Melvin Parker - drumsLeeds, Alan, and Harry Weinger (1991).

References

James Brown songs Songs written by James Brown The Famous Flames songs 1964 singles 1964 songs Smash Records singles {{1960s-R&B-song-stub