Show 66 - Biographical Mysteries

The New York Times ran a fascinating story about Elvie Thomas where the author uncovered a lot of new biographical details and interviewed folks that knew her decades after she’d made blues records in 1930 or 1931. Elvie Thomas was found to be a Texan who’d left the blues for the church and who lived until the 1970s. Her life been considered a mystery though her recordings with Geeshie Wiley have been greatly loved. In a way it’s extraordinary that we know anything about folks that happened to make a handful of records 80 years ago. But the blues inspires such devotion that there’s been huge efforts from researchers to learn everything we can about these musicians. So in this show I’m going to present a few of the biographical mysteries of the blues. We’ll start with that classic from Geeshie Wiley and Elvie Thomas, Last Kind Words Blues:

The last kind words I heard my daddy say
Lord, the last kind words I heard my daddy say

If I die, if I die in the German war
I want you to send my body, send it to my mother-in-law

If I get killed, if I get killed, please don't bury my soul
I cry just leave me out, let the buzzards eat me whole

When you see me coming look across the rich man's field
If I don't bring you flour, I'll bring you bolted meal

I went to the depot, I looked up at the sun
Cried, some train don't come, Lord, be some walking done

My mama told me, just before she died
Lord, say to your daughter, don't you be so wild

The Mississippi river, you know it's deep and wide
I can stand right here, see my baby from the other side

What you do to me baby it never gets outta me
I may not see you after I cross the deep blue sea

Kid Bailey remains a mystery. Some assume that the name is a pure pseudonym. One theory if that Bailey is the same person as Willie Brown, the associate of Charley Patton, Son House, and Robert Johnson. Only a few of his records survive, recorded in 1929 at a famous session at Memphis’ Peabody Hotel. Mississippi Bottom Blues may tell something of his story.

Way down in Mississippi where I was bred and born
I believe that will forever be my native home

My poor mother’s old and her hair is turning gray
And my poor mother’s old now and her hair is turning gray
I know it would break her heart if she found out I was barrelhousing this way

I’m going where the water drinks like wine
I’m going where the water drinks like wine
Where I can be drunk and staggering all the time

And it ain’t but the one thing now, Lord, it worries my mind
And it ain’t but the one thing now, Lord, it worries my mind
That’s a house full of women, Lord, Lord, ain’t none of them mine

My baby passed me and she never said a word
And my baby passed me and she never said a word
Nothing I had did, but it was something she had heard

Was Willie Brown also known as Kid Bailey. Experts disagree. My thought… probably not. Future Blues is Brown's most famous song:

Can't tell my future and I can't tell my past
Lord, it seems like every minute sure gonna be my last

The minutes seem like hours and hours seem like days
The minutes seem like hours and hours seem like days
And it seems like my woman oughta stop her lowdown ways

The woman I love now she's five feet from the ground
I said, the woman I love now, Lord, is five feet from the ground
And she's tailor made and ain't no hand me down

Lord, and I got a woman now, Lordy, she's lightning when she
Lightnin when she…
I say, I got a woman
Lord, and she's lightnin when she smiles
Five feet and four inches and she's damn good looking size

Well, I know you see that picture, now, Lord, up on your mother's, up on your mother's, mama's shelf
I know you see that picture now, up on your mother's shelf
Well, you know about that, I'm getting tired of sleeping by myself

And it's T for Texas, now, it's T for Tennessee
And it's T for Texas, now, it's T for Tennessee
Lord, bless that woman, that put that thing on me

The intensity of the singing and playing on his song Gone Dead Train, made King Solomon Hill one of the biggest mysteries in the blues for decades. It’s now agreed that his real name was Joe Holmes and the name King Solomon Hill was taken from the community where he lived and probably assigned by someone at Paramount solely for the 8 sides he made there. Holmes was from McComb, Mississippi and is known to have spent some time traveling with Blind Lemon Jefferson. Decades of research from Gayle Dean Wardlow gave us his story.

And I'm going way down Winden
Lord, I'm gonna try to leave here today
Tell 'em I believe I'll find my way and that train is just that way

Gotta get on that train, I said I'd even broke my jaw
Boys, if you out and running around in this world this train will wreck your mind, your life too

Lord, I once was a hobo, I crossed many a point
But I decided I'd go down the fog traveling light
And take it as it comes

I reckon you know the fireman and the engineer would too

There are so many people have gone down today
And this fast train north and southern traveling light and clear

I wanna ride your train
I said, "Look here, engineer, can I ride your train?"
He said, "Look here, you oughta know this train ain't mine and you're asking me in vain"

Said, "You go to the Western Union, you might get a chance"
I didn't know the Western Union run no train

Said, "You go to the Western Union, you might get a chance"
You might get wire to some of your people and your fare will be sent right here
Hadn't thought that's the way it was

I wanna go home, and that train is done gone dead
I wanna go, that train is done gone dead
I done lost my wife and my three little children, and my mother's sick in bed

