69 “Rabbit Foot Blues” by Blind Lemon Jefferson

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January 18, 2013 by gadaya

There are three tracks from Blind Lemon Jefferson on the third volume of the Anthology and this is the first one. He was a very popular recording artist during his time and his success launched the standard of the male Blues singer with guitar. The blind Texas street singer remains a mythic and influential figure of the Blues, even if his style was so unique that it was rarely imitated by others during his time. With his high and expressive voice, his creative guitar style, full of licks up and down the neck, his music is one the most lyrical ever recorded in the Blues idiom. His recorded repertoire (I believe he had a much broader repertoire as a street singer than what was recorded) is made up of many Blues songs of his own creation, full of striking and poetic images, (Go here to read the lyrics of his songs), some more ragtime pieces and a few religious songs (recorded under the pseudonym of Deacon L.J. Bates).

To read more on Blind Lemon, go here and his complete discography is available through Document Records and Jsp Records. (More about Blind Lemon Jefferson on future posts)

Blind Lemon Jefferson “Rabbit Foot Blues” (recorded in Chicago, December 1926, issued on Paramount)

Blues jumped a rabbit, run him one solid mile.
Blues jumped a rabbit, run him one solid mile.
That rabbit sat down, cried like a natural child.

Well, it seem like you hungry. Honey, come and lunch with me.
Seem like you hungry. Honey, come and lunch with me.
I wanna stop these nice looking women from worrying me.

I have Uneeda biscuits, gal, and a half a pint of gin.
Uneeda biscuits, gal, and a half a pint of gin.
The gin is mighty fine, but them biscuits are a little too thin.

Baby, tell me something about the meatless and wheatless days.
I want to know about those meatless and wheatless days
This not being my home, I don’t think that I should stay.

I cried for flour and meat, I declare, it was strong.
Well, I cried for flour and meat, I declare, it was strong.
Keep a feeding me cornbread, I just can’t stick around long.

Got an airplane, baby, now we’re gonna get a submarine.
An airplane, now we’re gonna get a submarine.
Gonna get that Kaiser and we’ll be seldom seen.

Mmmm, hitch me to your buggy, mama; drive me like a mule.
Hitch me to your buggy; drive me like a mule.
Reason I’m going home with you, sugar, I ain’t much hard to be fooled.

There’s no mention of a rabbit foot (a well-known talisman against bad luck) in “Rabbit Foot Blues” and except for the common Blues verse “Blues jumped the rabbit”, of no rabbit either. The text is full of double-entendre lines, some of sexual nature, that can be hard to understand out of context. The guitar is tuned in Spanish tuning (open G tuning) and feature, like always with Jefferson, some beautiful licks up and down the neck.

As I couldn’t find other interesting versions of “Rabbit Foot Blues”, I’ve compiled instead all the tunes recorded in his first years with Paramount in 1925 and 1926. Enjoy!

1. I Want To Be Like Jesus In My Heart

2. All I Want Is That Pure Religion

3. Got The Blues

4. Long Lonesome Blues

5. Booster Blues

6. Dry Southern Blues

7. Black Horse Blues

8. Corinna Blues

9. Jack O’ Diamond Blues

10. Chock House Blues

11. Beggin Back

12. Old Rounders Blues

13. Stocking Feet Blues

14. That Black Snake Moan

15. Wartime Blues

16. Broke And Hungry

17. Shuckin’ Sugar Blues

18. Booger Rooger Blues

19. Rabbit Foot Blues

20. Bad Luck Blues

Click on Harry!