Topic: Black Bottom McPhail Lyrics

[Johnm]

Hi all,
Scrapper Blackwell did a session in 1932 in which he accompanied a singer who went by the name Black Bottom McPhail.  I know nothing else about Black Bottom, biographically.  For "My Dream Blues", Scrapper accompanied Black Bottom out of E position in standard tuning.  His accompaniment is very rich, harmonically, working a lot of territory that Scrapper had to himself in the evolutionary stage the Blues were in at that point in history.  Indeed, despite the fact that Scrapper doesn't take a solo, one comes away from the recording feeling satisfied just by the imagination he brings to his accompaniment role.
Black Bottom McPhail was not a notably gifted singer, but he had some nice turns of phrase in his lyrics, and several of the songs he and Scrapper did together are worth resurrecting

.

I'm goin' to tell all you people, my dream I had one week ago
I'm goin' to tell all you people, my dream I had one week ago
I dreamed my baby was leavin' me, and I was beggin' her, "Please don't go."

But whensoever you have a dream, always take your dream the other way
Whensomenever you have a dream, always take your dream the other way
For now I've been mistreated, and I'm leavin' town this very day

I'd rather be up on a mountain, or down in the deep blue sea
I would rather be up on a mountain, or down in the deep blue sea
Than to be right here, baby, treated like you treat poor me

Lord, I cried last night, and I cried the night before
I say, I cried last night, cried the night before
But that is one thing I hope, I won't have to cry no more

Now if you don't want me, baby, why don't you tell me so?
I say, if you don't want me, baby, why don't you tell me so?
Then I can sleep at night and won't have to dream no more

All best,
Johnm

[Johnm]

Hi all,
Another song for which Scrapper Blackwell backed up Black Bottom McPhail is "Down In Black Bottom", which Scrapper accompanied out of A position in standard tuning.  As with "My Dream Blues", Scrapper's accompaniment is wonderfully varied and he has some of the terrific bends up the the neck that were admired and imitated by Robert Johnson.  The more I listen to Scrapper, the more impressed I am with how spot-on the pitches of his bends were; really, they couldn't be improved upon, and he was a marvel of consistency, sort of like Buddy Moss in that regard.
In the thematic sense, "Down In Black Bottom" is working the same side of the street as "Deep Elum Blues", talking about a dangerous place where you could also have some fun.  The phrasing on this song is pretty complicated, and Black Bottom McPhail pulls it off beautifully.  I think the sense of the second line of the fourth verse is, (If you) don't, etc.  I'd appreciate some corroboration/correction of the second line of the last verse.



Now, down in Black Bottom, that is, so they say
They drink good moonshine and stay drunk all day
REFRAIN: I'm crazy about Black Bottom, hmmm, so they say
That's where they drink good moonshine and stay drunk all day

Yes, I went down in black Bottom, I didn't go to stay down there long
Police brought me out by my right arm
REFRAIN: I'm going back down in Black Bottom, hmmm, so they say
That's where they drink good moonshine and stay drunk all day

Now, you go down in black Bottom, and you don't know the rule,
Black Bottom women will try to make a fool of you
REFRAIN: I'm crazy about Black Bottom, hmmm, so they say
That's where they drink good moonshine and stay drunk all day

If you go down in Black Bottom, put your money in your shoes,
Don't, them Black Bottom Women will give your pockets the blues
REFRAIN: I'm crazy about Black Bottom, hmmm, so they say
That's where they drink good moonshine and stay drunk all day

Now, you go down in Black Bottom, put your money down in your britches
For them women's going to rob you, now, you dirty hmmm
REFRAIN: Crazy about Black Bottom, hmmm, so they say
That's where they drink good moonshine and stay drunk all day

Now, if anybody aks you who composed this song,
Tell 'em 'twas 'lack Bottom, buddy, 's done been here and gone
REFRAIN: He down in Black Bottom, hmmm, so they say
That's where they drink good moonshine and stay drunk all day

Edited 12/28 to pick up correction from dj

All best,
Johnm


 

[Johnm]

Hi all,
Yet another Black Bottom McPhail recording that used Scrapper Blackwell in an accompaniment capacity is "Whiskey Man Blues", which Scrapper played out of D position in standard tuning.  The song has strong lyrics, and the third verse is especially fine, and Scrapper is operating in a setting in which he's completely comfortable and able to use his huge bag of licks in D.