Please, help me win my fare
Cause I'm a traveling man, boys I can't stay here

Virginia harmonica player Blues Birdhead hasn't inspired the same kind of devotion and curiosity but his mystery is intriguing. We know his names was James Simons and he played around Norfolk, but that's it. He was clearly an extraordinary talent coaxing all kinds of notes out of that little diatonic harp. Mean Low Blues, his jazz trumpet influenced instrumental recorded with an unidentified pianist shows his skills. J.T. Funny Paper Smith made some fantastic records, but we know virtually nothing about him. It's still debated if his nickname was "Funny Paper" or "Funny Papa." "Funny Paper" is what appears on the records and I've never seen any evidence to show that's incorrect. He was also known as the Howlin' Wolf. One report is that he was a Texan who was once arrested for murder. If that's true, County Jail Blues, seems pretty autobiographical:

Come on all you people hear me tell my tale
Come on all you people hear me tell my sad tale
I’m through with all of my worries, and I don’t even want no bail
I killed my woman, I’m in a hurry, I’m going to the county jail

Judge, here I am this morning and here’s my .45
Judge, here I am this morning and here’s my .45
Here I am, Judge, this morning, and here is my .45
I shot my woman on the other corner and I don’t know whether she’s dead or live

Now don’t ask me no questions, Judge about how our troubles begin
Don’t ask me no questions, Judge, about how our troubles begin
Judge don’t ask me no questions about how our trouble begin
Just have it printed in your paper, little trouble between women and men

Mmmmm, Oh Lord, I heard that judge say 99
Mmmmm I heard that old judge say 99
Mmmmm, Oh Lord, I heard that old judge say 99
And it’s one thing I wish I had this morning and that’s that .45 of mine

Well I’m gonna lay down in jail like I used to lay down out on Calumet
(Well) I’m gonna lay down in jail like I used to lay down on Calumet
I’m gonna lay down like I used to lay down way out on Calumet
Maybe good luck to you cause I haven't forgot you yet

Songs:
Geeshie Wiley - Last Kind Words Blues
Kid Bailey - Mississippi Bottom Blues
Willie Brown - Future Blues
King Solomon Hill - Gone Dead Train
Blues Birdhead - Mean Low Blues
J.T. Funny Paper Smith - County Jail Blues

Show 63 - Drink Brands

Some blues singers were clearly paid to advertise products. In later years, b.b. king sang songs to famously sold peptikon and sonny boy williamson king biscuit flour. Were gonna take a look at some early songs that may be ads or may just be folks singing about products they enjoy.

J.T "Funny Paper" Smith's 1930 Vocalion recording Good Coffee Blues talks about brands in some interesting ways in classic blues double entendre song:

I Heard you say this morning, mama, that your head was throbbing through and through
Heard you say this morning that your head was throbbing through and through
Come on let me make you some coffee, let me show you what my coffee will do

Pull off your house shoes, mama and lay down on the bed
Pull off your house shoes, mama lay down on the bed
I won't be but a few minutes but I will kill that old headache dead.

Don't rush, take your time lady, go down easy and slow
Don't rush, take your time lady, go down easy and slow
Then when you have a headache again, come back to me, baby, and I'll give you some more.

Your coffee-grinding papa's in town, Lord that good coffee

Now Folger makes coffee, Maxwell makes coffee, White Swan makes coffee, Arbuckle he makes coffee
But I make coffee so good, it will make you bite your tongue
Been all over the world grinding coffee mama, come on let me grind you some

Now when your friend want coffee, please send all your friends to me
When your friend want coffee, send your friends to me
I swear I give them good coffee and won't give them no rotten tea

Memphis Minnie sang about a place to get coffee and something to eat in what sure sounds like a paid advertisement from 1930. North Memphis Blues:

I tell all you people, you can rest and eat You don't have to worry about cooking, go to North Memphis Cafe and eat I tell all you people, you can rest and eat Because the North Memphis Cafe got everything that you really need

I don't buy no wood, even buy no coal
I go to North Memphis cafe and eat and don't be a dope
I tell all you people, you can rest and eat
You don't have to worry about cooking, go to North Memphis cafe and eat

I will tell y'all something, I don't change like the wind
If you go to North Memphis Cafe, eat, you'll go back again
I tell all you people, you can rest and eat
Because the North Memphis cafe got everything that you really need

Now listen to me, good people, I don't aim to make you mad
You go to North Memphis Cafe and get something you never had
I tell all you people, you can rest and eat
Because the North Memphis Cafe got everything that you really need

The Nugrape Twins were Georgia natives Mark and Matthew Little. They recorded a few blues and gospel records and also hosted a radio show sponsored by Nugrape soda. They recorded two songs about that sweet drink including I Got Your Ice Cold Nugrape in 1926:

I got a NuGrape nice and fine
The rings around the bottle is a ginger wine
I got your ice-cold NuGrape

I got a NuGrape nice and fine
There’s plenty imitation but there’s none like mine
I got your ice cold NuGrape

Way down yonder in the Promised Land
Oh, run and tell you mama, “Here the NuGrape man”
I got your ice cold NuGrape

