Hi all
A fellow musician visiting Berlin lately, requested me to do this song with him as a duet, so I looked a little bit into it, and since we apparently don't have a devoted thread to the tune, I thought I'd share some of my thoughts.
To be honest, I had never considered playing the tune myself, partly because it's so widely covered, and partly because the later versions by the students of Rev. Gary Davis sort of have galvanized the tune into a set form of chords and lyrics.
But, as usually is the case, the more you look into a song, and it's different versions, the more you come to appreciate it.
According to Wikipedia, the song is originally a traditional tune, but two sources copyrighted a sheet music arrangement early on. One was published by Billy Smythe, Scott Middleton, and Art Gillham, in 1914 (and again in 1926); another by W.C. Handy as "Hesitating Blues in 1915."
The former version was recorded as an instrumental by Victor Military Band in 1916. After an intro, and a repeated verse, you'll hear the familiar 12 bar melody. The song also has a middle part, which isn't usually repeated in the vocal versions of the song.
The Smythe, Middleton, and Gillham version was recorded by Al Bernard as a cylinder recording in 1919.
Hesitation Blues ? Al Bernard
I?ll go down to the levee, take a rocking chair,
If the Blues doesn?t leave me, babe, I?ll rock away from here,
Oh, tell me how long, have I got to wait?
Oh babe, can I get you now, or must I hesitate?
I was born in the mountain, raised in the sand,
Chief occupation taking gals from their men
Oh, tell me how long, have I got to wait?
Oh give me 1-1-1-1-1, -or must I hesitate?
Instrumental
I?m going way out west, to marry an Indian squaw,
Have an Indian chief for a Pa-in-law.
Tell me how long, have I got to wait?
Oh babe, can I get you now, or must I hesitate?
I had a dream last night, that a rubber tyred hack,
Took me to the graveyard and forgot to bring me back.
Oh, tell me how long, have I got to wait?
Oh give me 11-11-11-7-11, must I hesitate?
Instrumental (spoken asides: it, boys, it. Mm. Don?t that man play a piano? Ha! Yes-sir!)
Never marry a fat girl, who says she?s just stout.
But there?s she?s in the bed, just to keep from out.
Oh tell me how long, have I got to wait?
Oh babe, can I get you now, or must I hesitate?
A-never marry a thin girl, whatever you do,
If she pulls out the bathplug, she?s liable to go through.
Oh tell me how long, have I got to wait?
Oh give me 5-6 Oh 1-9 or must I hesitate?
Instrumental
I went out in the country, sat down by a brook.
Sat down on a bumble-bee, he backed up and pushed.
Oh tell me how long, have I got to wait?
Oh babe, can I get you now, or must I hesitate?
Cherrys make , apples give me the
But it takes persimmon to
Oh tell me how long, have I got to wait?
Oh give me 11-11-7-11, must I hesitate?
Art Gillham also did this in 1925.
Hesitation Blues -Art Gillham
(Spoken: Come on fingers, percolate, percolate, fingers.
Here?s where we do the meanest blues ever written, yes sir.)
I?m going down to the levee, take a rocking chair,
If the blues don?t leave me, going to rock away from there.
Baby how long, how long I have to wait?
Can I get you now, must I hesitate?
I had a sweet mama, so bashful and shy,
When she mends her underwear, she plugs the needle?s eye.
How long, how long I have to wait?
Well, can I get you now, must I hesitate?
A doctor?s in love with my girl, they say,
I got her eating apples just to keep him away.
How long, how long I have to wait?
Well, can I get you now, must I hesitate?
I?ve met girls on railroad trains and on the river boats,
But my sweet mama?s got what makes a good mule eat it?s oats.
(Spoken: Tell me Honey, tell your Papa, how come you make him do like you do?)
Well, can I get you now, must I hesitate?
While you must love your neighbors, what the Good Book say,
But that don?t mean to love her, when her husband?s away.
How long, how long I have to wait?
Can I get you now, must I hesitate?
When I got home last night, I wasn?t there at all,
I looked through the another mule in my stall.
How long, how long I have to wait?
Can I get you now, must I hesitate?
I?ve got ?ham? in my name, I might be awful dum.
But I?ve got more ideas of loving, than Wrigley has gum.
How long, how long I have to wait?
Can I get you now, must I hesitate?
Ashes to ashes, dust to dust,
I?ve got a black-haired mama, that the rain can?t rust.
(Spoken: Come on Mama, tell Papa how come you do?s like you do?)
Oh, can I get you now, must I hesitate?
I was born down in Georgia, raised in Tennessee,
When I get Hesitation Blues, my mama takes ?em away from me.
