Click on title to link to YouTube's film clip of Charley Patton performing "Shake It And Break It"
CD Review
Charley Patton:Founder Of The Blues, Yazoo Records, 1995
Okay, so this review shows one way my reviewing choices get made. Recently I was reviewing Volume Eight of the Bob Dylan Bootleg series. One of the outstanding tracks on the CD is Dylan's tribute version of the old country blues singer Charley Patton's "High Water Everywhere (Parts 1&2)". So, naturally, I had to go back and check out Mr. Patton's version.
Oh, did I mention that along with many Dylan reviews I have lately been on a country blues tear. You know Robert Johnson, Son House, Skip James, Mississippi John Hurt and the like. That, my friends, is where this all comes together. You cannot mention Delta blues without mentioning the name and influence of Charley Patton. There is no question that he influenced Son House (who played with him on occasion) or that Robert Johnson sat at his feet (maybe Patton is the "devil" he sold his soul out of Highway 51 to ratchet up his blues work). Whether he, as assumed by the title here, was the founder of the blues is a question that I believe is up in the air.
Certainly looking through this compilation Patton's whinny-voiced but driven (a factor that leads me away from him as founder) version of "High Water Everywhere" makes it now totally understandably why Dylan honored Patton on that latest CD of his. Others that make the Patton "greatest hits" list are the raucous "Shake It And Break It", "Stone Pony Blues" and a fantastic "Tom Rushen Blues". Now you can see how all the folk/blues things I write about are interconnected, musically at least. There is indeed a method to my madness.
Blues Lyrics - Charley Patton
High Water Everywhere (Part 1)
All rights to lyrics included on these pages belong to the artists and authors of the works.
All lyrics, photographs, soundclips and other material on this website may only be used for private study, scholarship or research.
by
Charley Patton
recording of 1929-1934
from
Charley Patton: Founder Of The Delta Blues (Yazoo L-1020)
Well, backwater done rose all around
Sumner
now,
drove me down the line
Backwater done rose at Sumner,
drove poor Charley down the line
Lord, I'll tell the world the water,
done crept through this town
Lord, the whole round country,
Lord, river has overflowed
Lord, the whole round country,
man, is overflowed
You know I can't stay here,
I'll go where it's high, boy
I would goto the hilly country,
but, they got me barred
Now, look-a here now at
Leland
river was risin' high
Look-a here boys around Leland tell me,
river was raisin' high
Boy, it's risin' over there, yeah
I'm gonna move to
Greenville
fore I leave, goodbye
Look-a here the water now, Lordy,
Levee
broke, rose most everywhere
The water at Greenville and Leland,
Lord, it done rose everywhere
Boy, you can't never stay here
I would go down to
Rosedale
but, they tell me there's water there
Now, the water now, mama,
done took Charley's town
Well, they tell me the water,
done took Charley's town
Boy, I'm goin' to
Vicksburg
Well, I'm goin' to Vicksburg,
for that high of mine
I am goin' up that water,
where lands don't never flow
Well, I'm goin' over the hill where,
water, oh don't ever flow
Boy, hit Sharkey County and everything was down in Stovall
But, that whole county was leavin',
over that
Tallahatchie
shore
Boy, went to Tallahatchie and got it over there
Lord, the water done rushed all over,
down old Jackson road
Lord, the water done raised,
over the Jackson road
Boy, it starched my clothes
I'm goin' back to the hilly country,
won't be worried no more
__________
Note: this song tells the story of the great Mississippi flood of 1927. The two-part song is long, it covers both sides of a 78 rpm. The music of part one is very similar to Willie Brown's "Future Blues" and Son House's "Jinx Blues";
Note 1: origin: from the old French word levée, act of raising, from lever to raise. An embankment for preventing flooding, or a river landing place, also, a continuous dike or ridge (as of earth) for confining the irrigation areas of land to be flooded. A levee camp therefore is a work camp for building or improving dikes to prevent rivers from flooding the land, primarily in the
Mississippi Delta
area.
Part 2
Backwater at
Blytheville
, backed up all around
Backwater at Blytheville, done took Joiner town
It was fifty families and children come to sink and drown
The water was risin' up at my friend's door
The water was risin' up at my friend's door
The man said to his women folk, "Lord, we'd better go"
The water was risin', got up in my bed
Lord, the water was rollin', got up to my bed
I thought I would take a trip, Lord, out on the big ice sled
Oh, I can hear, Lord, Lord, water upon my door,
you know what I mean, look-a here
I hear the ice, Lord, Lord, was sinkin' down,
I couldn't get no boats there, Marion City gone down
So high the water was risin' our men sinkin' down
Man, the water was risin' at places all around,
boy, they's all around
It was fifty men and children come to sink and drown
Oh, Lordy, women and grown men drown
Oh, women and children sinkin' down
Lord, have mercy
I couldn't see nobody's home and wasn't no one to be found
__________
Blues Lyrics - Charley Patton
Shake It And Break It
All rights to lyrics included on these pages belong to the artists and authors of the works.
