Shake 'Em On Down

Last updated
"Shake 'Em on Down"
Shake 'Em on Down.jpg
Single by Bukka White
A-side "Pinebluff, Arkansas"
Released1937 (1937)
RecordedChicago, September 2, 1937
Genre Blues
Length2:59
Label Vocalion
Songwriter(s) Booker T. Washington White a.k.a. Bukka White
Producer(s) Lester Melrose

"Shake 'Em On Down" is a Delta blues song by American musician Bukka White. He recorded it in Chicago in 1937 around the beginning of his incarceration at the infamous Parchman Prison Farm in Mississippi.

Contents

It was his first recording for producer Lester Melrose and remains his best-known song. Several blues and other artists have adapted the song, often with variations on the lyrics and music. The English rock group Led Zeppelin adapted some of the lyrics for two of their songs.

Background

After several attempts at recording for Victor Records and Okeh Records in the early 1930s, Bukka White came to the attention of Vocalion Records' producer Lester Melrose. Melrose arranged for White to record a single in Chicago in 1937, but White was arrested and convicted for a shooting incident and received a two-year sentence at Parchman Farm. [1] However, White did manage to record two songs "Shake 'Em On Down" and "Pinebluff, Arkansas" before serving his time, either by jumping bail or through an arrangement by Melrose. [1]

Original song

"Shake 'Em On Down" was recorded September 2, 1937, by White on vocal and guitar with an unidentified second guitarist. [2] The song is a moderate-tempo twelve-bar blues notated in 4/4 time in the key of E. [3] Music writer Mark Humphrey has described the rhythm as "shuffling" and its lyrics as "risqué": [1]

Get your nightcap mama, and your gown
Baby 'fore day we gonna shake 'em on down
Hey done stopped hollerin', oh, must I shake 'em on down
I done stopped hollerin' now, must I shake 'em on down [3]

The phrase "shake 'em on down" may have originated in White's claim that he extorted money from hobos when he was freighthopping trains in the early 1930s. [4]

The song became a best seller and blues historian Ted Gioia notes that his single "earned White the status of a celebrity within Parchman". [4] Prior to his arrival at the Farm, the inmates and even guards contributed to the purchase of a guitar. [3] White was largely exempt from the hardest work details and, in the evenings, spent a lot of time practicing. [3] He often performed, sometimes with a small combo, including for the governor "When White performed for the governor of Mississippi, on the latter's visit to Parchman, he was surprised that the politician already knew about him", according to Gioia. [4] White recalled the governor asking him:

"Are you Booker T. Washington White? You don't know how many people down here trying to get you turned loose. But your sergeant and captain say[ sic ], 'Don't turn him loose, he do[ sic ] too much good here.'" So I got to keep it up for two years. [3]

Largely on the strength of "Shake 'Em On Down", when White was released from prison, he was able to resume his recording career with Melrose and Vocalion, despite the shift in public taste that had taken place in the previous two and a half years. [4]

Renditions by other artists

Following Bukka White's success, "Shake 'Em On Down" was recorded by several bluesmen. [2] Some used White's title or a variation, such as "Ride 'Em On Down", "Break 'Em On Down", or "Truck 'Em On Down". [4] [3] Big Bill Broonzy recorded a similar version in 1938, whose popularity surpassed the original. [4] [3]

In 1970, Led Zeppelin recorded "Hats Off to (Roy) Harper" for their third album. [5] Inspired by White's song, the liner notes credit the song to "Traditional, arranged by Charles Obscure" (a pseudonym of Jimmy Page) and uses some similar lyrics:

Listen mama, Put on your mornin' gown'
Put in your nightshirt Mama we gonna shake 'em down yeah, yeah?
Must I holler
Must I, must I, must I shake 'em on down?
Well I've been mistreated babe
I believe I'll shake 'em on down

Biographer Martin Popoff noted that Robert Plant's vocal was recorded using an instrument amplifier with a vibrato effect, with Page providing a "buzzing bottleneck acoustic slide just as aggressively as Robert sings". [5] Led Zeppelin's song "Custard Pie" (from 1975's Physical Graffiti ) also borrows from "Shake 'Em On Down":

Put on your night shirt and your morning gown
You know by night I'm gonna shake 'em down
Put on your night shirt mama, and your morning gown
Well, you know by night I'm gonna shake 'em down

Related Research Articles

<i>Led Zeppelin</i> (album) Debut album by English rock band Led Zeppelin

Led Zeppelin is the debut album by English rock band Led Zeppelin. It was released on 12 January 1969 in the United States and on 31 March in the United Kingdom by Atlantic Records.

<i>Coda</i> (album) 1982 compilation album by Led Zeppelin

Coda is a compilation album by the English rock band Led Zeppelin. The album is a collection of unused tracks from various sessions during Led Zeppelin's twelve-year career. It was released on 19 November 1982, almost two years after the group had officially disbanded following the death of drummer John Bonham. The word coda, meaning a passage that ends a musical piece following the main body, was therefore chosen as the title.

Big Joe Turner American blues shouter

Joseph Vernon "Big Joe" Turner Jr. was an American blues shouter from Kansas City, Missouri. According to songwriter Doc Pomus, "Rock and roll would have never happened without him." His greatest fame was due to his rock-and-roll recordings in the 1950s, particularly "Shake, Rattle and Roll", but his career as a performer endured from the 1920s into the 1980s.

Bukka White

Booker T. Washington "Bukka" White was an American Delta blues guitarist and singer. Bukka is a phonetic spelling of White's first name; he was named after the African-American educator and civil rights activist Booker T. Washington.

