White folks hear the blues come out, but they don't know how it got there.
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The Blues
Hes gonna tell you bout his dear old mother
Burned up in a factory in springfield, mass.
Hes gonna tell you bout his baby brother
Hustlin down the city streets
And selling his ass for a dollar bag
Hes gonna tell you bout his uncle neddy
Locked up in a prison out in oregon
Hes gonna tell you bout his best friend eddie
Killed in a bar fight with a pair of marines
And a sailor
Oh
Hes got the blues, this boy
Hes got the blues
You can hear it in his music
Hes got the blues, this boy
Hes got the blues
You can hear it, you can hear it
When I was nine years old
My daddy ran away
With a woman he met on a train, oh
His little boy
Ran to the room
Where his piano
Lay in wait for him
He played and he played
He played and he played
Hes got the blues, this boy
Hes got the blues
You can hear it, you can hear it
Hes got the blues, this boy
Hes got the blues
A year ago, I met a girl
I thought wed hit a massive groove
But she dumped me
And all wed hit were the blues
Hes got the blues, this boy
Hes got the blues
You can hear it in his music
Hes got the blues, this boy
Hes really got the blues
song performed by by Randy Newman

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Backlash Blues
Langston hughes, nina simone
Mr. backlash, mr. backlash
Just who do think I am
You raise my taxes, freeze my wages
And send my son to vietnam
You give me second class houses
And second class schools
Do you think that alla colored folks
Are just second class fools
Mr. backlash, Im gonna leave you
With the backlash blues
When I try to find a job
To earn a little cash
All you got to offer
Is your mean old white backlash
But the world is big
Big and bright and round
And its full of folks like me
Who are black, yellow, beige and brown
Mr. backlash, Im gonna leave you
With the backlash blues
Mr. backlash, mr. backlash
Just what do you think I got to lose
Im gonna leave you
With the backlash blues
Youre the one will have the blues
Not me, just wait and see
song performed by by Nina Simone

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0011 Those white and future blues - to Chet
Under the ring of linked brown arms,
bare feet, brown feet with whiter soles
drum on the dusty, hard brown earth, stomp the rhythm
as if to wake the gods of earth
to draw the rain down to the roots,
caressing seeds against the growing time,
hearing the tears at the heart of things;
hearing the shuffle-clank
of leg irons listening for some rhythm that consoles
with promise; hearing the blues sung softly, like a prayer,
taken up across the cotton field,
sadness meeting hope in longing patience
and a century ago
the white lady who loved Africa said,
I am weary with the future
*
white boy, you’re so young –
how could you hear the blues so well?
are they just around the corner
of every town that’s built, as dusk descends?
Do they lurk wherever lips meet plangent trumpet,
in the reeds of mourning clarinet,
the nostalgia of a dreaming saxophone?
Wherever future whispers to the past
and hears the sad reply?
white boy, white boy without a past,
you hear the blues so well,
I think you hear
those future blues,
those old white future blues,
those lonesome future blues.
poem by Michael Shepherd

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Eulogy of a Blues Master
No music,
not reggae, not punk and certainly not rap,
is more hip, more with it,
than the blues
And no blues musician
was more profound
than John Lee Hooker
Born long, long ago
way down in the state
of Mississippi
He grew up poor
on the Big Muddy
on the delta
amongst other poor negros
amongst poor white folks
amongst segregation, amongst racism
amongst hatred
But he and his guitar
would rise above
to play the rhythm
of an oppressed people
And brother, could he jam!
He dug
Big Legs, Tight Skirts
He drank
One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer
He'd
Boom Boom, Greg Corso music
all night long
And as for his
guitar pickin', huh
He was the Hendrix of the blues
Ain't nobody better'n Johnny Lee!
The King of the Blues!
And even though maybe
you can't hear it,
Somewhere,
Somewhere,
John Lee is still playin' that boogie
poem by Paul the Lion

