Topic: Arthur Pettis Lyrics

[GhostRider]

Hi Folks:

I've always liked Good Boy Blues by Arthur Pettis. I've always liked the way the accompanyment varies from verse to verse and I think it would be a great base for other interpretations, But some of the lyrics have me stumped. I'd appreciate the help, and any information you might have on Arthur Pettis.

GOOD BOY BLUES
Arthur Pettis
1930

(1) Instrumental introduction verse

(2) When youse a good fellow, the law will leave you 'lone (x2)
When youse a bad fellow, the jail will be your home.

(3) Canned heat (? )? keep you???
Canned heat? keep you ??
Jailhouse doors open and you got a ramblin' mind.

(4) You sad and you wonderin', you lookin' through your mind (x2)
You don't want no more canned heat( ), when the judge gives you your time

(5) Wake up every morning, when everything? ?
Wake up every morning, when everything?
? one you love, the booze will soon leave you

(6) Talkin' all night long, walkin' from place to place
Walkin' all night long, walkin' from place to place
I was wonderin' and walkin' to see my baby's face

(7) Instrumental break

Best of luck and thanks,
Alex

[frankie]

Hi Alex - if you don't have a way to make an mp3 of this tune, I can upload one later.  Gotta go dig up the CD...

[GhostRider]

Hi Frankie:

Thanks a lot, I'd appreciate it. I copied the song onto my computer in Real Player format, but i cant figure out how to get it to .mp3. I need to take Computer Music 101.

Alex

[Slack]

Hi Alex,

It is tough to find a free mp3 converter - but I think Winamp can convert from a Windows .WAV file to MP3 - you might check out Winamp.  I've got this Yazoo release on Cassette whcih is a bit more difficult for me to convert to mp3 - so hopefully Frank can find his CD.

Here is my take on the tune, a few question marks - but I think it gets you a little further along.

When youse a good fellow
They'll all will leave you alone (x2)
When youse a bad fellow
the jail will be your home

Canned heat and a good boy
Keep you with that [flowerin mind](?) (x2)
Jail house open
Then you got a ramblin' mind

You sit and you worry
You're lookin through your mind (x2)
You don't want no more canned heat
When the judge give you your time

Wake up every mornin'
When everything look blue (low, 2nd time) (x2)
You see the one you love
The blues will soon leave you

Walkin all night long
Walkin from place to place (x2)
I was runnin' and walkin'
To see my baby's face

cheers,
slack

[frankie]

Hi Alex - here's the tune.  For a free audio conversion/recording utility, try CDex.  Works great!


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[frankie]

Canned heat and a good boy
Keep you with that [flowerin mind](?) (x2)

To me, it sounds like:

Canned heat ain't no good, boy

The second half of that sure sounds like he's saying "flowerin' mind", but that can't be right!  I can't think of any alternative, though...

[Slack]

To me, it sounds like:
Canned heat ain't no good, boy

Yup, I think you are right.

Agree that 'flowerin'' cannot be right - flooring, flowing ... who knows, a tough one.

cheers,

[waxwing]

I've been workin' on this song, on and off, for a while now. Tough one, even when you've got some tab. Stefan G. tabs the intro, a verse "sketch" and one break in his Legends of Country Blues Guitar (Mel Bay). He also transcribes the lyrics, but with some glaring problems. He must have had a pretty rough copy. You guys are already passed what he's got right. I've got a few possible solutions to some of the tough spots:

When youse a good fellow
The Law will leave you 'lone (x2)(I like this better)
When youse a bad fellow
the jail will be your home

Canned heat ain't no good boy
Keep you with a fly away mind (x2) (or maybe 'flowery')
Jail house?doors open
Then you got a ramblin' mind

You' sad and you're? wonderin' (first time sounds like 'won'rin')
You' lookin' through your mind (x2)
You don't want no mo' canned heat
When the judge give you your time

Wake up every mornin'
When everything looks blue (x2) (sounds like 'blow' second time)
But see the one you love
The blues will soon leave you

Walkin' all night long
Walkin' from place to place (x2)
I was wonderin' and walkin' (but runnin' makes more sense, maybe)
To see my baby's face

Does anyone else get the image of pacing in a cell from that last verse? Gives me chills. Why I kinda like 'wonderin' over 'runnin'.
Arthur's pronunciation really has a hard A sound, always with a long 'A' for the article and his 'The' sounds like a short 'They'. His shortened 'ing' endings sound like 'an'.
After I've worked up Mississippi Blues (William Brown) which I'm deep into at the moment, I'm gonna give this one another crack. Thanks for posting it, Alex.
All for now.
John C.

