Topic: Bo Carter Lyrics

[blueshome]

Not commercially.
Paul Oliver recorded him in Memphis in 1960 but decided against releasing the tracks as he thought they did not do Bo justice. Having heard some, he was probably right although they are unmistakeably Bo.

[Blues Vintage]

I think it's high yellows not high yeller. Blind Willie McTell utilized that phrase in his (8 bar) repertoire.

[Johnm]

Hi all,
Thus far, a couple of musicians have been mentioned and I've bemoaned the high number of unreleased recordings they made. It's worthwhile to acknowledge musicians who dependably made recordings and had their recordings released.

Bo Carter was remarkable in this regard. Out of 118 titles recorded by Bo, from 1928--1940, 105 of which were solos sides on which he accompanied himself on guitar, he had a total of only 9 titles that were not issued by the companies that originally recorded them. Of those titles, the first was the very first piece Bo recorded in the studio, "The Yellow Coon Has No Race", which was an ensemble piece for which session notes indicate he was joined by Charlie McCoy. 3 more of the unreleased solo titles, "Twist It, Baby", "The Law Gonna Step On You" and "Pigmeat Is What I Crave" were released for the first time by Yazoo in the '70s, and were shown not to be defective or inferior in any way. The remaining five unreleased titles, "I Wish To Make You Mine Some Day", "Lead Gone Bad", "Best Piece of Furniture", "Squeeze Your Orange" and "Total Ole Shaker" (probably mis-titled, should have been "Todalo Shaker") were all solo sides.

So out of Bo's 105 solo sides, he had only five sides that have never been released. What a striking tribute to his consistent level of musicianship and ability to work under pressure! Moreover, he didn't record so many titles because his records weren't selling--the record companies wanted him to record. When you see how many titles he recorded at some of his sessions, it is shocking. In San Antonio, on October 22, 1938, he had a session that yielded seventeen titles that were released--that's in one day, folks! On that day, he had one more tune that was not released, "Best Piece of Furniture". At his last commercial recording session, in Atlanta on February 12, 1940, he recorded 14 titles, two of which, "Squeeze Your Orange" and "Total Ole Shaker" were not released. And he wasn't coasting at these sessions--he recorded a lot of challenging material at them:
   * In San Antonio, "Shake 'Em On Down", "Trouble In Blues", "Who's Been Here?", "Let's Get Drunk Again", "Some Day", "Old Devil", "Country Fool"
   * In Atlanta, "Arrangement For Me Blues", "My Baby", "Policy Blues", "Tush Hog Blues", "Honey" and "What You Want Your Daddy To Do?"

So, I guess if you look at some musicians and feel wistful about the number of titles they recorded that weren't released, you can buck up when you study Bo Carter, because he was given the opportunity to produce, and produce he did! He certainly did not leave his game in the locker room, and we can be thankful for that.

All best,
Johnm

[Prof Scratchy]

He was a major force and, for my money, the guitarist who displayed the greatest stylistic variety and inventiveness in the majority of sides he created. I’m not a big fan of the more crass ‘single-entendre’ material he put out, but the songs are of their time and were undoubtedly popular with the buying public. There are some of his innuendo songs, like Twist It Babe, that I find quite beautiful. On my first hearing of it, I thought it was a children’s song. Then I paid attention to the lyrics!

[Johnm]

I think it is a children's song, Prof--it just happens to be a dirty children's song!

[Thomas8]

Because he recorded so prolifically and in such meaty chunks, it would be fascinating to see how much of the material he recorded he actually performed outside the studio, and how much of it was simply a means for him to be recorded more. There are some blues songs he recorded that sound as if they've come straight off the production line then there are others that are straight derivatives of popular hits and themes and then there are songs that are completely original to him.
 

[Prof Scratchy]

I think it is a children's song, Prof--it just happens to be a dirty children's song!

Ha ha!

[Johnm]

You make a good point, Thomas. Another thing you find out about Bo when you transcribe a lot of his tunes is how compositionally he was oriented, as opposed to being an improviser. And like such Baroque composers as Handel and Vivaldi, he was not averse to re-using his own ideas, licks and moves that he particularly liked. For that reason, I think it would be interesting to see how many of his recorded performances were one-offs, compositionally, and how many shared ideas, licks, chord progression or structure with other songs he recorded.

One thing I've noticed about Bo: he favored a quiet left hand under his singing. He almost always simply held a chordal position and ran his right hand under his singing and waited for the instrumental response to launch into his fireworks.
All best,
Johnm

[eric]

I'm not knowledgeable enough to discuss technical aspects of Bo's playing, but what a remarkable player he was.  Country Blues seem such an inadequate label for so much of this music.

[Stuart]

I think it is a children's song, Prof--it just happens to be a dirty children's song!

--For us grown up kids. 

I'm not knowledgeable enough to discuss technical aspects of Bo's playing, but what a remarkable player he was.  Country Blues seem such an inadequate label for so much of this music.

Early on (50+ years ago) I would hear a song or musician and think to myself, "This doesn't sound like a Country Blues." Then I gradually began to understand that the musicians and their music define the classification and not vice versa--for me, anyway. Live and learn. Thank Heavens for Bo Carter.

[dj]

... (50+ years ago) ...

50 years ago, what I knew of Bo Carter was, if I remember rightly, Please Warm My Wiener and Banana In My Fruit Basket.  I wrote him off as someone I didn't need to explore further.  Fortunately, the late great Weenie Juke and my own insatiable appetite for musical discovery cured me of that.  I'm glad I gave Bo a second chance!

