Songfacts®:

• This slice of funk from Tower Of Power was written by the group's keyboard player, Roger Smith, and tenor sax man Emilio Castillo, who told Songfacts about the track:
  
  "It starts with a mysteriously smoldering rhythm section intro, then abruptly hits the first verse with a blistering groove. The initial statement asks if you've ever wondered why life keeps passing by while you're spinning your wheels. The song continues lyrically in that vein moving towards the chorus which is an exhortation to 'step up, don't give up, step up, don't give up no matter what.' It's basically a rallying song to be strong and turn your life around."
• Like that other mighty horn band Chicago, Tower Of Power remained active 50 years after forming in the '60s. For their Step Up album in 2020, TOP had 10 members, including founders Stephen "Doc" Kupka and Emilio Castillo. It was recorded over several years during sessions that also produced their 2018 album Soul Side Of Town. Joe Vannelli was the producer on both sets.
• According to Castillo, these are some musical highlights in the song: "After the second verse, there's a super cool organ solo by Roger Smith with the classic TOP horn jabs behind it accentuating the groove. Coming into the final chorus it then shifts into fifth gear for a burning ride out that features a phenomenal guitar solo by Jerry Cortez. The background vocals on this track are classically soulful."