Topic: Blind Boy Fuller Lyrics

[uncle bud]

Pyruss, let us know how 'Peeper' turns out. My first thoughts were he's capoed way high and playing out of E position but I'm not very good at nailing such things and I haven't worked with it at all yet. I see from weeniepedia it's more likely to be A capoed. see http://www.weeniecampbell.com/wiki/index.php?title=Blind_Boy_Fuller_Guitar_Keys_and_Positions

Yes, Peeper is definitely played out of A position and as you noted earlier in that "Mamie" family of A tunes one can hear in Fuller, Gary Davis, Willy Trice, and others I'm no doubt forgetting.

[Stumblin]

Pyruss, let us know how 'Peeper' turns out. My first thoughts were he's capoed way high and playing out of E position but I'm not very good at nailing such things and I haven't worked with it at all yet. I see from weeniepedia it's more likely to be A capoed. see http://www.weeniecampbell.com/wiki/index.php?title=Blind_Boy_Fuller_Guitar_Keys_and_Positions

Yes, Peeper is definitely played out of A position and as you noted earlier in that "Mamie" family of A tunes one can hear in Fuller, Gary Davis, Willy Trice, and others I'm no doubt forgetting.

I said kiddley, diddle I?

[Pyrrus 61]

Well,
I think it's capoed in f# and you play it on a A position
then d7 with thumb and E, my biggest problem is what he does
on the first A seems to to be easy but... not really

[Pan]

Well,
I think it's capoed in f# and you play it on a A position
then d7 with thumb and E, my biggest problem is what he does
on the first A seems to to be easy but... not really

Here's a youtube video of Ten O'Clock Peeper. If you can point out at which clock time on the video you have problems, perhaps we could try to help you. Fuller seems to play a "long A" form x-o-2-2-2-5, or break the chord to double-stops as in the intro x-x-x-(0)-5-3.



Question to others: Do you know about the picture on the video? I thought there were only two pictures of Fuller, and I have never seen this one before.

Cheers

Pan

[banjochris]

I've seen that pic of Fuller before, but I think it may only have popped up in the last few years. It doesn't get used much that I've seen, probably because it's a small mug from a catalog and not the greatest quality. But it sure is him, though.

[Pyrrus 61]

Thanks Pan,

I was stuck on the first notes i'm not practicing guitar for a long time
in fact i'm a dble bss player so what you told was exactly what i needed to
go along, for the rest of the song i've been playing pigmeat and weeping willow
and it helps a lot to understand what he's doing (that kind of glissando)
So it's beginning to look like music.

Bye

[Blues Vintage]

Meat shakin woman, second verse;

And the dollars come ? down baby just like drops of rain.

In the BB Fuller book of Stefan Grossman book it says "chopping".

[Stumblin]

Meat shakin woman, second verse;

And the dollars come ? down baby just like drops of rain.

In the BB Fuller book of Stefan Grossman book it says "chopping".

It's "showering."
And the dollars come showering down baby just like drops of rain.

P.S. Nothing else makes sense & I've always heard it as "showering."

[Johnm]

Hi all,
Blind Boy Fuller recorded "Cat Man Blues" at a session in New York City on April 29, 1936.  He backed himself out of A position in standard tuning for the song.  He did two takes, and these are the lyrics to the first take.  I'd appreciate help with the bent bracketed portion of the the tagline in the last verse.



   Went home last night, heared a knock, I asked my wife, "What was that?"
   Says, I went home last night, heared a knock and I asked my wife, "What was that?"
   She says, "Man, don't be suspicious, that ain't nothing but a cat."

   Said, I traveled this world all over, mama, taken all kind of chance
   Says, I traveled this world all over, mama, taken all kind of chance
   I ain't never come home before, seen a cat wearing a pair of pants

   Said, they wouldn't call him Cat Man, if he come around in the day
   Wouldn't call him Cat Man, if he come around in the day
   But he wait 'til late at night, when he can steal my cream away

   SOLO

   I want that Cat Man stay away from my house, oh Lord, when I'm out
   I want that Cat Man stay away from my house, Lordy, when I'm out
   'Cause I b'lieve he's causin' my little woman, wearing the mattress out

   Lord, I walked in my front door, acting quiet as a lamb
   Says, I walked in my front door, acting quiet as a lamb
   I never raised disturbment 'til I heared my back door slam

Edited 1/18 to pick up correction from pkeane

All best,
Johnm

[Rivers]

Major coincidence, I had a day off work today and was listening to a lot of Fuller trying to understand his right hand comping, including those Cat Man Blues takes. I will listen to the lyrics again tomorrow.

[pkeane]

Maybe "I never raised disturbment"  ?  There is a second take (with slightly different lyrics) in which the last line sounds like "I never raised no disturbment"  -- still unclear, but in take two I hear "raised", "no" (which is not in take one at all) and the "..ment" pretty clearly.

--Peter

[dj]

I agree with "I never raised disturbment".  In take two, the line is "I never raised no 'sturbment".

[Johnm]

Thanks, Peter, for the line "raised disturbment", and dj, for corroboration.  I should have thought to listen to the second take, always a good idea when such is available.  I will make the change.
All best,
Johnm

[Johnm]

Rivers,
Re Blind Boy Fuller's right hand work on "Cat Man Blues, Take 1", he was really working Buddy Moss's style as much as he possibly could, with lots of index finger-brushed triplets in the treble, and sparing and irregular use of the thumb in the right hand--no regular time-keeping with it, either in monotonic or alternating bass.
All best,
Johnm

[Rivers]

I'd love to be able to get that sound but it sure doesn't come naturally.

Cat Man I guess is a tad easier since it's broken up with triplets, not to mention the cool double time 2 bar Blake-esque stumbling break that's in take 1 at 1 min 25 secs. What has been exercising me in general though are the driving pieces where he's flopping his hand around and playing melody over top. My appreciation of Fuller has gone up several notches lately, it's only when I started trying to play what he's actually doing on the records I realized I had a lot to learn about Fuller, both hands. Which is cool.

I do need a National at this point. I've come to appreciate that a single cone reso can sound really subtle, if you work on the touch.