How long, how long I have to wait?
Oh, can I get you now, must I hesitate?
(Spoken: That?s it!)
The above mentioned versions are pretty much a standard 12 bar blues with the usual I, IV and V chords.
The W.C. Handy version shares the same melody as the Smythe, Middleton, and Gillham version, but the title is ?Hesitating Blues?, and the lyrics, and the harmony are slightly different. Handy's set of lyrics places the singer trying to make a long-distance call to a lover, and the hesitating is done by others, than the singer. The harmony is also slightly different, in the part where the common melody is used.
The James Reese Europe's 369th U.S. Infantry "Hell Fighters" Marching Band recorded the Handy version as an instrumental in 1919. After a brief intro you'll hear the familiar melody twice with a some variations, before the song modulates up a fourth, to another 12 bar blues theme, and finally to a melody, which resembles ?Make Me A Pallet On Your Floor?.
I've never seen Handy's sheet music, so I wouldn't know what variations are his own, but the chord changes in the familiar melody part appear on many versions credited to him, so I suppose they are his. If we look at this part of the arrangement, it's in the key of F major, and the chord changes to the first 4 bars of the 12 bar blues are something like this:
|| Fdim7 F | Fdim7 F | Fdim7 F | F/C C#dim7 Dm7 , | to Bb7 ?
The F/C and the C#dim7 chord in the bar 4 get one beat each, while the Dm7 gets 2 beats.
Here is Louis Armstrong's beautiful version of Hesitating Blues, with Velma Middleton as a guest vocalist. I think the slower tempo reveals the beauty of Handy's chord changes much better.
Hesitating Blues -W.C. Handy -Louis Armstrong (LA) with Velma Middleton VM)
Hello central, what?s the matter with this line?
I wanna talk to that high brown of mine.
Tell me how long, will I have to wait? (VM, spoken aside: Won?t be that long) (LA, spoken: Okay, baby [laughs].)
Please give me 2-98, why do you hesitate? ( spoken: Good number for tomorrow, Velma [laughs].)
Oh, what you say? Can?t talk to my brown?
A storm last night, blew the wires all down.
Now, tell me how long, will I have to wait? ( spoken: Come on in this house, gal [laughs].)
Oh won?t you tell me now, why do you hesitate? (spoken: C?mon in there Velma, c?mon in there [laughs].)
Interlude 4 bars
VM: Say, Sunday night, my Beau proposed to me,
Said, he?d be happy, if his wife I?d be.
Said he, how long, baby will I have to wait?
Come be my wife, my Kate,
Why do you hesitate?
Say, I declined him, it was just for a stall,
He left that night on the Cannonball.
Honey, oh honey, how long, will I have to wait?
Will I have to wait? (LA, spoken: I don?t know ?bout you baby, but I?m ready, and I ain?t hesitating neither. [laughs].)
Oh won?t you tell me know, baby why do you hesitate?
Instrumental solos x2
Now you might wonder what, if anything, these ?jazz? versions might have to do with country blues? Let's look at those changes, and transfer them into chord degrees:
|| Idim7 I | Idim7 I | Idim7 I | I/5 #Vdim7 VIm7 | to IV7?
and transfer them into the key of C major
|| Cdim7 C | Cdim7 C | Cdim7 C | C/G G#dim7 Am7 | to F7?
Reverend Gary Davis was probably the first who changed the I chord to a VIm chord in the beginning of the song (C to Am), as we've come to know the song. You'll notice that Handy's version also has a Vim chord, but it is used in a very different way, so assuming that the Reverend got it from Mr. Handy would be rather far stretched, in my opinion.
However, in some versions Rev. Davis plays a break in the song, using the similar Cdim7 to C progression Handy uses in his version. This might be a coincidence, but it makes me wonder, if he was, in some way or form, aware of Handy's changes, or variations of them.
Here's a very nifty instrumental version by the Rev. check out the part at around 3:14, for example, to see what I mean.
Sorry if I bored you to death with Hesitation Blues, but after haphazardly playing it with my buddy (who learned the tune from Roy Bookbinder), I grew to like it, and thought that at least some of you might be interested in all this.
Here's someone I don't know at all, doing a nice instrumental version with the W.C. Handy changes.
And here?s someone, you might know, doing a nice rendition as well.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on this tune!
The Wikipedia article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hesitation_Blues
A dedicated and growing songlist on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLNEJV1lNKyyXTXG3Fo5MfEIjxLelbi790&feature=mh_lolz
Cheers
Pan
Edited to replace a dead YT link, and a bunch of unfinished lyric transcriptions.