Little children in the backyard playing in the sand
Oh, run and tell you mama, “Here the NuGrape man”
I got your ice cold NuGrape

When you feeling kind of blue, do not know what ailing you
Get a NuGrape from the store, then you’ll have the blues no more
I got your ice cold NuGrape

What’s that makes your lips go flippity flop?
When you drink a NuGrape you don’t know when to stop
I got your ice cold NuGrape

If from work you come home late, rolling pin waits at the gate
Smile and bribe her with NuGrape
Then you see you're in good shape
I got your ice cold NuGrape

Sister Mary has a beau, says he’s crazy and love her so
Buys a NuGrape every day, know he bound to win that way
I got your ice cold NuGrape

Tampa Red's Hokum Jazz Band recorded Good Gordon Gin. The musicians seem to be having a great time and singer Frankie "Hal-fpint" Jaxon seems to be singing about a product he loves when he starts chanting: "A little more of the Gordon gin, I’m talking about good Gordon gin." Big Bill Broonzy also pronounced himself a fan of Gordon Gin in his 1941 song I Feel So Good:

I got a letter, it come to me by mail
My baby says she’s coming home
And I hope that she don’t fail

You know I feel so good
Yes I feel so good
Now I feel so good
Baby, I feel like balling the jack

I feel so good, I hope I always will
I feel just like a Jack out with a Jenny
Well behind the hill

I feel so good
Yes, I feel so good
I feel so good
Baby, I feel like balling the jack

I’m going down to the station, just to meet a train
I'd like to see my baby
You know I’ve got dead aim

You know I feel so good
Yes, I feel so good
I feel so good
I just feel like balling the jack

I love my tea, crazy about my Gordon gin
When I get high now baby
Feel like floating around in the wind

You know I feel so good
Yes, I feel so good
I feel so good baby
I feel like balling the jack

Memphis Slim's Old Taylor probably wasn't a paid ad for the bourbon, but the folks at the distillery were probably pretty glad to hear the song:

Now I love to sing that good Old Taylor blues I love to sing that good Old Taylor blues When we want another drink I swear we just can't lose

Now you see, Mr. Melrose, standing in the floor Oh, I see that man that's standing in the floor He gonna give us a little drink Now, just before he goes

Now we want Old Taylor, Lord We want, Old Taylor now We want, Old Taylor now We want, Old Taylor now We want, Old Taylor Bring it on, bring it on, bring it on

Now, you'll say what's fine and mellow You'll say what's fine and mellow Oh, you'll say what's fine and mellow You'll say, what's fine and mellow Now, you'll say what's fine and mellow Bring it on, bring it on, bring it on

You'll say, was twenty years old You'll say, was twenty years old Now you'll say, was twenty years old You'll say, was twenty years old Now, you'll say was twenty years old Bring it on, bring it on, bring it on

Now, is he popping? Yeah, man Now, is he popping? Yeah, man I believe he's popping Yeah, man I believe he's popping Yeah, man I believe he's popping Yeah, man Pop on, pop on, pop on

Memphis Slim singing mentions Mr. Melrose’s is gonna give him a drink referring to Lester Melrose who ran Bluebird Records. It’s one of many songs where a blues singer sang about a brand he liked. That one’s probably not a paid endorsement, but I’m sure the folks at the Old Taylor distillery would have been thrilled to hear it. Musical inspiration can come from many sources including products on the shelf. Whether a cup or coffee or a glass of bourbon it resulted in some pretty good blues songs.

Songs:
Good Coffee Blues - Funny Paper Smith
North Memphis Blues - Memphis Minnie
I Got Your Ice Cold Nugrape - Nugrape Twins
Good Gordon Gin - Tampa Red's Hokum Jazz Band
I Feel So Good - Big Bill Broonzy
Old Taylor Blues - Memphis Slim

Show 60 - Pistol Blues

With the gun control debate raging in the U.S., I thought it seemed like a good time to look at some songs about guns. The first gun control law was passed right in the middle of the period we focus on here in 1934. The National Firearms Act was a response to the shootings occurring as part of the culture surrounding prohibition. It did specifically exempt handguns from any regulation under that law. It’s pistols that appear most often in the blues. They appear in the songs for a couple reasons, sometimes for going to bad neighborhoods or other rough spots. But mostly for revenge on that woman that’s done you wrong. Let’s start with a hit from 1929, Roosevelt Syke’s hugely influential 44 Blues:

And now I walked all night long with my .44 in my hand
And now I walked all night long with my .44 in my hand
I was looking for my woman, found her with another man

Lord I wore my forty‑four so long, Lord it made my shoulder sore
Lord I wore my forty‑four so long, Lord it made my shoulder sore
After I do what I want to ain't going to wear my forty‑four no more

Lord my baby say she heard the 44 whistle blow
Lord my baby say she heard the 44 whistle blow
Lord it sound just like ain't going to blow this horn no more

Lord I got a little cabin,, Lord it's number 44
Lord I got a little cabin, Lord it's number 44
Lord I wake up every morning, the world be scratching on my door