[Johnm]

Hi all,
Bo Carter recorded "Baby Ruth" at his last session, in Atlanta on February 12, 1940, accompanying himself out of DGDGBE tuning. He's not treading any new territory here, except with regard to tiny particulars. Here is "Baby Ruth":



INTRO

Listen here now, people, please listen to me, my little old Baby Ruth, ain't treatin' me right, you see
REFRAIN: Sweet little old Baby Ruth, Baby Ru', Baby Ruth why'n't you come on home?
I mean I ain't had no good kind of lovin', oooo, since my Baby Ruth been gone

Hey now, tell me Baby Ruth, where'd you stay last night? You come home this mornin', your hair wasn't hangin' just right
REFRAIN: Sweet little old Baby Ruth, Baby Ru', Baby Ruth why'n't you come on home?
I mean I ain't had no good kind of lovin', oooo, since my Baby Ruth been gone

Says some people likes other candies, some like a chocolate drop, but if you don't give me Baby Ruth, candyman, you better not stop
REFRAIN: Here little old Baby Ruth, Baby Ru', Baby Ruth why'n't you come on home?
I mean I ain't had no good kind of lovin', oooo, since my Baby Ruth been gone

SOLO

Now some people likes all-day suckers, some like a Milky Way, but if you don't give me Baby Ruth, you can take 'em all away
REFRAIN: Sweet little old Baby Ruth, Baby Ru', Baby Ruth why'n't you come on home?
I mean I ain't had no good kind of lovin', oooo, since my Baby Ruth been gone

Now here come my Baby Ruth steppin', with a red jacket on, she got good kind of lovin', man, just sure as you're born
REFRAIN: Sweet little old Baby Ruth, Baby Ru', Baby Ruth why'n't you come on home?
I mean I ain't had no good kind of lovin', oooo, since my Baby Ruth been gone

CODA

All best,
Johnm

[Stuart]

Hi dj: I wasn't referring to Bo specifically, but to my own narrow mindedness and moving beyond my preconceived notions. John's the expert in this area, but IIRC before the Yazoo "Greatest Hits" LP, there wasn't much of Bo Carter's music available unless you knew a collector or someone who did and had tapes of the 78s.

[Johnm]

Hi all,
Bo Carter recorded "Flea On Me", an 8-bar blues played out of Vestapol tuning, at a session at the St. Charles Hotel in New Orleans in October 15, 1936. (These same sessions, over a period of days, yielded the Mississippi Matilda and Sonny Boy Nelson early recordings.) Here is "Flea On Me":



INTRO

It makes no difference, baby, where you go, I really got something, want you to know
REFRAIN: I've got a flea, crawling on me, honey, for you

It is tomorrow, baby, early or late, I want you, baby, give me a date
REFRAIN: 'Cause I got a flea, crawling on me, honey, for you

Now every time, I feel your hand, I'm beggin' you, baby, don't love no other man
REFRAIN: 'Cause I got a flea, crawling on me, honey, for you

Now every time, I squeeze your arm, it makes my lovin' feelin', baby, get all wrong
REFRAIN: 'Cause I got a flea, crawling on me, honey, for you

SOLO

Now you's a mama, meat shaked on your bone, thinks about your lovin', baby, when you're gone
REFRAIN: 'Cause I got a flea, crawling on me, honey, for you

Now every time, take you for a drive, it makes my lovin' feelin', begin to rise
REFRAIN: 'Cause I got a flea, crawling on me, honey, for you

I'm beggin' you, baby, on my last go-round, please, sweet baby, don't turn me down
REFRAIN: 'Cause I got a flea, crawling on me, honey, for you

CODA

All best,
Johnm

[Johnm]

Hi all,
Bo Carter recorded "Got To Work Somewhere" at the same session as "Flea On Me", and as on that song, he chose to play it out of Vestapol tuning. It's a social commentary song, recorded right in the middle of the Depression, after it had already been on for seven years (that's since the Stock Market crash--it had been going much longer than that for many Americans). I can not think of another song in the style that refers to the "standard of living". I'd very much appreciate help with the bent bracketed portion of the opening line of verse two. Here is "Got To Work Somewhere":



INTRO

Says, when I was up, and I had my money, I could get any woman, says, to be my honey
Since I've been down and haven't got the first dime, can't get no woman to say that she'll be mine
REFRAIN: But I got to work somewhere, oh, I got to work somewhere
I mean I've got to work somewhere, no, and I really can't stay here no more

When I was workin' I was always janglin' my dime, since the steady work, I stays broke all the time
Boy, our standard of livin', in this world, here, this-a way, I'd rather be buried deep down in my grave
REFRAIN: 'Cause I got to work somewhere, oh, I got to work somewhere
I mean I got to work somewhere, no, and I really can't stay here no more

SOLO (Spoken: Oh girl, you know I got to work somewhere)

Now, listen here, people, I ain't made out of wood or either steel, you ever been down you know about how I feel
Haven't got clothes and I haven't got shoes, layin' 'round here with those old workin' blues
REFRAIN: I got to work somewhere, I mean I got to work somewhere
I mean I got to work somewhere, no, and I really can't stay here no more

CODA

Edited, 10/18/20 to pick up corrections from Harry

All best,
Johnm