Thanks very much for the help, dj. I wasn't hearing it, and your suggestion is right on. I will make the change.
All best,
Johnm
All best,
Johnm
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This liquor is just right. Any worse and I wouldn't be able to drink it, any better and you wouldn't have given me any - Anon., old Southern saying
0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic. Thanks very much for the help, dj. I wasn't hearing it, and your suggestion is right on. I will make the change.
All best, Johnm Hi all,
I just found this track on youtube, Sara Martin singing "I've Got To Go And Leave My Daddy Behind", accompanied by Sylvester Weaver. I can't figure out why it wasn't on the complete Sylvester Weaver on Document. In any event, Sylvester Weaver was working out of A position in standard tuning here, and sounding very modern, especially considering when the song was recorded, 1923! Here is the duo's performance: INTRO A policeman told me, my daddy was in jail, wanted me to come and, go his bail A policeman told me, my daddy was in jail And wanted me to come, and go his bail I went to the jailhouse, cryin', "Jailer, please, please, mister jailer, let me see my used-to-be." I went to the jailhouse, cryin', "Jailer, please. Oh please, mister jailer, let me see my used-to-be." The jailer felt sorry, and looked at me and smiled, said, "I'm sorry, pretty lady, but your man's done testrified [sic]." The jailer felt sorry, and looked at me and smiled Said,"I'm sorry, pretty lady, but your man's done testrified [sic]." I turned to the cell, looked my daddy in the face, "I'm sorry, pretty daddy, but I just can't take your place." Turned to the cell, looked my daddy in the face Said, "I'm sorry, pretty daddy, but I just can't take your place." Now, girls, you'd better buy yourself a padlock and key, 'cause that's the only way you can keep your man from me Now, girls, you'd better buy yourself a padlock and key 'Cause that's the only way you can keep your man from me And if the blues was whiskey, I'd be drunk all the time, I have to go and leave my daddy behind If the blues was whiskey, I'd be drunk all the time I has to go and leave my daddy behind Edited 6/17/23 to pick up correction from banjochris All best, Johnm That record must have really stuck with Mance Lipscomb; he sings it practically word for word:
Hi all,
I'm finding more interesting Sara Martin tracks, so I decided to just devote this thread to the lyrics of her songs. I agree with you, Harriet and Thomas, with how good Sylvester Weaver sounded on "I've Got To Go And Leave My Daddy Behind". I think one thing that really made his bass stand out is that he let the bass notes ring and did not damp them, something you very seldom hear players do nowadays. And that Mance Lipscomb cut was a great find, Chris. He really modeled his performance on that recording, even to the extent of playing the song out of A position in standard tuning, as Sylvester Weaver did it, rather than playing in A position in dropped-D tuning as Mance most often would do. Here is another song from Sara Martin on which she was accompanied by Sylvester Weaver, "My Man Blues", from 1924. Sylvester Weaver plays banjo-guitar on the cut, out of D position in standard tuning, and I think he might have the earliest walk-up from D on record, though he didn't do it in octaves, as it is available in dropped-D tuning. Here is "My Man Blues": Talk about your brick houses, you ought to see my frame, I've got a brand new man and I'm scared to call his name He's cute, he's sweet, he's everything that's good He's the grandest man that's in our neighborhood And he's my man, mine, all by myself Oh, he's my man, mine, all by myself Gonna find me a bandbox and put him on the shelf He's long and he's tall, shakes just like a willow tree He's long and he's tall, shakes just like a willow tree All the gals, they want him, 'cause he goes with me SOLO X 2 I don't want no gravy put on my rice, this man I've got done took my appetite Love my man, better than I love myself When my man's gone, can't love nobody else All best, Johnm Hi all,
An even earlier collaboration of Sara Martin and Sylvester Weaver was their recording of "Roamin' Blues", released on Okeh in 1923. For the song, Sylvester Weaver chose to accompany Sara Martin out of C position in standard tuning, and his accompaniment abounds with interesting ideas, nifty use of stop time, diminished seventh chords and bass runs that anticipate Lemon Jefferson's recordings. Is there an earlier recorded appearance of the phrase "some scream high yellow"? I wonder. Here is "Roamin' Blues": I've got a mind to ramble, got a mind to leave this town I've got a mind to ramble, I've got a mind to leave this town I've got to mind my man, that's gone and turned me down Some women scream high yellow, but give me my brown and black Some women scream high yellow, but give me my brown and black That's the only color man that I really like Yellow man is evil, brown-skinned man is, too Yellow man is evil, brown-skinned man is, too I'm gonna get me a black man, drive away the blues The reason why so many men are wearing overalls today Reason why so many men are wearing overalls today Lets women like me, on Saturday night, take their pay Now if you think I'm lovin' you, you'd better change your mind If you think I'm lovin' you, you'd better change your mind 'Cause when you think I'm lovin' you, I'm switchin' you, all the time Now, just as sure as the train rolls up in the yard Just as sure as the train rolls up in the yard I'm going so far, take two dollars to send me a postal card All best, Johnm Suzy T
Wow, fantastic thread! That Mance Lipscomb cover of the Sara Martin song!!!