Well, I drink so much whiskey, 'til they call me Whiskey Man
I say, I drink so much whiskey, they call me Whiskey Man
Lord, I gets up every morning with the whiskey bottle in my hand

Lord, my baby treats me mean, she keeps me worried all the time
I say, my baby, she do treats me mean, she keep me worried all the time
And if I didn't drink my whiskey, I believe I would lose my mind

When I drink my whiskey, I don't mistreat my friends
When I drink my whiskey, I don't mistreat my friends
I am sober now, but I'm going and get drunk again

Lord, whiskey, whiskey, it don't mean me no good
I say, whiskey, whiskey, it don't mean me no good
And I would stop drinkin' whiskey, baby, if I only could

Lord, Lord, whiskey is killin' me
Lord, Lord, whiskey is killin' me
And why I can't stop drinkin' whiskey, Lord, Lord, I just can't see

My baby put me out, I'm just goin' from hand to hand
I said, my baby's put me out, I'm just goin' from hand to hand
And I drink so much whiskey 'til they call me Whiskey Man

All best,
Johnm
 

[dj]

Hi, John.  I think the second line of the last verse of Down in black Bottom is "Tell 'em [li'l?] BLACK BOTTOM BUDDY'S, done been here and gone"

[Johnm]

Thanks very much for the help, dj.  I think Black Bottom McPhail mis-spoke the line.  I'm now hearing:
   Tell 'em it was next Bottom Buddy's, done been here and gone
with "next" being the mis-spoken part of the line.  I'm not hearing "black" prior to "Bottom" at all.  I'm satisfied that it captures the sound of what he said.  The sense of it fell into place with the "s" following "buddy" rather than "bottom", as you had it.  Thanks so much, and Happy New Year!
All best,
Johnm

[dj]

You're right, Johm, I think McPhail did mispronounce the line, or at least that one word.  You wouldn't think a guy would forget how to pronounce his name, would you?  I think rather than "next", that word comes out sounding more like "leck", and McPhail just sort of swallowed the "B" at the start of "Black".  But that's a minor quibble.

On an even more minor note, I think that I'd transcribe "it was" in that line as " 'twas", as I only hear McPhail getting off one syllable there.

Ok, thinking of it even more as I type, it occurs to me that the line should probably be punctuated thus:

Tell 'em 'twas 'lack Bottom,  buddy, 's done been here and gone 

Where 's is a contraction of "has" or "he's".  in other words, "You tell them, buddy, it was Black Bottom and he's been here and gone".

I hope you don't find this too nit-picky! 

[Johnm]

Too nit-picky?  Not a chance, dj!  At a certain, particularly fun level, this is all about nit-picking.  I like the changes you've suggested, and will make them.
All best,
Johnm

[Johnm]

Hi all,
Scrapper Blackwell accompanied Black Bottom McPhail for "Mixin' That Thing", a "Tight Like That" cover, working out of D position in standard tuning.  Here is the duo's performance:



I went downtown to the music store
They got a sign hangin' right by the door, sayin'
REFRAIN: Mixin' that thing, we going to mix that thing
Boy, it's all over St. Louis, yes, we going to mix that thing

Now, my baby got a mixer, and I have, too
And when we start to mixin' now it just won't do, I like to
REFRAIN: Mix that thing, I like to mix that thing
You can come over to my house, I'll show you how to mix that thing

Now, I went out, the other night
When I got back somethin' wasn't going on right, somebody was
REFRAIN: Mixin' that thing, somebody was mixin' that thing
I put my head to the keyhole, I heard somebody mixin' that thing

Now, I do mixin' every night
When my mixer get out of fix, I want to fuss and fight, I like to
REFRAIN: Mix that thing, I likes to mix that thing
And everybody in town is wild about mixin' that thing

Now, I often hear Grandma gettin' Grandpa told,
"Looky-here, old man, you've done got too old, for to
REFRAIN: Mix that thing, you can't mix that thing
And it's all over St. Louis, everybody's mixin' that thing

Now, the womens in New York, they wears diamond rings
But the womens in St. Louis, they like to mix that thing, I like to
REFRAIN: Mix that thing, I likes to mix that thing
And it's all over St. Louis, yes, I like to mix that thing

Now, here in St. Louis, 'bout to come to test
Tryin' to see which one here can mix the thing the best, I likes to
REFRAIN: Mix that thing, I likes to mix that thing
And it's all over St. Louis, yes, I like to mix that thing

All best,
Johnm
 
 

[Johnm]

Hi all,
I discovered that all of the songs for which Scrapper Blackwell  accompanied Black Bottom McPhail were in the Scrapper Blackwell Lyrics thread, so I split them out and made a Black Bottom McPhail Lyrics thread.
All best,
Johnm