|
AMERICAN HISTORY THROUGH MUSIC
Blues Glossary
alcorub
Refers to rubbing alcohol for sore muscles and bones. However,
this was also used to sniff, much as other, more destructive
substances are used today. A way to get a high. This stuff tasted
lousy when ingested, so it was sniffed.
back door man/friend
The lover of a married woman who sneaks out the back door before
the man of the house gets home
ball(ing) the jack
1 - origin: balling the jack is a phrase from the jargon of railroadsmen
in the beginning of this century in America and simply means
going at top speed (highballing). The "jack" is the
locomotive and "ballin'" means to work fast or get
rollin'. Balling the jack (and variants like balling or having
a ball) later acquired other, non-railroad related meanings like
having a wild good time (drinking), to move quickly, going flat
out, dancing, having sex and in gambling circles of risking everything
on a single throw of the dice or turn of a card and in general
use risking everything on one attempt or effort.
barrelhouse
1 - a cheap drinking and usually dancing establishment. The term
"barrel house" originates, logically, from a place
where barrels of alcoholic beverages can be found. The meaning
of the term later changed to refer to the type, and rough style
of music which emulated from these establishments;
2 - strident, uninhibited, and forcefully rhythmic style of jazz
or blues.
biscuit/biscuit roller
Among metaphors themes used in blues music, culinary themes are
especially comon. A desirable young girl was called a biscuit
and a good lover was called a biscuit roller.
black cat bone
A good luck charm used to bring back the wayward lover. Costly
and valued, its scarcity was largely due to the elaborate ceremony
which was required for its preparation. Every black cat has within
its body one bone that will either grant the owner invisibility
or can be used to bring back a lost lover. To secure this bone,
a black cat must be thrown alive into a kettle of boiling water
at midnight. The animal dies in agony, and the practitioner boils
the carcass until the meat falls off the bones. Some say that
the special bone will be the top one left when the water boils
away, others say it can only be found by placing each bone in
turn beneath the tongue while an assistant stands by to notify
the practitioner that he has become invisible, and still others
swear that if all the bones are thrown into a stream that runs
north (uncommon in most of North America), the desired bone will
be one that floats on the water and heads south. Once found,
the black cat bone is carried in a mojo bag and anointed with
Van Van Oil to bring back a lost lover. The oil or fat of the
cat is bottled for use as a candle dressing and for anointing
gambler's charms.
the blues
Characterized by a 12-bar, bent-note melody in which bad luck
and trouble are always present. W.C. Handy was the first trained
musician to capture the sounds of Blues on paper. In 1909, Handy
penned the first written Blues song "Mr. Crump Blues"
in the Pee Wee's Saloon on Beale Street in Memphis, Tennesse.
boogie chillun
The word boogie has several meanings: to move quickly, to get
going, to dance to (rock) music and to party. Chillun refers
to children.
boogie-woogie
A percussive style of playing blues on the piano characterized
by a steady rhythmic ground bass of eighth notes in quadruple
time and a series of improvised melodic variations.
canned heat
A particularly lethal drink which was obtained by extracting
the alcohol from solidified methylated spirits which was sold
as a fuel for outdoor cooking. Canned heat could be bought from
street dealers who had made a business out of this process. A
similar drink was obtained by drawing off contaminated alcohol
from proprietory brands of boot polish.
captain
Captain was one of the forms of address the Southern white man
demanded from black employees. The word also referred to a prison
warden.
Casey Jones
A locomotive engineer that became a hero and a folk figure at
the end of the 19th century.
c c rider; see easy rider
coffee grinder/grinding
A metaphor for lover or love making. Many metaphors used in the
blues were derived from the process of cooking and other closely
related culinary terms. The shade of color of a black person
also played a role: "honey " was used for a light-skinned
person and "coffee" for a deeper shade thus resulting
in terms like "honey dripper" and "coffee grinder"
as methaphors for a lover. Grinding (coffee in a grinder or wheat
in a mill) therefore means having sex, see also balling the jack.
cold in hand
Having no money.
crepe(r)
A meaningless symbol of mourning. The woman in question would
post it on the door to declare the death of her feelings for
a man.
doney/doe
A "no good doney" is a woman of low character.
dry long so
The phrase "dry long so" is a dialectic description
of being poor. It also means pointlessly, or without a cause.
eagle rock
A popular black dance from the 1920's, performed with the arms
outstretched with wings and the body rocking from side to side.
easy rider
AThe easy rider, also known as see see rider or c c rider (see
also rider), is a blues metaphor for the sexual partner. Originally
it referred to the guitar hung on the back of the traveling bluesman.