Hi all,
For Sara Martin's "Good-Bye Blues", recorded in 1923, Sylvester Weaver chose to accompany her out of G position in standard tuning. Do you think John Hurt heard this recording? Here is "Good-Bye Blues": INTRO Now honey, don't get mad at me if I just talk in my sleep Oh, honey, don't get mad at me if I just talk in my sleep Even though I may say things that will cause you to weep Just as sure as the birds fly in the sky above Oh, just as sure as the birds fly in the sky above Life ain't worth living if you ain't with the man you love Now, something has gone wrong, with my worried mind Oh, something has gone wrong, with my worried mind I don't do nothing but cry, cry all the time My head ain't much, it just buzzes around Oh, my head ain't much, it just buzzes around But I can entertain you, from my neck on down Now, if you talk in your sleep, please don't you mention my name Oh, if you talk in your sleep, please don't you mention my name 'Cause if you do, you'd better go and dig your grave I know you are wondering, what I'm gonna say to you I know you are wondering, what I'm gonna say to you Well, I wants you to know, I've got them "Good-Bye Blues" All best, Johnm Hi all,
Sara Martin was accompanied by pianist/arranger/composer Clarence Williams, on piano, for "Mistreated Mama Blues", a song which Dock Boggs later covered, unforgettably. This is one of Sara Martin's more low-down vocals. I'd very much appreciate help with the bent bracketed word in the next-to-last line of the last chorus. Here is the song: INTRO VERSE: Sad and lonely, 'cause I only, want my daddy night and day One day, gladness, next day, sadness, he done me wrong to go away CHORUS: Oh, I'm a mistreated mama, mama, he got me down in sin He's just a mean trifling papa, papa, I blame it all on him First he shook my peaches from off my tree, now he's only handing back the seeds to me Mistreated mama, mama, with those mistreated blues SOLO CHORUS: Oh, I'm a mistreated mama, mama, he got me down in sin He's just a mean, trifling papa, papa, I blame it all on him Now, once he said my kisses were oh, so good, then he started [thankling] 'round the neighborhood Mistreated mama, mama, with those mistreated blues All best, Johnm Hi all,
I merged a number of posts with transcription of Sara Martin lyrics over here from the Sylvester Weaver Lyrics thread, where I was working in 2006. It made more sense to have all of her lyrics in one place, especially since on those songs Sylvester Weaver was operating as an accompanist. I'll see if I can find youtube versions of the songs and edit them into the old posts so you all can listen to them. All best, Johnm Hi all,
Regarding older threads and Sara Martin, I remebered that her (or Clarence William's) "Shipwrecked Blues" had been transcribed a number of years ago by MTJ. I only remebered this since I play the song, whenever I'm invited to play on a blues cruise or some such. Here's the thread: https://weeniecampbell.com/yabbse/index.php?topic=2831.msg21851#msg21851 and the lyrics: Sara Martin, "Shipwrecked Blues," recorded 5 September 1926 [Clarence Williams] Oh, the gale is raging, and my ship's without a sail. Oh, the gale is raging, and my ship's without a sail. If the wind keeps on blowing, I won't be left to tell the tale. Now my ship is sinking, and the lightning struck the mast. Now the ship is sinking, and the lightning struck the mast. And my crew done deserted, I've got to stick it to the last. With no life preserver, tell me what I am to do. With my life preserver, tell me what I am to do. If my ship hits the bottom, I know I'll float the ocean blue. Lord, I don't mind drowning, but the water is so cold. No, I don't mind drowning, but the water is so cold. If I must leave this good world, I want to leave it brave and bold. Mama's shipwrecked, shipwrecked, she ain't got no time to lose. Mama's shipwrecked, shipwrecked, she ain't got no time to lose. Lord, if someone don't save me, I'll go down singing shipwrecked blues. and here's the song on YouTube, it seems to influenced by argentine (?) tango. Cheers, Pan John,