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The Bourgeois Blues
(Huddie LedbetterAlan Lomax)
(G7) - (C7) - (G) - (D7)
(G7) Me and my wife went all over town
And everywhere we went people turned us down
Lord, in a (C7) bourgeois town
It's a (G) bourgeois town
I got the (D7) bourgeois blues
Gonna spread the news all a- (G) round
Home of the brave, land of the free
I don't wanna be mistreated by no bourgeoisie
Lord, in a bourgeois town
Uhm, the bourgeois town
I got the bourgeois blues
Gonna spread the news all around
Well, me and my wife we were standing upstairs
We heard the white man say ?I don't want no niggers up there?
Lord, in a bourgeois town
Uhm, bourgeois town
I got the bourgeois blues
Gonna spread the news all around
Well, them white folks in Washington they know how
To call a colored man a nigger just to see him bow
Lord, it's a bourgeois town
Uhm, the bourgeois town
I got the bourgeois blues
Gonna spread the news all around
I tell all the colored folks to listen to me
Don't try to find you no home in Washington, DC
?Cause it's a bourgeois town
Uhm, the bourgeois town
I got the bourgeois blues
Gonna spread the news all around
song performed by by Ry Cooder

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Payola Blues
This ones for you al freed,
Wherever you go, whatever you do
cause the things theyre doing today
Will make a saint out of you
Payola blues.
Ive got the payola blues
Even though I already paid my dues.
Listen to me mr. d.j., hear what Ive got to say
If a man is making music, they ought to let his record play.
Payola blues
No matter where I go
I never hear my record on the radio.
Well, heres three thousand, that ought to get it on.
Well, thanks a lot man! I love your new song.
Payola blues
No matter where I go
I never hear my record on the radio.
And it goes like this.
I got a brand new record company, new manager too.
Got a great new record, I cant get through to you.
Payola blues
No matter where I go
I never hear my record on the radio.
How about this new mercedes benz, that ought to get it on.
Well, thanks a lot man! Ill play it all day long.
Payola blues
No matter where I go
I never hear my record on the radio.
Ive got the payola blues, payola blues
Im paying those payola blues
No matter where I go
I never hear my record on the radio.
song performed by by Neil Young

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Blues Of The Months
The blues of January,
The blues of February,
The blues of March,
The blues of April,
The blues of May,
The blues of June,
The blues of July,
The blues of August,
The blues of September,
The blues of October,
The blues of November,
The blues of December,
Meet me there if you can!
And like Glory-Land and Merry-land;
But my home will always accept in your sweet blues.
poem by Edward Kofi Louis

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Bourgeois Blues
(huddie ledbetter/alan lomax)
(g7) - (c7) - (g) - (d7)
(g7) me and my wife went all over town
And everywhere we went people turned us down
Lord, in a (c7) bourgeois town
Its a (g) bourgeois town
I got the (d7) bourgeois blues
Gonna spread the news all a- (g) round
Home of the brave, land of the free
I dont wanna be mistreated by no bourgeoisie
Lord, in a bourgeois town
Uhm, the bourgeois town
I got the bourgeois blues
Gonna spread the news all around
Well, me and my wife we were standing upstairs
We heard the white man say i dont want no niggers up there
Lord, in a bourgeois town
Uhm, bourgeois town
I got the bourgeois blues
Gonna spread the news all around
Well, them white folks in washington they know how
To call a colored man a nigger just to see him bow
Lord, its a bourgeois town
Uhm, the bourgeois town
I got the bourgeois blues
Gonna spread the news all around
I tell all the colored folks to listen to me
Dont try to find you no home in washington, dc
cause its a bourgeois town
Uhm, the bourgeois town
I got the bourgeois blues
Gonna spread the news all around
song performed by by Ry Cooder

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The Blues In Black And White
the writing is on the wall, baby
We're different as day and night
But I guess that I refused to face it
The blues in black and white
When I got home I knew, baby
Something was wrong tonight
When I found the note you wrote ,it gave
The blues in black and white
CHORUS
Color my world without you in it
And the future dont look too bright
Darlin' its not a pretty picture
The blues in black and white
Since you've been gone I'm going crazy
I've got to get on with my life
Maybe I'll write a book and call it
The blues in black and white
repeat chorus
song performed by by Randy Travis