Blind Boy Fuller's Pistol Slapping Blues:

I can tell my dog anywhere I hear him bark
I can tell my rider if I feel her in the dark
You a cold-blooded murderer, when you want me out your way Says, that's alright mama, you gonna need my help some day
And you say you're gonna put me, mama, down in my lonesome grave Say you must remember, I once have been your slave

And I feel like snapping my pistol in your face
Let some brownskin woman be here to take your place
Let some brownskin woman be here to take your place

Now you know you didn't want me when you lie down across my bed
Drinking your moonshine whisky, mama, talking all out your head
Now give me the money, baby, I'll catch that train and go You don't have to kill me cause you don't want me no more Hey, hey, cause you don't want me no more Now you give me the money, baby, and I'll catch that train and go

Now you see my rider, tell her I said bring it home
I ain't had no loving since my gal been gone
It's two kind of people in the world that I can't stand That's a lying woman and a monkey man

Boweavil Jackson recorded Pistol Blues in 1926 with some violent lyrics for a woman that left:

Oh Jane, oh Jane, what makes you hold your head so high?
Oughta just remember, you got to live so long and die

I need not write me no letter, don't send me no word
Cut your head, woman, about the word I heard
I heard you had a man on the wheeler, had a man on the plow
Had a big man, swinging on the Johnson Bayou(?)

I'm going to carry that woman to the weeping willow tree
Oughta hear her crying, "Honey, don't murder me!"

I'm going to black her face, going to black that woman's eye
Going to kill her when she begins to cry

She said, "Roll on, Jack, Daddy do roll on"
"Roll on, Jack, Daddy do roll on"
Said, "Roll on, Jack, Daddy do roll on”
Like the way you rolling, but you ain't gonna roll so long

Ain't but two women in the world can spend my change
Not but two women, world can spend my change
Ain't but two women, mama, can spend my change
That represent Stella and that brown, my Jane

Lord, Lord, look what my brown said to me
Lord, Lord, look what she said to me
Said, Lord, Lord, look what she said to me
Said, "When I leave this town, gonna carry you back with me."

William Moore's Midnight Blues contains the classic lyric about buying a pistol as long as my right arm:

Some people say that the midnight blues ain't bad Some people say that the midnight blues ain't bad
Some people say that the midnight blues ain't bad
Well, it must not have been those midnight blues I had

Tell me, fair brownie, where did you stay last night
Tell me, fair brownie, where did you stay last night
Tell me, fair brownie, where did you stay last night
Your hair's all down and your clothes ain't fitting you right

Oh, run here, mama, run and tell me now
Run here, mama, run and tell me now
Run here, mama, run and tell me now
Say, do you love your papa anyhow?

When you see two women going together so long
When you see two women going together so long
When you see two women going together so long
You can bet your life that there's something going on wrong

I'm gonna buy me a pistol as long as my right arm
I'm gonna buy me a pistol as long as my right arm
I'm gonna buy me a pistol as long as my right arm
Gonna carry it in my pocket and make you stay at home

Walter Roland's 45 Pistol Blues talks about needing a gun to go to the baddest place in town:

I'm going over to Third Alley, Lord but I'm going to carry my .45
I'm going over to Third Alley, Lord but I'm going to carry my .45
Because you know ain't many men go there and come back alive
They will shoot you and cut you, Lord they will knock you down
Lord, they will shoot you and cut you, Lord they will knock you down

And you can ask anybody ain't that the baddest place in town
Mens carry .38s, womens carry their razors too
Mens carry .38s, womens carry their razors too
And you know you better not start nothing, know they'll make away with you
Says I ain't going to Third Alley no more unless I change my mind
Ain’t going to Third Alley no more, Lord, unless I change my mind

Because you know I done got shot once over there, Lord it's about three or four times
Says you know I'm gonna need my .45 much too big
Lord, my .45 much too big
Cause you know when I carry that gun, Lord I can’t keep it hid

J.T. "Funny Paper" Smith takes on the role of an obsessive former lover who can't get over the woman that left him in Forty-Five Blues

I feel mean and hateful, I just can't feel satisfied
I feel mean and hateful, I just can't feel satisfied
I'm going out after my woman this morning and I'm taking my .45

My woman quit me last summer and I can't get her off my mind
My woman quit me last summer and I can't get her off my mind
And if she don't come back this morning, you gonna hear my .45 crying

Folks, I hate to be mean, but I can't be good if I try
Folks, I hate to be mean, but I can't be good if I try
And when I call my baby this morning, I'm calling her with my .45

Now the police got so they arrest me every time they catch me on the street
Police got so they arrest me every time they catch me on the street
And told me this morning, they're gonna let me catch you on my beat

Now everybody talking and telling me, why don't I let that no good woman be
Everybody talking and telling me, why don't I let that no good woman be
Cause she may show me that she didn't want me, but I don't got sense enough to see

Soon as I do what I want to do, then I'll be satisfied
Soon as I do what I want to do, then I'll be satisfied
That's kill my woman and walk to the police and hand them my .45