That bracketed word is a tough one. I want her to be singing "cycling" as that's the closest thing that makes any sort of sense but it sounds more like "sankling" or, as you have it, "thankling", but neither of those seems to be an actual word, slang or otherwise. I'm curious what others hear. Lew Hi all,
Sara Martin recorded "Longing For Daddy Blues" at a session in New York City on (probably) October 24, 1923, accompanied, for the first time by Sylvester Weaver, who was playing out of E position in standard tuning. Sylvester Weaver really varies his accompaniment a lot over the course of the rendition, starting with a simple pattern pick and getting into some chordal substitutions and interesting licks as he goes along. I'm happy to find more titles by this duo that have not yet been put up in this thread. Here is "Longing For Daddy Blues": INTRO I'm longing, longing, longing, daddy, for you I'm longing, longing, longing, daddy, for you That's why I sing, I've got these longing blues Good women like me, daddy, are scarce and few Good women like me, daddy, are scarce and few And if you leave me, papa, tell me what you going to do The rent I'll pay, daddy, your clothes I'll buy Oh, the rent I'll pay, your clothes I'll buy Give you all my loving, 'til the day I die Now if you don't want me, daddy, there's no need to stall If you don't want me, daddy, there's no need to stall 'Cause I can get more men than a passenger train can haul Now I love you, daddy, no one else but you will do Oh, I love you, daddy, none else but you will do So, come back, daddy, stop me from singing these longing blues All best, Johnm Hi all,
Sara Martin recorded "Everybody's Got The Blues" at a session in Atlanta on March 19, 1924, accompanied by Sylvester Weaver on banjo-guitar, playing out of F position in standard tuning. Sylvester Weaver sounds like he is flat-picking, which I don't recall having heard him do on other tracks, and he really does a nice set of chord changes on the 12-bar blues, like so: | F/C | Bb | F | F9 | | Bb | Db | F/C | D7 | | G7 | C | F C7/G | F C7/G F | He doesn't voice all of the chords the same way over the course of the rendition, either. Sara really makes the most of the humming verse, too. Here is "Everybody's Got The Blues": INTRO Papa, papa, you've mistreated me without a call Papa, papa, you've mistreated me without a call Looks like when you mistreat me, everyone takes me to be a dog I went to bed, laughin', and I woke up, cryin' I went to bed, laughin', and I woke up, cryin' Didn't have the blues, still my man crossed my mind Didn't want to holler, but I had to mumble low Didn't want to holler, but I had to mumble low Just to think my daddy, ain't coming back no more Cryin' mmmmmmm, mmmmmm, mmmmm-mmmmm mmmm mmmm Mmmmmmmmmm, mmmmmmmm, mmmmmm mmmmmm Mmmmmmm mmmmmm mmmmmmmm Cryin' my mama, my papa, my sister and brother, grandma and grandpa, aunt and uncle All my country cousins, they have got the blues Went out in my stable, found a mule dyin', he must've had 'em, too All best, Johnm |