The word easy has different meanings for the female and male
lover: applied to a woman it is an expression of admiration but
applied to a male it usually carries the meaning of reckless
and unfaithful;
faror
A Mississippi blues synonym for girl friend. It's pronounced
like "pharaoh".
fat mouth
A flatterer, a buffoonish loudmouth who tries to woo a woman
with praise.
flagging (a train, a ride)
To hitch a ride or to signal someone to stop.
Georgia Crawl
This is a Georgia dance, a rather sexy one like a lot of blues
dances were.
goin' up the line/goin' down the gline
A "line" is a railroad route, therefore "goin'
up the line" probably means traveling north on a train and
"goin' down the line" traveling south; derivative of
being sold down the river. This expression came about from slaves
who were sold into the Deep South, or "sold down the river".
goofer/goofy dust
Powdered earth gathered from a grave, preferably that of a child,
which is sprinkled on a victims pillow, around its home or in
its clothes in order to cast a spell on the victim or bring death
(voodoo). See also hot foot powder.
high yeller (yellow)
A black person with a light(er) skin complexion. Brown skin is
another skin color related term often used in blues songs. See
also skin color.
hobo
A fare dodger on a freight train. The word derived from hoe-boy.
When there wasn't enough food on the farm to feed everybody,
the younger men hit the tracks hoping to find day work along
the way. Each took his own hoe in order to be more employable.
A hoe was also a cheap weapon. A homeless and usually penniless
vagabond or a migratory worker
hokum
The word's origin probably comes from hocus-pocus and bunkum
(derived form Buncombe county, N.C., from a remark made by its
congressman, who defended an irrelevant speech by claiming that
he was speaking to Buncombe, meaning insincere or foolish talk).
Also, a sub genre in urban blues which was popular in the late
20's/early 30's. It is characterized by danceable rhythms and
clever lyrics which heavily relied on double entendres. Hokum's
most important artist was Tampa Red (It's Tight Like That, 1928).
The term means pretentious nonsense.
hoochie coochie man
Hooch is slang for alcoholic liquor especially when inferior
or illicitly made or obtained. Cooch(ie) but it most likely refers
to the female genitals. The term hoochie coochie man would then
refer to a man (who prides himself) getting his share of booze
and women. It also refers to one who preaches voodoo; a conjure
'doctor', male or female
hoodoo
1 - hoodoo or voodoo, a body of practices of sympathetic magic
traditional especially among blacks in the southern U.S. Hoodoo
is the preffered word by black people for voodoo. For more information
about hoodoo/voodoo see also voodoo.;2 - something that brings
bad luck;3 - Hoodoo is an American term, originating in the 19th
century or earlier, for African-American folk magic. Hoodoo is
not a religion nor a denomination of a religion, although it
incorporates elements from African and European religions in
terms of its core beliefs. Hoodoo consists of a large body of
African folkloric magic with a considerable admixture of American
Indian botanical knowledge and European folklore. Other names
for hoodoo include "conjuration," "witchcraft,"
and "rootwork." The first two are simply English words
for the practice of magic; the last is a recognition of the preeminence
that dried roots play in the making of charms and the casting
of spells.Hoodoo is used as a noun to name both the system of
magic ("He used hoodoo on her") and its practitioners
("Doctor Buzzard was a great hoodoo in his day"). It
is also an adjective ("he needed help from a hoodoo woman")
and a verb ("she hoodoo'ed that man until he couldn't love
no one but her").
hot foot powder
Hot Foot Powder and Hot Foot Oil are old Southern hoodoo formulas
that are used to rid oneself or one's home of unwanted people,
to send enemies packing and to keep peace in the home by eliminating
troublemakers. Similar formulas, known as Drive Away Oil or Get
Away Oil contain virtually the same ingredients, namely a proprietary
blend of Guinea Red Pepper, sulfur, and essential oils that include
Black Pepper and other herbal extracts. The scent is hot and
spicy.
jelly/jelly roll
In blues songs, a metaphor for the female genitals. Jelly is
used as a term for female. Among metaphors used in blues music,
culinary themes are especially comon. The term jelly roll simply
arose from the motions of sexual intercourse. A male lover admired
his "jelly bean" and prided himself on being a "good
jelly-roll baker" and the female lover the way she could
"jello";
jinx
Something that brings bad luck; Also, the state or spell of bad
luck brought on by a jinx
jitterbug(gin')
The jitterbug was a popular dance in the 1940's, which was danced
to boogie woogie music). Jitterbuggin sometimes referred to a
sense of panic or extreme nervousness, to be nervous or act in
a nervous way "had a bad case of the jitters before his
performance." It also referred to any irregular random movement
or continuous fast repetitive movements
jivin'
Jive was a style of jazz played by big bands popular in the 1930's
with flowing rhythms but less complex than later styles of jazz
[synonyms: swing, swing music]. Jivin' means to dance to jive
music. The word also refers to smooth talking, especially the
talk of jazz musicians and enthusiasts. The word also referred
to a marijuana cigarette or to sexual intercourse.