Leroy Carr's also singing about finding a woman who's left and he's bring a new Shinin’ Pistol, recorded in 1934:

I'm going to get me a brand new pistol with a long shiny barrel
I'm going to get me a shiny pistol with a long shiny barrel
I'm going to ramble this town over until I find my girl

I'm going to go to the station and try to find her there
I'm going to go to the station and try to find her there
And if the Lord has not got her, she's in this world somewhere

She left me with a head full of trouble and a head full of misery
She left me with a head full of trouble and a head full of misery
And now she's got me crying, baby please come back home to me

My mother told me, don't you weep don't you moan
My mother told me, don't you weep don't you moan
Because, son, there'll be women here when you’re dead and gone

When I get through rambling and looking this whole world through
When I get through rambling and looking this whole world through
I won't be dead with trouble you know I died to lose

Robert Johnson 32/20 Blues is all about handguns and ow he's got the advantage over his woman if she doesn't listen to him:

I send for my baby, and she don't come
If I send for my baby, man, and she don't come
All the doctors in Hot Springs sure can't help her none

And if she gets unruly, thinks she don't want to do
And if she gets unruly and thinks she don't want to do
Take my 32-20, now, and cut her half in two

She got a .38 special but I believe it's most too light
She got a .38 special but I believe it's most too light
I got a 32-20, got to make the caps alright

If I send for my baby, man, and she don't come
If I send for my baby, man, and she don't come
All the doctors in Hot Springs sure can't help her none

I'm gonna shoot my pistol, gonna shoot my gatling gun
I'm gonna shoot my pistol, got to shoot my gatling gun
You made me love you, now your man has come

Oh, baby, where you stayed last night
Oh, baby, where you stayed last night
You got your hair all tangled and you ain't talking right

Her .38 special, boys, it do very well
Her .38 special, boys, it do very well
I got a 32-20 now, and it's a burning...

If I send for my baby, man, and she don't come
If I send for my baby, man, and she don't come
All the doctors in Wisconsin sure can't help her none

Hey, hey, baby, where you stayed last night
Hey, hey, baby, where you stayed last night
You didn't come home until the sun was shining bright

Oh boys, I just can't take my rest
Oh boys, I just can't take my rest
With this 32-20 laying up and down my breast

These songs about men finding a weapon to go hurt a woman can be frightening, but they show how much despair getting hurt in a relationship can cause, which is the heart of the blues.
Songs:
44 Blues - Roosevelt Sykes
Pistol Slapping Blues - Blind Boy Fuller
Pistol Blues - Boweavil Jackson
Midnight Blues - William Moore
45 Pistol Blues - Walter Roland
Forty-Five Blues - J.T. "Funny Paper" Smith
32/20 Blues - Robert Johnson

Show 41 - Hoodoo Women

Hoodoo. Mojo hands, John the Conqueror Root, Goofer Dust, Hot Foot Powder. It's a system rootwork, a folk belief in magic and it's all over the blues. Many hoodoo practitioners were women and I thought we'd take a look at some songs about hoodoo women. In Hoodoo Lady, Memphis Minnie sings about going to the hoodoo lady seeking some magical help and making sure she avoids whatever curse the hoodoo lady might lay on her:

Hoodoo lady, how do you do?
They tell me you take a boot and turn it to a brand new shoe
But don't put that thing on me, don't put that thing on me
Don't put that thing on me, 'cause I'm going back to Tennessee

Hoodoo lady, you can turn water to wine
I been wondering where have you been all this time
I'm setting here broke and I ain't got a dime
You ought to put something in these dukes of mine

But don't put that thing on me, Don't put that thing on me
Don't put that thing on me, 'cause I'm going back to Tennessee

Boy, you better watch it 'cause she's tricky.

Hoodoo lady, I want you to unlock my door
So I can get in and get all my clothes
But don't put that thing on me, don't put that thing on me
Don't put that thing on me, 'cause I'm going back to Tennessee

Now, look here, Hoodoo Lady, I want you to treat me right
Bring my man back home, but don't let him stay all night
And don't put that thing on me, don't put that thing on me
Don't put that thing on me, 'cause I'm going back to Tennessee

Boy, she's tricky as she can be. Better watch her, too.

Why, look here, hoodoo lady, I'm your friend
When you leave this time, come back again
But don't put that thing on me , don't put that thing on me
Don't put that thing on me, 'cause I'm going back to Tennessee
Boys, I'm scared of her

Memphis Minnie expressed her fear of the hoodoo lady. Perhaps the most famous hoodoo lady of the first part of the twentieth century was known as Aunt Caroline Dye. The Memphis Jug Band recorded a song about her released of the Victor label under the title Aunt Caroline Dyer in 1930:

I'm going to Newport News just to see Aunt Caroline Dye
I'm going to Newport News just to see Aunt Caroline Dye
She's a fortune-telling woman, oh Lord, and she don't tell no lie

I'm going to Newport News, partner, catch a battleship across the doggone sea
I'm going to Newport News, catch a battleship across the doggone sea
Because bad luck and hard work, oh Lord, sure don't agree with me