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Satellite Blues
She makes the place a jumpin'
The way she moves around
She like a rump and rollin'
That's when she get it out
And when she start a rockin'
She bring me to the boil
She like to give it out some
New satellite blues (new satellite blues)
New satellite blues (new satellite blues)
A picture clear for watchin'
The dish is runnin' hot
The box is set for pumpin'
She gonna take the lot
The way she get the butt in
She's gettin' set to ball
I like to chew it up some
New satellite blues (new satellite blues)
New satellite blues (new satellite blues)
New satellite blues (new satellite blues)
New satellite blues (new satellite blues)
Can't get nothin' on the dial
The frigin' thing gone wild
All I get's the dumbed down news
New satellite blues
New satellite blues (new satellite blues)
New satellite blues (new satellite blues)
I got the satellite blues (new satellite blues)
New satellite blues (new satellite blues)
This thing's nothing but a load of crap
I'm gonna send it right back
You can stick it where it hurts...
Mac!
I got the satellite blues
song performed by by AC/DC from Stiff Upper Lip

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The Blues Come Around
Once I was happy as I could be but I let a gal make a fool of me
And ever since she let me down the blues come around when the sun comes down
Oh the blues come around oh the blues come around
Lard the blues come around every evenin' when the sun goes down
[ guitar ]
As the sun is in the sky those doggone blues never make me cry
But ever since she left this town the blues come around when the sun goes down
Oh the blues come around...
[ fiddle ]
I've built my castle very high and then she went and said goodbye
Ever since she poured 'em down the blues come around when the sun goes down
Oh the blues come around...
[ steel ]
Once she called me all her own but now she's gone and I'm alone
And every evenin' I'm sorrow bound
Cause the blues come around when the sun goes down
Oh the blues come around...
[ guitar ]
Oh the blues come around...
song performed by by Hank Williams

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There's no way in the world I can feel the same blues the way I used to. When I play in Chicago, I'm playing up-to-date, not the blues I was born with. People should hear the pure blues - the blues we used to have when we had no money.
quote by Muddy Waters

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Satellite Blues
(young - young)
She makes the place a jumpin
The way she moves around
She like a rump and rollin
Thats when she get it out
And when she start a rockin
She bring me to the boil
She like to give it out some
New satellite blues (new satellite blues)
New satellite blues (new satellite blues)
A picture clear for watchin
The dish is runnin hot
The box is set for pumpin
She gonna take the lot
The way she get the butt in
Shes gettin set to ball
I like to chew it up some
New satellite blues (new satellite blues)
New satellite blues (new satellite blues), yeah yeah
New satellite blues (new satellite blues)
New satellite blues (new satellite blues)
Cant get nothin on the dial
The frigin thing gone wild
All I gets the dumbed down news
New satellite blues
New satellite blues (new satellite blues)
New satellite blues (new satellite blues)
I got the satellite blues (new satellite blues)
New satellite blues (new satellite blues)
This things nothing but a load of crap
Im gonna send it right back
You can stick it where it hurts...
Mac!
I got the satellite blues
2000, j. albert & son, pty.
song performed by by AC-DC

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Birmingham Blues
Working on the road across this great big world
Ive been rolling like a stone, I never get back home
Yes, Ive been long-gone
And boy, Ive got the birmingham blues.
Been across the ocean to the south sea isles
Yeah, I travelled to the east and west for mile and miles and miles
And Ive been long-gone
And boy, Ive got the birmingham blues.
Chorus:
Across the world Ive seen
People and places
Could be the same
But with a different name.
I wouldnt change the things I do for anything
But Id just like to hear the message of the streets again
Give me a ticket
Cause boy, Ive got the birmingham blues.
It may be kind of homely but it sure is sweet
Industrial revolution put it on its feet
But its a long, long way
Boy, Ive got the birmingham blues.
Repeat chorus
Ill go and stay awhile and all the folks I meet
Theyll say you wont stay long, you got them travelling feet
Youll soon be long-gone
cos boy, you got the rest of the world blues!
Repeat chorus
Repeat chorus
song performed by by Electric Light Orchestra

