Topic: Mamie Smith's Crazy Blues

[Rivers]

Dated 1920 and often cited as the first recorded blues I believe Crazy Blues deserves some serious listening time from guitar players with a jazz/ragtime bent. It's a song very rich in distinct 'parts', I identify three, arguably four, verse variations flowing one into another.

This creates a strong melodic backbone on which to hang the narrative and sustained interest throughout. Each verse type's musical structure counts as 'interesting' tending to fall slightly outside the well-worn ragtime/ jazz/ blues progressions; some are downright weird.

The lyrics are controversial and have spawned several dissertations available on the internet. Leon Redbone made a nice cover version and goes into creative mumbling mode where Mamie sang: "I'm gonna do like a Chinaman, go and get some hop / Get myself a gun, and shoot myself a cop".

I will post some chords in a guitar-friendly key when I've finished figuring it out. Which could be quite a long time so if anyone else has a take on it please post away and maybe we can get some collaboration going.

This transcription courtesy of http://www.tokyo-blues.com/Crazy_Blues-lyrics.html


        I can't sleep at night
        I can't eat a bite
        'Cause the man I love
        He don't treat me right.

        He makes me feel so blue
        I don't know what to do
        Sometimes I'm sad inside
        And then begin to cry
        'Cause my best friend . . . said his last goodbye.

        There's a change in the ocean
        Change in the deep blue sea . . . but baby
        I tell you folks there . . . ain't no change in me
        My love for that man
        Will always be.

        Now I've got the crazy blues
        Since my baby went away
        I ain't got no time to lose
        I must find him today
        Now the doctor's gonna do all . . . that he can
        But what you gonna need is a undertaker man
        I ain't had nothin' but bad news
        Now I've got the crazy blues.

        Now I can read his letter
        I sure can't read his mind
        I thought he's lovin'me . . .
        He's leavint all the time
        Now I see . . .
        My poor love was Iyin'.


        I went to the railroad
        Hang my head on the track
        Thought about my daddy
        I gladly snatched it back
        Now my babe's gone
        And gave me the sack.

        Now I've got the crazy blues
        Since my baby went away
        I ain't had no time to lose
        I must find him today
        I'm gonna do like a Chinaman, go and get some hop
        Get myself a gun, and shoot myself a cop
        I ain't had nothin' but bad news
        Now I've got the crazy blues.

        Those blues.

        Composed by: Perry Bradford
        Originally sung by: Mamie Smith

[Bunker Hill]

Bradford in his "unihibited" autobiography, Born With The Blues (Oak 1965), says this:

When my jazz band played for Mamie Smith to record the "Crazy Blues, we had no arrangements. They were what I called "hum and head arrangements." I mean we would listen to the melody and harmony of the piano and each man picked out his harmony notes.

It was crude, but the sound that Mamie and my Jazz Hounds planted that February morning in 1920 had such "down home" original corn in it that it has sprouted, grown and thrived all down through the years.

That's why I am glad to tell the truth about the beginning and give credit to whom credit is due.

[Rivers]

"Hum and head" arrangements, I like it. There's some pretty serious harmonisation and counterpoint melody (I think, must listen again) going on though, part accidental I'm sure.

[SteveMcBill]

Leon Redbone did a fingerstyle version (as I remember it - not played it for quite a while) of this - sadly I can't remember which CD at the moment !

Cheers.

Steve

P.S.: Just checked the net and it is on:

1. Live & Kickin? - CDLEM34
2. Double Time - Warner Bros - on Amazon at: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000002KGI/104-2766339-7928700?v=glance&n=5174 with music samples.

[Rivers]

Hi Steve, I have Leon Redbone's version on Double Time. I tend to collect his records since he does such a good job of plundering ancient jazz history for guitar-arrangeable piano tunes which is also very much my thing at present.

The original Mamie Smith recording I have is pitched smack dab between the keys of E and F. Leon's version is in C, which is probably the the most obvious start key to go looking for a guitar arrangement, and is where I'm currently working on it.

The original is bordering on early "over production" with the band going full blast. It works real well trimmed down to a guitar arrangement.

[uncle bud]

Mark, Del Rey does a solo guitar version on X-Rey Guitar. Pretty mellow version actually. For Del. It's still a fingerbuster though.

[Rivers]

Cool, thanks Bud, that one got under the radar, will check it out. Del's in Austin soon, must call Steve and see whassup with the local gigs.

[GerryC]

My former guitar teacher and still very good friend Roger Sutcliffe did an epic version of Crazy Blues on his album Under the Rubber Eagle (1988) which was re-issued on CD about ten years ago. He plays it in C and published tab for his version in his book Living with the Blues, published by Dave Mallinson Music in 1999. I don't know whether or not the book is still in print [although Roger still sells copies at his gigs] but you could try Dave Mallinson's website at www.mally.com  Failing that I could scan it and e-mail it to interested parties. It's a terrific arrangement in a ragtime/jazzy idiom with a finger-boggling instrumental break.

Cheerily,

Gerry C

Edited to add: Just checked Mally's website and the book is available there for the princely sum of ?2.00 (about $4.00). Grrr! It was ?10 when I bought it, even though Roger gives me a mention on p.41. Go to website and type "Roger Sutcliffe" into the search facility. It's a bargain full of splendid goodies.

[SteveMcBill]

Hi Gerry,

I'd say a definite 'Yes' to a copy of the arrangement if that's possible ?!

Cheers and thanks

Steve
steve.mcwilliam@btinternet.com

[Bunker Hill]

Thought I'd give this a bump in light of the following

http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/a-headstone-for-mamie-smith-blues-singer

Their aim is for $6,000 and have a long way to go. I made a measly contribution of $10 and will add $20 next month. As someone once said "every little helps"....