A fellow musician visiting Berlin lately, requested me to do this song with him as a duet, so I looked a little bit into it, and since we apparently don't have a devoted thread to the tune, I thought I'd share some of my thoughts.
To be honest, I had never considered playing the tune myself, partly because it's so widely covered, and partly because the later versions by the students of Rev. Gary Davis sort of have galvanized the tune into a set form of chords and lyrics.
But, as usually is the case, the more you look into a song, and it's different versions, the more you come to appreciate it.
According to Wikipedia, the song is originally a traditional tune, but two sources copyrighted a sheet music arrangement early on. One was published by Billy Smythe, Scott Middleton, and Art Gillham, in 1914 (and again in 1926); another by W.C. Handy as "Hesitating Blues in 1915."
The former version was recorded as an instrumental by Victor Military Band in 1916. After an intro, and a repeated verse, you'll hear the familiar 12 bar melody. The song also has a middle part, which isn't usually repeated in the vocal versions of the song.
The Smythe, Middleton, and Gillham version was recorded by Al Bernard as a cylinder recording in 1919.
Hesitation Blues ? Al Bernard
I?ll go down to the levee, take a rocking chair,
If the Blues doesn?t leave me, babe, I?ll rock away from here,
Oh, tell me how long, have I got to wait?
Oh babe, can I get you now, or must I hesitate?
I was born in the mountain, raised in the sand,
Chief occupation taking gals from their men
Oh, tell me how long, have I got to wait?
Oh give me 1-1-1-1-1, -or must I hesitate?
Instrumental
I?m going way out west, to marry an Indian squaw,
Have an Indian chief for a Pa-in-law.
Tell me how long, have I got to wait?
Oh babe, can I get you now, or must I hesitate?
I had a dream last night, that a rubber tyred hack,
Took me to the graveyard and forgot to bring me back.
Oh, tell me how long, have I got to wait?
Oh give me 11-11-11-7-11, must I hesitate?
Instrumental (spoken asides: it, boys, it. Mm. Don?t that man play a piano? Ha! Yes-sir!)
Never marry a fat girl, who says she?s just stout.
But there?s she?s in the bed, just to keep from out.
Oh tell me how long, have I got to wait?
Oh babe, can I get you now, or must I hesitate?
A-never marry a thin girl, whatever you do,
If she pulls out the bathplug, she?s liable to go through.
Oh tell me how long, have I got to wait?
Oh give me 5-6 Oh 1-9 or must I hesitate?
Instrumental
I went out in the country, sat down by a brook.
Sat down on a bumble-bee, he backed up and pushed.
Oh tell me how long, have I got to wait?
Oh babe, can I get you now, or must I hesitate?
Cherrys make , apples give me the
But it takes persimmon to
Oh tell me how long, have I got to wait?
Oh give me 11-11-7-11, must I hesitate?
Art Gillham also did this in 1925.
Hesitation Blues -Art Gillham
(Spoken: Come on fingers, percolate, percolate, fingers.
Here?s where we do the meanest blues ever written, yes sir.)
I?m going down to the levee, take a rocking chair,
If the blues don?t leave me, going to rock away from there.
Baby how long, how long I have to wait?
Can I get you now, must I hesitate?
I had a sweet mama, so bashful and shy,
When she mends her underwear, she plugs the needle?s eye.
How long, how long I have to wait?
Well, can I get you now, must I hesitate?
A doctor?s in love with my girl, they say,
I got her eating apples just to keep him away.
How long, how long I have to wait?
Well, can I get you now, must I hesitate?
I?ve met girls on railroad trains and on the river boats,
But my sweet mama?s got what makes a good mule eat it?s oats.
(Spoken: Tell me Honey, tell your Papa, how come you make him do like you do?)
Well, can I get you now, must I hesitate?
While you must love your neighbors, what the Good Book say,
But that don?t mean to love her, when her husband?s away.
How long, how long I have to wait?
Can I get you now, must I hesitate?
When I got home last night, I wasn?t there at all,
I looked through the another mule in my stall.
How long, how long I have to wait?
Can I get you now, must I hesitate?
I?ve got ?ham? in my name, I might be awful dum.
But I?ve got more ideas of loving, than Wrigley has gum.
How long, how long I have to wait?
Can I get you now, must I hesitate?
Ashes to ashes, dust to dust,
I?ve got a black-haired mama, that the rain can?t rust.
(Spoken: Come on Mama, tell Papa how come you do?s like you do?)
Oh, can I get you now, must I hesitate?
I was born down in Georgia, raised in Tennessee,
When I get Hesitation Blues, my mama takes ?em away from me.