All lyrics, photographs, soundclips and other material on this website may only be used for private study, scholarship or research.
by
Charley Patton
recording of 1929-1934
from
Charley Patton: Founder Of The Delta Blues (Yazoo L-1020)
You can shake it, you can break it, you can hang it on the wall
Throw it out the window, catch it 'fore it roll
You can shake it, you can break it, you can hang it on the wall
...it out the window, catch it 'fore it falls
My
jelly, my roll
, sweet mama, don't let it fall
Everybody have a jelly roll like mine, I lives in town
I, ain't got no brown, I, an' I want it now
My jelly, my roll, sweet mama, don't let it fall
You can snatch it, you can grab it, you can break it, you can twist it,
any way that I love to get it
I, had my right mind since I, I blowed this town
My jelly, my roll, sweet mama, don't let it fall
Jus' shake it, you can break it, you can hang it on the wall
.. it out the window, catch it 'fore it falls
You can break it, you can hang it on the wall
...it out the window, catch it 'fore it...
My jelly, my roll, sweet mama, don't let it fall
I ain't got nobody here but me and myself
I, stay blue all the time, aw, when the sun goes down
My jelly, my roll, sweet mama, don't let it fall
You can shake it, you can break it, you can hang it on the wall
... it out the window, catch it 'fore it fall
You can break it, you can hang it on the wall
...it out the window, catch...
My jelly, my roll, sweet mama, don't let it fall
You can snatch it, you can grab it, you can break it, you can twist it,
any way that I love to get it
I, had my right mind, I, be worried sometime
'Bout a jelly, my roll, sweet mama, don't let it fall
Just shake it, you can break it, you can hang it on the wall
... it out the window, catch it 'fore it falls
You can break it, you can hang it on the wall
...it out the window, catch it 'fore it falls
My jelly, my roll, sweet mama, don't let it fall
I know I been to town, I, I walked around
I, start leavin' town, I, I fool around
My jelly, my roll, sweet mama, don't let it fall
Just shake it, you can break it, you can hang it on the wall
... it out the window, catch it 'fore it falls
You can break it, you can hang it on the wall
...it out the window, catch it 'fore it...
My jelly, my roll, sweet mama, don't let it fall
Jus' shake it, you can break it, you can hang it on the wall
... it out the window, catch it 'fore it...
My jelly, my roll, sweet mama, don't let it...
__________
Note: this song is an ode to... the jelly roll, a pastry but also, like in this case, a reference to the male genitals. The triple-dot parts are not missing lyrics, Patton just left them unspoken.
CD Review
Charley Patton:Founder Of The Blues, Yazoo Records, 1995
Okay, so this review shows one way my reviewing choices get made. Recently I was reviewing Volume Eight of the Bob Dylan Bootleg series. One of the outstanding tracks on the CD is Dylan's tribute version of the old country blues singer Charley Patton's "High Water Everywhere (Parts 1&2)". So, naturally, I had to go back and check out Mr. Patton's version.
Oh, did I mention that along with many Dylan reviews I have lately been on a country blues tear. You know Robert Johnson, Son House, Skip James, Mississippi John Hurt and the like. That, my friends, is where this all comes together. You cannot mention Delta blues without mentioning the name and influence of Charley Patton. There is no question that he influenced Son House (who played with him on occasion) or that Robert Johnson sat at his feet (maybe Patton is the "devil" he sold his soul out of Highway 51 to ratchet up his blues work). Whether he, as assumed by the title here, was the founder of the blues is a question that I believe is up in the air.
Certainly looking through this compilation Patton's whinny-voiced but driven (a factor that leads me away from him as founder) version of "High Water Everywhere" makes it now totally understandably why Dylan honored Patton on that latest CD of his. Others that make the Patton "greatest hits" list are the raucous "Shake It And Break It", "Stone Pony Blues" and a fantastic "Tom Rushen Blues". Now you can see how all the folk/blues things I write about are interconnected, musically at least. There is indeed a method to my madness.
Blues Lyrics - Charley Patton
High Water Everywhere (Part 1)
All rights to lyrics included on these pages belong to the artists and authors of the works.
All lyrics, photographs, soundclips and other material on this website may only be used for private study, scholarship or research.