[frankie]

Canned heat ain't no good boy
Keep you with a fly away mind (x2) (or maybe 'flowery')

I used to play this ages ago - it just occurred to me that one of the things I used to sing for this verse was:

Keep you with a fire in mind

Not that that makes any more sense than anything else that's been suggested, but why stop at two?

Does anyone else get the image of pacing in a cell from that last verse? Gives me chills. Why I kinda like 'wonderin' over 'runnin'.

Actually, I always heard that as "wanderin'".? Listening to the tune again, I'm pretty sure that that's what he's saying.
 
I love the way AP uses bass riffs - reminds me of Big Bill Broonzy in some respects.? His "That Won't Do" definitely makes me think of Big Bill's "Long Tall Mama".

[GhostRider]

Hi all:

Great work!

Wake up every mornin'
When everything look blue (x2) (sounds like 'blow' second time)

This sounds right, but I'd change "look" to "looks"

I listened to "flowerin" at least ten times and tried to force it to "Fire in" or "fly away" (both of which make more sense), but I can't. It sounds like "flowerin' to me.

I get the same chill listening to he last verse. Such a hopeless feeling  created by the words and the triplet accompanyment.

Alex

[GhostRider]

Hi all:

Just in order to summarize (for now!), I've "stolen" waxwing's lyrics, and with minor modification, made it the version-for-now.

GOOD BOY BLUES
Arthur Pettis
1930

(1) Instrumental introduction

(2) When youse a good fellow, The Law will leave you 'lone (x2)
 When youse a bad fellow, the jail will be your home.

(3) Canned heat ain't no good, boy, keep you with a (flowery) mind (x2)
Jail house doors open, then you got a ramblin' mind.

(4) You sad and you're?wonderin' (first time sounds like 'won'rin'), You lookin' through your mind (x2)
You don't want no mo' canned heat, when the judge gives you your time.

(5) Wake up every mornin', when everything looks blue (x2) (sounds like 'blow' second time)
But see the one you love, the blues will soon leave you.

(6) Walkin' all night long, walkin' from place to place (x2)
I was wonderin' and walkin', to see my baby's face.

(7) Instrumental verse

In the last line, I'm not sure between wanderin' and wonderin'.

As many of you have said flowery doesn't make much sense.

Thanks,
Alex

[Johnm]

Hi Alex,
Looks good--as you said, that "flowery" is weird.  I listened to it again a few times, and on the repeat of that line it sounds like he could be saying, "cloudy".  The first time sounds more like "flowery" or "flower in mind", which really makes no more sense.  It's a puzzler.
All best,
John

[waxwing]

I think flowery (or fly away) is fine. It makes a kind of sense in that canned heat is particularly debilitating and addictive, and robs a man of his will power. If you wanted to stay out of jail, you needed to have your wits about you. I could sing that. Good work all.
All for now,
John C.

[Richard]

For what it's worth I was listening to the song and thinking about the 'flowery' bit as I scrolled down the posts and had just reached the same conculsion as Waxwing when I came to his post.

[GhostRider]

Howdy:

I like this one, with the full sounding thunks of the monotonic bass and the little double time breaks. But as usual Arthur's diction has me stumped in spots.

Two Time Blues
Arthur Pettis
1930

Key of A
Capo II

(1) (instrumental line)
A two-timin' woman, on one's mind.
takes some poor girl's man

(2) When the blues is you, you don't know what would do
Ahhh, You don't know what would do.
Go back to the one you love now, the blues will soon leave you.

(3) You tryin' t' act right (blues?) will not let you
Ahhh, blues will not let you.
Heart full of sorrow now, (blues?) ridden you.

(4) Two timin' woman, keep you on that killin' floor.
Ahhhh, keep you on that killin' floor.
How can you love always

(5) When your love won't talk to you, don't be feelin' sad.
Ahhh, don't be feelin' sad.
get you a new girl or one you once have had.

(6) instrumental break

(7) Well, well, well, well. I ain't gonna stay hear long
Ahhh, I can't stay here long.
(instrumental line)

Coda

Arthur had such a romantic view.

Thanks,
Alex

Note: edited to include comments below

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