John(ny) (the) Concheroe/Conqueroo/Conqueror
1 - When Willie Dixon/Muddy Waters sings in "Hoochie Coochie
Man" that he has "a John(ny) the Choncheroe/Conqueroo,"
he means a (High) John the Conqueror root - the hard, woody tuber
of Ipomoea jalapa, a relative of the common sweet potato. In
magical practice, the root is not ingested, probably because
it is an extremely powerful laxative. Instead it is used whole,
carried on the person as a pocket piece or as an ingredient in
a mojo bag, especially one designed to draw money, bring luck
at games of chance, or enhance personal sexual power.
juju
A fetish, charm, or amulet of West African people. Juju as well
as gris-gris are the African terms for the more commonly used
mojo or mojo hand, see also mojo. Also, the magic attributed
to or associated with jujus
juke joint/jukebox
A small inexpensive establishment for eating, drinking, or dancing
to the music of a jukebox.
killing floor
The slaughtering room of an abattoir, a slaughter house, where
animals were brought to be killed and cut up. Particularly in
the Chicago Stockyards area (more info, picture) many black newcomers
from the South found jobs during the 20's, 30's and 40's working
on the killing floors. Metaphorically being on the "killing
floor" means being in trouble with little way out or being
so depressed (primarily by the loss of a lover) that he (generally)
feels as if he is going to die, having hit rock bottom and with
nothing left to lose;
mojo
A magic spell, hex, or charm used against someone else, either
as a love spell, hex or charm or a bad luck spell, hex or charm.
It's blues function as a sexual euphemism seems to have arisen
with Blind Lemon Jefferson's 1928 song "Low-down Mojo".
Also, a charm; amulet; conjuring object; a good-luck charm used
by gamblers and lovers. Believed to possess magical power, mojo
was the staple amulet of African-American hoodoo practice, a
flannel bag containing one or more magical items. Made with great
care, these bags contained personal fragments and natural objects:
hair from the armpits or pubic region, fingernail pairings, pieces
of skin were considered especially effective in love charms,
as were fragments of underclothing, of a menstrual cloth and
other closely personal effects. Combined with parts of night
creatures, bats or toads, and with ashes and feathers from sources
selected for a symbolic significance relative to the purpose
for which they had been prepared. They were all tied up into
small conjure bags or put into an innocuous-looking receptacle
and either carried to exert their power upon the victim when
contact was made with him or buried beneath his doorstep, hidden
in his bed or hearth. The word is thought to be a corruption
of the English word "magic". Other names for it include
conjure bag, hand, lucky hand, mojo bag, mojo hand, root bag,
toby, juju and gris-gris bag. In the Memphis region, a special
kind of mojo, worn only by women, is called a nation sack. The
word "conjure", as in "conjure work" (casting
spells) and "conjure woman" (a female herbalist-magician),
is an old alternative to "hoodoo". The word "hand"
in this context may derive from the use of a rare orchid root
called Lucky Hand root as an ingredient in mojo bags for gamblers,
or from the use of finger and hand bones of the dead in mojo
bags made for various purposes;
monkey
A desperate desire for or addiction to drugs, often used in the
phrase "monkey on one's back". Also, a monkey on one's
back: a persistent or annoying encumbrance or problem;
monkey man
African-American slang for a West Indian (a man who is easy to
deceive) or used for a very black African American or an "outside"
lover.
moonshine
Illegally distilled (corn) whiskey. Basic process of making moonshine:
a mixture - called the mash - of sugar fruit, potatoes, grains
etc. is allowed to ferment. When ready it is strained and the
liquid is pumped into a broiler which is then heated. When the
mash liquid is boiling the vapor rises and is forced through
condensing cell turning it into a liquid or moonshine. This is
collected into jugs or bottled and (sometimes) allowed to age.
Moonshine became a prominent part of American life with the onset
of the Civil War, when the federal Government imposed excise
taxes on whiskey and tobacco in an effort to finance the Union
army. After the war ended, the taxes were simply kept in place.