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Out Of The Blues
Words out of the blues,
Works out of the blues,
Minds out of the blues;
My dream girl came out of the blues and,
You could see me now like a new born baby.
The way you want me is what i am now,
For i have been too long in the rain.
Out of the blues came my lover,
Out of the blues came my girl;
You can now see me with her always.
Out of the blues with the kiss of love around us,
I have been too long in the rain;
My love is as white as snow.
Roses are red and violets are blue but,
Your greenlight is an eye catcher;
When the going gets tough,
The tough must get going.
Like the true love given to Einstein,
That the news flash to you about this love;
Like the true love given to Robert Redford,
Out of the blues came my lover;
Rome was really not built in a day.
poem by Edward Kofi Louis

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City Boy Blues
Fireflies in dogfights
Runnin hot in the heat
Street noise, another bribe
Things too hard to believe--so head out
My hearts in the country
My feets in the city with you
All my friends are eatin sushi
Talkin bad about you know who-who-who
My tongues talkin riddles
But I just cant seem to find a clue
So I take a swig of whiskey
And jump into the saddle with you-you-you
And I just cant seem to break the shackles of the city boy blues
I got the city boy blues
I got the city boy blues
I got the city boy blues
I got the city boy blues
And I just cant seem to break the shackles of the city boy blues
Cats in the alley
Rats in my snakeskin boots
All my neighbors think Im crazy
And my girl thinks Im losin my cool-cool-cool
And I just cant seem to break the shackles of the city boy blues
I got the city boy blues
I got the city boy blues
I got the city boy blues
I got the city boy blues
And I just cant seem to break the shackles of the city boy blues
Dont look to jesus to change your seasons
Its the american dream
Souls of gypsies, road of stone
Cant seem to find no peace--so head out
And I just cant seem to break the shackles of the city boy blues
And I just cant seem to break the shackles of the city boy blues
I got the blues, I got the blues, got the city boy blues
And I just cant seem to break the shackles of the city boy blues
And I just cant seem to break the shackles of the city boy blues
And I just cant seem to break the shackles of the city boy blues
I got the blues, I got the blues,
I got the blues, I got the blues
I got the blues, I got the blues,
I got the blues, I got the blues
song performed by by Motley Crue

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St. James Infirmary Blues
Folks, I'm goin' down to St. James Infirmary,
See my baby there;
She's stretched out on a long, white table,
She's so sweet, so cold, so fair.
Let her go, let her go, God bless her,
Wherever she may be,
She will search this wide world over,
But she'll never find another sweet man like me.
Now, when I die, bury me in my straight-leg britches,
Put on a box-back coat and a stetson hat,
Put a twenty-dollar gold piece on my watch chain,
So you can let all the boys know I died standing pat.
Folks, now that you have heard my story,
Say, boy, hand me another shot of that booze;
If anyone should ask you,
Tell 'em I've got those St. James Infirmary blues.
song performed by by White Stripes

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Sure, I get the blues. But what I try to do, is apply joy to the blues, you know? I don't know if it's a technique, or just being bent that way, being raised by the folks I was raised by.
quote by Jeff Bridges

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Ive Got The Blues More Than You Do Blues
Grew up in the mississippi delta
In a shotgun shack
Washboard for my pillow
til the tax man took that back
Moved out on my own
I was just eight years old ... top that
You think you got the blues
Look at my life
Ive got the blues more than you do ... blues
When I was an itty-bitty baby
I was my mamas only surviving son
She used my head as a washrag
I thought it was fun
Walked to school upway both ways
With no legs ... top that
You think you got the blues
Look at my life
Ive got the blues more than you do ... blues
Got so drunk the other night I couldnt find my way home
Had to have a blind man show me
When I finally did get there,
My own dog had disowned me
A womam in a bar just looks at me and coughed and said
I dont even know you, but I wish youd die off ... top that
You think you got the blues
Look at my life
Ive got the blues more than you do ... blues
song performed by by Jewel

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I have heartaches, I have blues. No matter what you got, the blues is there. 'Cause that's all I know - the blues. And I can sing the blues so deep until you can have this room full of money and I can give you the blues.
quote by John Lee Hooker

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