How long, how long I have to wait?
Oh, can I get you now, must I hesitate?
(Spoken: That?s it!)
The above mentioned versions are pretty much a standard 12 bar blues with the usual I, IV and V chords.
The W.C. Handy version shares the same melody as the Smythe, Middleton, and Gillham version, but the title is ?Hesitating Blues?, and the lyrics, and the harmony are slightly different. Handy's set of lyrics places the singer trying to make a long-distance call to a lover, and the hesitating is done by others, than the singer. The harmony is also slightly different, in the part where the common melody is used.
The James Reese Europe's 369th U.S. Infantry "Hell Fighters" Marching Band recorded the Handy version as an instrumental in 1919. After a brief intro you'll hear the familiar melody twice with a some variations, before the song modulates up a fourth, to another 12 bar blues theme, and finally to a melody, which resembles ?Make Me A Pallet On Your Floor?.
I've never seen Handy's sheet music, so I wouldn't know what variations are his own, but the chord changes in the familiar melody part appear on many versions credited to him, so I suppose they are his. If we look at this part of the arrangement, it's in the key of F major, and the chord changes to the first 4 bars of the 12 bar blues are something like this:
|| Fdim7 F | Fdim7 F | Fdim7 F | F/C C#dim7 Dm7 , | to Bb7 ?
The F/C and the C#dim7 chord in the bar 4 get one beat each, while the Dm7 gets 2 beats.
Here is Louis Armstrong's beautiful version of Hesitating Blues, with Velma Middleton as a guest vocalist. I think the slower tempo reveals the beauty of Handy's chord changes much better.
Hesitating Blues -W.C. Handy -Louis Armstrong (LA) with Velma Middleton VM)
Hello central, what?s the matter with this line?
I wanna talk to that high brown of mine.
Tell me how long, will I have to wait? (VM, spoken aside: Won?t be that long) (LA, spoken: Okay, baby [laughs].)
Please give me 2-98, why do you hesitate? ( spoken: Good number for tomorrow, Velma [laughs].)
Oh, what you say? Can?t talk to my brown?
A storm last night, blew the wires all down.
Now, tell me how long, will I have to wait? ( spoken: Come on in this house, gal [laughs].)
Oh won?t you tell me now, why do you hesitate? (spoken: C?mon in there Velma, c?mon in there [laughs].)
Interlude 4 bars
VM: Say, Sunday night, my Beau proposed to me,
Said, he?d be happy, if his wife I?d be.
Said he, how long, baby will I have to wait?
Come be my wife, my Kate,
Why do you hesitate?
Say, I declined him, it was just for a stall,
He left that night on the Cannonball.
Honey, oh honey, how long, will I have to wait?
Will I have to wait? (LA, spoken: I don?t know ?bout you baby, but I?m ready, and I ain?t hesitating neither. [laughs].)
Oh won?t you tell me know, baby why do you hesitate?
Instrumental solos x2
Now you might wonder what, if anything, these ?jazz? versions might have to do with country blues? Let's look at those changes, and transfer them into chord degrees:
|| Idim7 I | Idim7 I | Idim7 I | I/5 #Vdim7 VIm7 | to IV7?
and transfer them into the key of C major
|| Cdim7 C | Cdim7 C | Cdim7 C | C/G G#dim7 Am7 | to F7?
Reverend Gary Davis was probably the first who changed the I chord to a VIm chord in the beginning of the song (C to Am), as we've come to know the song. You'll notice that Handy's version also has a Vim chord, but it is used in a very different way, so assuming that the Reverend got it from Mr. Handy would be rather far stretched, in my opinion.
However, in some versions Rev. Davis plays a break in the song, using the similar Cdim7 to C progression Handy uses in his version. This might be a coincidence, but it makes me wonder, if he was, in some way or form, aware of Handy's changes, or variations of them.
Here's a very nifty instrumental version by the Rev. check out the part at around 3:14, for example, to see what I mean.
Sorry if I bored you to death with Hesitation Blues, but after haphazardly playing it with my buddy (who learned the tune from Roy Bookbinder), I grew to like it, and thought that at least some of you might be interested in all this.
Here's someone I don't know at all, doing a nice instrumental version with the W.C. Handy changes.
And here?s someone, you might know, doing a nice rendition as well.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on this tune!
The Wikipedia article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hesitation_Blues
A dedicated and growing songlist on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLNEJV1lNKyyXTXG3Fo5MfEIjxLelbi790&feature=mh_lolz
Cheers
Pan
Edited to replace a dead YT link, and a bunch of unfinished lyric transcriptions.