After the Civil War the Revenue Bureau of the Treasury Department
was formed. Under Commisioner Green B. Raum (1876-1883) the bureau
became a police force, hunting down moonshiners in their home
enviornments and exercising national authority with no regard
of state lines. The whiskey tax was raised to $1.10 per gallon
in 1894. The result was a lively market in untaxed liquor as
more and more distillers decided the only way they could make
a profit was to sell their drink illegally. The government estimated
at the time that between 5 and 10 million gallons of illegal
liquor were produced and sold annually in the years just before
the twentieth century started.
nation sack
A mojo hand, conjure bag, toby, root bag or in plain English
a lucky charm, one that is only carried by women. During the
1930s its use, by that name at least, seems to have been restricted
to the region immediately around Memphis, Tennessee.
policy game
A daily lottery in which participants bet that certain combination
numbers will be drawn from a lottery wheel, also reffered to
as numbers game and playing the numbers.
rambling
To move aimlessly from place to place, to wander or roam. Also,
to talk or write in a desultory or long-winded wandering fashion.
rider/riding
A girl friend or sexual partner (see also easy rider). Riding
is probably the most common metaphor for the sexual act in blues,
see also balling the jack and grinding.
riding the blinds
A walk way between two passenger cars covered with either canvas
or leather in an accordion shape. From the outside of the blinds
to the outer edge of the cars there was a space about 24 inches
wide. There was a ladder running up to the top of the car in
this space and the bums would grap hold of the ladder and hold
on to it. That was riding the blinds.2 - illegally travelling
by freight train.
roadhouse
A drinking establishment usually outside city limits providing
liquor and usually meals, dancing, and often gambling.
roll
Originally the word meant work, to work, as in "rolling
cotton". Like other expressions from the vocabulary of labor
(like "hauling ashes"), it took on a sexual connotation
in blues songs: having sex; it also referred to being robbed.
rounder
A scoundrel, especially one that might steal a man's woman. In
the gambling underworld a rounder is slang for a big-money poker
player, who risks big, wins big - and often loses big. In contrast
to a rounder, a grinder is a pro who squeezes a few hundred here,
a few hundred there by honestly outplaying others.
salty (dog)
"Salty" in general equates with the current word horny
or with the words "agressive" or "tough."
A "salty hombre" would be a tough guy."
shakin' that thing
A blues euphemism for engaging in sex, popularized by Papa Charlie
Jackson's 1925 hit "Shake That Thing".
shimmy
African American dance of the late 1880's. It involves shaking
of the shoulders and a whole body,
signifying
A good-natured needling or teasing using taunting words and clever,
often preposterous "put-downs" or humiliating remarks.
In signifying, speakers spontaneously compose rhythmic and rhyming
phrases in improvised counterpoint to the signified phrases of
other speakers. Within this word play structure, signifying is
an indirect speech act form that allows the speaker to express
bold ideas, opinions, beliefs, or feelings without repercussions
as the stated convictions become diffused through the playful
nature of the act. This improvisational verbal device arose as
a component of the call and response form and became incorporated
into blues lyrics.
skin color
Within the segregated society of the United States dominated
by a white majority a sort of caste system based on racial features
and skin color developed that was also passed down to the black
minority. Lighter skin color and less pronounced Negro features
often meant that a person had a little less to suffer from the
daily discrimination and this was often aspired by black people.
A couple of shades of color are more or less often used in blues
songs: black, brownskin, fair brown, teasin' brown, the lighter
skinned high yellow or yeller. Certain characteristics were often
attributed to specific shades of color.
spoonful
A reference to cocaine or heroin; secondarily a vague blues euphemism
for sex. Possibly derived from "to spoon" meaning:
to make love by caressing, kissing, and talking amorously.
squeeze my lemon
Tthe lemon is a reference to the genitalia. Squeezing the lemon
refers to having sex.
Stag O'Lee/Stagolee/Stagger Lee/etc.
A real life murderer that became a folk figure.
stavin' chain
A stavin' chain was a tool used to make barrels (I won't go in
depth about it's use) it was often used by supervisors in barrel
factories to beat slaves. Also a stavin' chain was the chain
used to hold together chain gangs, and was pulled around the
prisoner's ankles much like the sexual version. It worked much
like a choke-dog collar in all it's forms, and could be used
to describe any chain noose that worked on this principal.
stingaree
Literally: alteration of the word stingray which is a fish with
one or more large sharp barbed dorsal spines near the base of
the whip like tail capable of inflicting severe wounds. In blues
music it is a euphemism for the sexual organs, usually applied
to women.
strut/strut your stuff
Originally "dancing well" but it became synonymous
with the rhythmic movements of sexual intercourse. Also, showing
off, to parade (as clothes) with a show of pride, to walk with
a proud gait, to walk with a pompous and affected air;
voodoo
A body of practices of folk magic that is derived from African
polytheism and ancestor worship and is practiced chiefly in Haiti.
The black population of the South preferred to call voodoo hoodoo.
The word also referred to a person who deals in spells and necromancy.
whoopie, making
It usually means having a ball, in blues it often carries the
meaning of having sex.
yas yas (yas)
A rhyming substitute for the word "ass" which appear
quite frequently in songs from the earlier part of the century,
when "ass" was apparently still unacceptable slang.
|