[jaycee]

simply could'nt find the book on mallys website. i will ring him on monday and order a copy. i live extremely near him so maybe he will allow me to drive down and collect a copy from him.

[daddystovepipe]

mally.com has let me know that they don't have any of the books left.
Try Roger Sutcliffe directly or surf the net (I found a copy of the book for $12 and the cd for ?15, both + shipping)

[mick655]

I want to thank Bunker Hill for posting about my indiegogo campaign to buy Mamie Smith a headstone. I write for Blues Revue, Blues Music Magazine, other venues and am writing a book about Mamie, her composer Perry Bradford, and the birth of recorded blues.

Of note, the last time a classic blues singer needed a headstone was Bessie Smith. Janis Joplin and Juanita Green bought it for her Philadelphia PA grave in 1970.

Odd sidelight: In 1946, when Mamie died, a group of German fans purchased a headstone and shipped it to New York. It never arrived and no one knows where or why.

Mamie died in Harlem and lies in unmarked ground in Staten Island, NYC. I hope to change that through Indiegogo.
Thanks,
Michael Cala

[Slack]

Welcome Michael! 

Great film clip.  Every little bit helps, so I matched Bunkers contribution.

[mick655]

Hi, Slack, thanks for the donation and kind words. Michael

[Rivers]

Contributed my 25$!

[Pan]

I made a small donation as well.

I tried to transcribe the chord changes to "Crazy Blues". Here's what I came up with:

Intro:
|| E (E6) | E (E6) | E | E ||

A
|| E | E | E | E |

| B7 | B7 | E / (Edim F#m7)| E |

| A | Am | E | E |

| B7 | B7 | E / (Edim7 F#m7)| E (E/B C#dim7 B7/D#) ||

B
|| E | B7 | E | E7 |

| A7 | A7 | E | E |

| B7 | B7 | E | E ||

Chorus
|| E | E7 | A7 | E |

| E | E7 | F#7 | B7 |

| E | Edim7 | F#m7 | E |

| C#m7 | C#m7 | C#m7 / F#7 B7 | E ||

C
||: E B7/F# E/G# A | E/B A/C# E/B E/G# | E B7/F# E/G# A | E7 |

| A7 | A7 | E | E |

| B7 | B7 | E | E :|| (repeat)

Chorus

Ending:
|| E / / Edim7 | E ||

I'm not sure if I got all the horn harmonies right, or if they really should be repeated with rhythm instruments. It's also questionable, when a chord is a major 6th chord, or it's relative minor (E6 vs. C#m7 or A6 vs. F#m7). You could just leave out the chords in parenthesis. Corrections are, of course, welcome.



Cheers

Pan

[mick655]

As a postscript: while assessing the gravesite for Mamie Smith's headstone, I came across the gravestone of Tommy Ladnier (1900-1939), a New Orleans trumpeter once considered rival to Louis Armstrong -- less than 200 feet from where Mamie lies. Found his short bio and headstone photo on Findagrave.com. Sorry I cant post URL as I am using a tablet and cannot copy and paste. If interested, search by name.  Best, Michael

[Rivers]

Pan, you've clearly worked on it, do you have a feel for how many distinct verse forms there are in the song?

Last time I became analytical about it, see my first post, I counted three for sure and maybe a fourth that I wasn't able to figure out at the time. I'll study your transcription over the weekend.

I'm hard pressed to think of another song that contains so much variation between verses, in fact I can't think of one. I have to conclude Mamie and the Jazz Hounds must have rehearsed it pretty hard to have been able to come up with that wild performance at the recording session. It truly is a brilliant piece of work IMHO, and the world is extremely lucky it survived.

[Pan]

Hi Rivers

I too, counted 3 different verses (which I labeled A, B, and C) + a Chorus.

As Bunker Hill said in his post earlier on this thread, Perry Bradford has told that the musicians didn't have any sheet music, and the arrangements were just improvised "head arrangements". Apparently it took the band about a dozen takes, before a successful take could be recorded. No wonder, given the complexity of the song structure. 

May I also recommend Jas Obrecht's great article on Mamie Smith (and Crazy Blues)?

http://jasobrecht.com/mamie-smith-the-first-lady-of-the-blues/

Cheers

Pan

[Rivers]

Wow, a dozen run throughs before rolling wax. It does explain the whole crazed vibe of Crazy Blues, and why it appeals to me as a musical person.

We are very lucky they were all still bopping hard at the point the engineer turned-on the wax cutting machine.

[Pan]

FWIW, I came across Mary Stafford's version from 1921, a year after Mamie's original version.

1921...Mary Stafford-Crazy Blues

Cheers

Pan

[Rivers]

Any news on the fundraising?

http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/a-headstone-for-mamie-smith-blues-singer?c=activity

[Bunker Hill]

He's fallen short of what was required, i.e, $5000. If he still checks in here he might be able to tell us his next move.

[Rivers]

Just received an update on the Mamie Smith headstone project. Despite the fundraising campaign not quite hitting the target last year a dedication ceremony is projected to occur very soon:

5 hours ago

Just got news that the headstone for Mamie Smith is being delivered to Wegenaar Monuments tomorrow. It will be delivered to the cemetery within the next two weeks. The foundation will be laid shortly. So it will be in time for the headstone unveiling and dedication ceremony on Sept. 13 at the Frederick Douglass Memorial Park, Staten Island. Details of the 2PM ceremony and unveiling to follow. Best, Michael Cala, Project Manager

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/a-headstone-for-mamie-smith-blues-singer#activity