by
Charley Patton
recording of 1929-1934
from
Charley Patton: Founder Of The Delta Blues (Yazoo L-1020)
Well, backwater done rose all around
Sumner
now,
drove me down the line
Backwater done rose at Sumner,
drove poor Charley down the line
Lord, I'll tell the world the water,
done crept through this town
Lord, the whole round country,
Lord, river has overflowed
Lord, the whole round country,
man, is overflowed
You know I can't stay here,
I'll go where it's high, boy
I would goto the hilly country,
but, they got me barred
Now, look-a here now at
Leland
river was risin' high
Look-a here boys around Leland tell me,
river was raisin' high
Boy, it's risin' over there, yeah
I'm gonna move to
Greenville
fore I leave, goodbye
Look-a here the water now, Lordy,
Levee
broke, rose most everywhere
The water at Greenville and Leland,
Lord, it done rose everywhere
Boy, you can't never stay here
I would go down to
Rosedale
but, they tell me there's water there
Now, the water now, mama,
done took Charley's town
Well, they tell me the water,
done took Charley's town
Boy, I'm goin' to
Vicksburg
Well, I'm goin' to Vicksburg,
for that high of mine
I am goin' up that water,
where lands don't never flow
Well, I'm goin' over the hill where,
water, oh don't ever flow
Boy, hit Sharkey County and everything was down in Stovall
But, that whole county was leavin',
over that
Tallahatchie
shore
Boy, went to Tallahatchie and got it over there
Lord, the water done rushed all over,
down old Jackson road
Lord, the water done raised,
over the Jackson road
Boy, it starched my clothes
I'm goin' back to the hilly country,
won't be worried no more
__________
Note: this song tells the story of the great Mississippi flood of 1927. The two-part song is long, it covers both sides of a 78 rpm. The music of part one is very similar to Willie Brown's "Future Blues" and Son House's "Jinx Blues";
Note 1: origin: from the old French word levée, act of raising, from lever to raise. An embankment for preventing flooding, or a river landing place, also, a continuous dike or ridge (as of earth) for confining the irrigation areas of land to be flooded. A levee camp therefore is a work camp for building or improving dikes to prevent rivers from flooding the land, primarily in the
Mississippi Delta
area.
Part 2
Backwater at
Blytheville
, backed up all around
Backwater at Blytheville, done took Joiner town
It was fifty families and children come to sink and drown
The water was risin' up at my friend's door
The water was risin' up at my friend's door
The man said to his women folk, "Lord, we'd better go"
The water was risin', got up in my bed
Lord, the water was rollin', got up to my bed
I thought I would take a trip, Lord, out on the big ice sled
Oh, I can hear, Lord, Lord, water upon my door,
you know what I mean, look-a here
I hear the ice, Lord, Lord, was sinkin' down,
I couldn't get no boats there, Marion City gone down
So high the water was risin' our men sinkin' down
Man, the water was risin' at places all around,
boy, they's all around
It was fifty men and children come to sink and drown
Oh, Lordy, women and grown men drown
Oh, women and children sinkin' down
Lord, have mercy
I couldn't see nobody's home and wasn't no one to be found
__________
Blues Lyrics - Charley Patton
Shake It And Break It
All rights to lyrics included on these pages belong to the artists and authors of the works.
All lyrics, photographs, soundclips and other material on this website may only be used for private study, scholarship or research.
by
Charley Patton
recording of 1929-1934
from
Charley Patton: Founder Of The Delta Blues (Yazoo L-1020)
You can shake it, you can break it, you can hang it on the wall
Throw it out the window, catch it 'fore it roll
You can shake it, you can break it, you can hang it on the wall
...it out the window, catch it 'fore it falls
My
jelly, my roll
, sweet mama, don't let it fall
Everybody have a jelly roll like mine, I lives in town
I, ain't got no brown, I, an' I want it now
My jelly, my roll, sweet mama, don't let it fall
You can snatch it, you can grab it, you can break it, you can twist it,
any way that I love to get it
I, had my right mind since I, I blowed this town
My jelly, my roll, sweet mama, don't let it fall
Jus' shake it, you can break it, you can hang it on the wall
.. it out the window, catch it 'fore it falls
You can break it, you can hang it on the wall
...it out the window, catch it 'fore it...
My jelly, my roll, sweet mama, don't let it fall
I ain't got nobody here but me and myself
I, stay blue all the time, aw, when the sun goes down
My jelly, my roll, sweet mama, don't let it fall
You can shake it, you can break it, you can hang it on the wall
... it out the window, catch it 'fore it fall
You can break it, you can hang it on the wall
...it out the window, catch...
My jelly, my roll, sweet mama, don't let it fall
You can snatch it, you can grab it, you can break it, you can twist it,
any way that I love to get it
I, had my right mind, I, be worried sometime
'Bout a jelly, my roll, sweet mama, don't let it fall
Just shake it, you can break it, you can hang it on the wall
... it out the window, catch it 'fore it falls
You can break it, you can hang it on the wall
...it out the window, catch it 'fore it falls
My jelly, my roll, sweet mama, don't let it fall
I know I been to town, I, I walked around
I, start leavin' town, I, I fool around
My jelly, my roll, sweet mama, don't let it fall
Just shake it, you can break it, you can hang it on the wall
... it out the window, catch it 'fore it falls
You can break it, you can hang it on the wall
...it out the window, catch it 'fore it...
My jelly, my roll, sweet mama, don't let it fall
Jus' shake it, you can break it, you can hang it on the wall
... it out the window, catch it 'fore it...
My jelly, my roll, sweet mama, don't let it...
__________
Note: this song is an ode to... the jelly roll, a pastry but also, like in this case, a reference to the male genitals. The triple-dot parts are not missing lyrics, Patton just left them unspoken.
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