Aunt Caroline Dye, she told me, "Son, you don't have to live so rough"
Aunt Caroline Dye she told me, "Son, you don't have to live so rough
"I'm going to fix you up a mojo, oh Lord, so you can strut your stuff"

Aunt Caroline Dye she told me, "Son, these women don't mean you no good"
Aunt Caroline Dye she told me, "Son, these women don't mean you no good"
Said, "Take my advice and don't monkey with none in your neighborhood"

I am leaving in the morning, I don't want no one to accuse me
Yes, I'm leaving in the morning, I don't want no one to accuse me
I'm going back to Newport News and do what Aunt Caroline Dye told me to

The Memphis Jug Band sang about going to Newport News, Virginia to see Aunt Caroline Dye. Another singer, Johnnie Temple, in the song Hoodoo Women has the same hoodoo lady in the town of Newport, Arkansas where she actually lived:

Well, I went out on the mountain, looked over in Jerusalem
Well, I went out on the mountain, looked over in Jerusalem
Well, I see them hoodoo women, Lord, making up their lowdown plan

Well, I'm going to Newport, just to see Aunt Caroline Dye
Well, I'm going to Newport, just to see Aunt Caroline Dye
She's a fortune teller, Lord, she sure don't tell no lie

And she told my fortune, as I walked through her door
And she told my fortune, as I walked through her door
Said, "I'm sorry for you, buddy, Lord, the woman don't want you no more"

Yes, I turned around, said, "I believe I'll go downtown"
Well I turned around, said, "I believe I'll go downtown
"To Chicago River, Lord, and jump overboard and drown"

The hoodoo said, "Son, please, don't act no clown"
The hoodoo said, "Son, please, don't act no clown"
"Because it's a many more women, Lord, laying around in this no-good town"

The hoodoo is alright, in their lowdown plan
The hoodoo is alright, in their lowdown plan
But they will take your woman, Lord, and put her with another man.

The Seven Sisters were a collective of New Orleans hoodoo women. Funny Paper Smith told their story in the 1931 two-part recording Seven Sister's Blues.

They tell me seven sisters in New Orleans, they can really fix a man up right
They tell me seven sisters in New Orleans, they can really fix a man up right
And I'm headed for New Orleans, Louisiana, I'm traveling both day and night

I hear them say, the oldest sister look like she's just twenty‑one
I hear them say, the oldest sister look like she's just twenty‑one
And said she can look right in your eyes and tell you exactly what you want done

They tell me they been hung, been bled, and been crucified
They tell me they been hung, been bled, and been crucified
But I just want enough help to stand on the water and rule the tide

It's bound to be seven sisters because I've heard it by everybody else
It's bound to be seven sisters because I've heard it by everybody else
Of course I'd love to take their word but I'd rather go and see for myself

When I leave the seven sisters, I'm piling stones all around
When I leave the seven sisters, I'm piling stones all around
And go to my baby and tell her, there's another seven‑sister man in town

Good morning seven sisters, just thought I'd come down and see
Good morning seven sisters, I thought I'd come down and see
Will you build me up when I'm torn down and make me strong where I'm weak

Seven Sisters Blues‑Part 2

I went to New Orleans, Louisiana, just on account of something I heard
I went to New Orleans, Louisiana, just on account of something I heard
The seven sisters told me everything I wanted to know and they wouldn't let me speak a word

Now it's Sarah, Minnie, Bertha, Holly, Dolly, Betty, and Jane
Sarah, Minnie, Bertha, Holly, Dolly, Betty, and Jane
You can't know them sisters apart, because they all look just the same

The seven sisters sent me away happy, around the corner I met another little girl
The seven sisters sent me away happy, around the corner I met another little girl
She looked at me and smiled and said go devil and destroy the world
I'm gonna destroy it too, alright now

Seven times a year, the seven sisters will visit me in my sleep
Seven times a year, the seven sisters will visit me all in my sleep
And they said I won't have no more trouble and said I'll live twelve days in a week

Boy go down in Louisiana and get the lead right out of your bean
Boy go down in Louisiana and get the lead out of your bean
If seven sisters can't do anything in Louisiana bet you'll have to go to New Orleans

As these songs show, hoodoo women were often fortune tellers as well as root workers. Merline Johnson, known as the Yas Yas Girl sang about fortune tellers in her song Black Gypsy Blues. She uses fortune telling as a pretty straight forward sexual metaphor.

I'm the Black Gypsy, don't you want your fortune told?
I'm the Black Gypsy, don't you want your fortune told?
I will start from the first, and end up on your soul

When you get lonesome, and begin to feeling blue,
When you get lonesome, and begin to feeling blue,
Go to see a Black Gypsy, she will tell you what to do

I'm the Black Gypsy, and they call me Rosa Lee
I'm the Black Gypsy, and they call me Rosa Lee
When you get lonesome, call around to see me

All the men in town, come to see poor me,
All the men in town, come to see poor me
Because I know what to do, to ease your misery

Yes, I'm the Black Gypsy, and all my work's by trade
Yes, I'm the Black Gypsy, and all my work's by trade
And the man I can't ease his misery, has never been made

Blues songs illustrate that hoodoo and fortunetelling were a significant part of African-American life in the first half of the twentieth century. The characters and practices revealed in the blues give us a glimpse of what must have been a fascinating subculture. And women were an important and powerful part of the world of hoodoo. It's not surprising in the context of the blues that women would hold this power which at times is explicitly sexual.

Further reading: Hoodoo in Theory and Practice by Catherine Yronwode

Songs:
Hoodoo Lady - Memphis Minnie
Aunt Caroline Dyer Blues - Memphis Jug Band
Hoodoo Women - Johnnie Temple
Seven Sisters Blues - Funny Paper Smith
Black Gypsy Blues - Merline Johnson (Yas Yas Girl)

Show 36 - Nicknames

It's amazing how many of the great musicians are known by nicknames. Often, the real names are obscure and even the biggest fans know only a nickname. And there are some great ones in prewar blues: Bumble Bee Slim, Leadbelly, Little Son Joe, Salty Dog Sam, Funny Paper Smith. The list of great nicknames is endless. Many sang songs that define and tell the stories behind those nicknames.
A guy named James Arnold reworked a song that Scrapper Blackwell had recorded a few years earlier. Soon he was known as Kokomo and the name James Arnold all but vanished. The song is Old Original Kokomo Blues from 1934.

Now one and one is two mama, two and two is four
Mess around here pretty mama, you know we got to go
Crying oh baby don't you want to go
Back to eleven light city, to sweet old Kokomo
Now four and one is five mama, five and one is six
You mess around here pretty mama, you going to get me tricked
Crying oh baby don't you want to go
Back to eleven light city, to sweet old Kokomo
Now six and one is seven mama, seven and one is eight
You mess around here pretty mama, you going to make me late
Crying oh baby don't you want to go
Back to eleven light city, to sweet old Kokomo
Says I told you mama when you first fell across my bed
You been drinking your bad whiskey and talking all out your head
Crying oh baby don't you want to go
Back to eleven light city, to sweet old Kokomo
I don't drink because I'm dry mama, don't drink because I'm blue
The reason I drink pretty mama, I can't get along with you
Crying oh baby don't you want to go
Back to eleven light city, to sweet old Kokomo

Now eight and one is nine mama, nine and one is ten
You mess around here pretty mama, I'm going to take you in
Crying oh baby don't you want to go
Back to eleven light city, to sweet old Kokomo
Now ten and one is eleven mama, eleven and one is twelve
You mess around here pretty mama, you going to catch you a lot of hell
Crying oh baby don't you want to go
Back to eleven light city, to sweet old Kokomo

Kokomo Arnold presumably referred to the town the Kokomo, Indiana. Two years later, Robert Johnson would rip the song off, change the city to Sweet Home Chicago and inspire countless covers. But the name Kokomo would be forever attached to Arnold.
Songs about playing cards are frequently heard in this genre. But Texas musician Babe Karo Lemon Turner took it to another level when he took the name of the prettiest card in the deck: the Black Ace. He tells the story in his 1937 recording Black Ace.

I am the Black Ace, I'm the boss card in your hand
I am the Black Ace, I'm the boss card in your hand
And I'll play for you mama if you please let me be your man

Sometimes a black ace never comes inside
Sometimes a black ace never comes inside
But I'll play for you mama, if you please, will treat me right

Says I'll lay in the deck mama, I'll lay forth and tight
But I'll play for you mama if you treat me right
If you don't want me mama, I said please leave me alone

Cause I'll play for you mama when the king is gone
(That means when your husband's gone)
I'll be your winner in any game you play
I'll be your winner in any game you play
And if you don't want me mama, please just let me stay

Yes you know you don't want me mama, you won't even say
That's alright mama, you gonna need my help someday
I sad please, mama, please, don't drive me away
Cause I'll be at the trailer, Mama if you please let me stay

Another Texas musicians got his nickname becuase he was a man that didn't want to stay in any one place for long. He was born Willard Thomas and recorded under the name Ramblin' Thomas. The story of how he earned his name is in the 1928 song, Ramblin' Man.

I feel like rambling, rambling stays on my mind
I feel like rambling, rambling stays on my mind
And I ain't satisfied unless I'm rambling all the time

Now you will wake up in the morning and find me gone
And you will wake up in the morning and find me gone
Because I'm a rambling man and I can't stay at one place long

It's one day and one night is long as I stay in one place
It's one day and one night is long as I stay in one place
But I've been in Chicago one week because I like these Chicago ways

I'm going to leave here walking, chance is that I may ride
And I'm going to leave here walking, chance is that I may ride
Because I'm going to ramble until the day that I die

One nickname is not enough for some people. JT Smith, another Texas musician, was one of them. He was known as Funny Paper or some blues researchers believe Funny Papa. If it was Funny Paper, it probably refers to newspaper comic strips, maybe even specifically to the comic Snuffy Smith. But either Papa or Paper, Smith had yet another nickname, and he had it a couple decades before a more famous bluesman. It's one of the great animal-related nicknames, the Howling Wolf. In 1930, he recorded a song in about it: Howling Wolf Blues

Well here I am got the blues about Little Old Victoria, the Howling Wolf
I guess I'll drop a few lines

I am that wolf that everybody been trying to find out where in the world I prowl
I am that wolf that everybody been trying to find out where in the world I prowl
Nobody ever gets a chance to see me, but they all hear me when I howl

Now I howl to my baby with her mother standing by her side
I howl to my baby with her mother standing by her side
And that's the reason I'm howling, I'm trying to be satisfied

I even prowled for you baby when you was down and couldn't stand up on your feet
I even prowled for you baby when you was down and couldn't stand up on your feet
Now you walk by the lone wolf and act like you don't want to see

What made you quit me, I love you as I did three years ago
What made you quit me, baby, I love you as I did three years ago
Take me back and I'll quit prowling and I won't ever howl no more

Now the preacher told me that God will forgive a black man most anything he do
Now the preacher told me that God will forgive a black man most anything he do
I ain't black but I'm dark‑complexioned, look like he ought to forgive me too

Look like God don't treat me like I'm a human kind
Seem like God don't treat me like I'm a human kind
Seem like he wants me to be a prowler and a howling wolf all the time

Howling Wolf Blues‑No. 2

Baby here I am down on my bended knees
Ask you to take me back and forgive me do that for me if you please
Now when you hear me howling mama, I mean howling at your door
when you hear me howling mama, howling at your door
Come on and give me what I want mama then you won't hear me howl no more

Ever since you quit me mama, I ain't wanted nobody
else Ever since you quit me mama, I ain't wanted nobody else
For I'd rather be with nobody than I'd rather be howling by myself

Now I done howled and howled until I wore my tonsils sore
Now I done howled and howled until I made my tonsils sore
And when I howl this time mama, I never will howl no more

Now here I am in Chicago, doing the best I can
Here I am in Chicago, doing the best I can
If I hear from my baby, I'll act the fool and go howling back south again

Mama listen at me howl
Mama listen at me howl
Watch the roads dark as night mama and you liable to see me prowl

The man born Harold Bunch was another popular musician with a few nicknames. Best known as Peetie Wheatstraw, he's also The Devil's Son-in-Law and the High Sheriff from Hell. I mentioned Robert Johnson borrowing from Kokomo Arnold, he also took a lot from Peetie Wheatstraw including an association with the devil. The troublemaking character of Peetie Wheatstraw became part of American folklore and culture, showing up in Ralph Ellison novels and Rudy Ray Moore films. It's not clear if Bunch got the name from an already existing folk hero, or if he created a new one. Either way he was a hugely popular musician when he recorded the story in Peetie Wheatstraw Stomp in 1937.

Women all raving about Peetie Wheatstraw in this land
Women all raving about Peetie Wheatstraw in this land
He got some of these women now going from hand to hand

Don't tell all the girls what that Peetie Wheatstraw can do
Woohoo... that Peetie Wheatstraw can do
That will cause suspicion now you know they will try him too

If you want to see the women that may clown
If you want to see the women may clown
Just let that Peetie Wheatstraw come into your town

I am Peetie Wheatstraw, the high sheriff from hell
I am Peetie Wheatstraw, the high sheriff from hell
The way I strut my stuff, well now you never can tell

Peetie Wheatstraw Stomp No. 2:

Everybody hollering here come that Peetie Wheatstraw
Everybody hollering here come that Peetie Wheatstraw
Now he's better known by the devil's son‑in‑law
Everybody wondering what that Peetie Wheatstraw do
Woohoo what that Peetie Wheatstraw do
Because every time you hear him, he coming out with something new

He makes some happy, some he make cry
Whoo makes some happy, some he make cry
Well now he made one old lady go hang herself and die

This is Peetie Wheatstraw I'm always in the line
This is Peetie Wheatstraw then again I'm always on the line
Save up your nickels and dimes, you can come up and see me sometime

Nicknames were the sole identification of the artist on many blues records in the prewar period. They were more important than real names for the record buying public and people within smaller communities interacting on peronal levels. For many people, nicknames are an essential part of their identity. They told you something about the man, whether he was connected to the devil and trouble, eager to ramble, or maybe just the fact that he were slim. The songs here are a tiny sample representing artists telling stories of their nicknames. Dozens more can be found in prewar blues. Nicknaming is an important part of American black culture and the legacy of blues nicknaming can certainly still be seen in hip-hop music where virtually no one records under their given name.
Songs:
Old Original Kokomo Blues - Kokomo Arnold
Black Ace - Black Ace
Ramblin' Thomas - Ramblin' Man
Funny Paper Smith - Howling Wolf Blues Part 1
Funny Paper Smith - Howling Wolf Blues Part 2
Peetie Wheatstraw - Peetie Wheatstraw Stomp Part 1
Peetie Wheatstraw - Peetie Wheatstraw Stomp Part 2