The origins of rock and roll are complex. Rock and roll emerged as a defined musical style in the United States in the early to mid-1950s. It derived most directly from the rhythm and blues music of the 1940s, which itself developed from earlier blues, the beat-heavy jump blues, boogie woogie, up-tempo jazz and swing music. It was also influenced by gospel, country and western, and traditional folk music. Rock and roll in turn provided the main basis for the music that, since the mid-1960s, has been generally known simply as rock music.

John Adam Estes, known as Sleepy John Estes, was an American blues guitarist, songwriter and vocalist. His music influenced such artists as The Beatles, Bob Dylan and Led Zeppelin.

Boogie Chillen Single by John Lee Hooker

"Boogie Chillen'" or "Boogie Chillun" is a blues song first recorded by John Lee Hooker in 1948. It is a solo performance featuring Hooker's vocal, electric guitar, and rhythmic foot stomps. The lyrics are partly autobiographical and alternate between spoken and sung verses. The song was his debut record release and in 1949, it became the first "down-home" electric blues song to reach number one in the R&B records chart.

Fixin to Die Blues Traditional Delta blues song

"Fixin' to Die Blues" is a song by American blues musician Bukka White. It is performed in the Delta blues style with White's vocal and guitar accompanied by washboard rhythm. White recorded it in Chicago on May 8, 1940, for record producer Lester Melrose. The song was written just days before, along with eleven others, at Melrose's urging.

Mose Allison

Mose John Allison Jr. was an American jazz and blues pianist, singer, and songwriter. He became notable for playing a unique mix of blues and modern jazz, both singing and playing piano. After moving to New York in 1956, he worked primarily in jazz settings, playing with jazz musicians like Stan Getz, Al Cohn, and Zoot Sims, along with producing numerous recordings.

Field holler

The field holler or field call is mostly a historical type of vocal music sung by field slaves in the United States to accompany their tasked work, to communicate usefully, or to vent feelings. It differs from the collective work song in that it was sung solo, though early observers noted that a holler, or ‘cry’, might be echoed by other workers. Though commonly associated with cotton cultivation, the field holler was also sung by levee workers, and field hands in rice and sugar plantations. Field hollers are also known as corn-field hollers, water calls, and whoops. An early description is from 1853 and the first recordings are from the 1930s. The holler is closely related to the call and response of work songs and arhoolies. The Afro-American music form ultimately influenced strands of African American music, such as the blues, rhythm and blues and negro spirituals.

<i>Screamin and Hollerin the Blues: The Worlds of Charley Patton</i> 2001 box set by Charley Patton

Screamin' and Hollerin' the Blues: The Worlds of Charley Patton is a boxed set collecting remastered versions of the recorded works of blues singer Charley Patton, with recordings by many of his associates, supplementary interviews and historical data. The set won three Grammy awards, for Best Historical Album, Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package, and Best Album Notes.

Parchman Farm (song) Song first recorded by Bukka White in 1940

"Parchman Farm" or "Parchman Farm Blues" is a blues song first recorded by American Delta blues musician Bukka White in 1940. It is an autobiographical piece, in which White sings of his experience at the infamous Mississippi State Penitentiary, known as Parchman Farm.

"Take This Hammer" is a prison, logging, and railroad work song, which has the same Roud number as another song, "Nine Pound Hammer", with which it shares verses. "Swannanoa Tunnel" and "Asheville Junction" are similar. Together, this group of songs are referred to as "hammer songs" or "roll songs". Numerous bluegrass bands and singers like Scott McGill and Mississippi John Hurt also recorded commercial versions of this song, nearly all of them containing verses about the legendary spike driver, John Henry; and even when they do not, writes folklorist Kip Lornell, "one feels his strong and valorous presence in the song".

Its Nobodys Fault but Mine Song by Blind Willie Johnson later adapted by Led Zeppelin

"It's Nobody's Fault but Mine" or "Nobody's Fault but Mine" is a song first recorded by gospel blues artist Blind Willie Johnson in 1927. It is a solo performance with Johnson singing and playing slide guitar. The song has been interpreted and recorded by numerous musicians in a variety of styles, including Led Zeppelin on their 1976 album Presence.

Shake Your Moneymaker (song) Song first recorded by Elmore James in 1961

"Shake Your Moneymaker" or "Shake Your Money Maker" is a song recorded by Elmore James in 1961 that has become a blues standard. Inspired by earlier songs, it has been interpreted and recorded by several blues and other artists.

"Milk Cow Blues" is a blues song written and originally recorded by Kokomo Arnold in September 1934. In 1935 and 1936, he recorded four sequels designated "Milk Cow Blues No. 2" through No. 5. The song made Arnold a star, and was widely adapted by artists in the blues, Western swing and rock idioms.

"Sugar Mama" or "Sugar Mama Blues" is a song that is a standard of the blues. Called a "tautly powerful slow blues" by music journalist Charles Shaar Murray, it has been recorded by numerous artists, including early Chicago bluesmen Tampa Red, Sonny Boy Williamson I, and Tommy McClennan. John Lee Hooker and Howlin' Wolf later adapted "Sugar Mama" for electric blues and rock group Led Zeppelin reworked it during early recording sessions.

Bottle Up and Go Traditional blues song

"Bottle Up and Go" or "Bottle It Up and Go" is a song that is a standard of the blues. Based on earlier songs, Delta bluesman Tommy McClennan recorded "Bottle It Up and Go" in 1939. The song has been interpreted and recorded by numerous artists, sometimes using alternate titles, such as "Step It Up and Go", "Shake It Up and Go", etc.

The Led Zeppelin Deluxe Edition is a series of albums reissued by English rock group Led Zeppelin, distributed by Atlantic Records. It contains all nine of the original Led Zeppelin studio albums remastered from the original analog tapes. Along with the remastered albums, there is a companion disc with each album, consisting of previously unreleased audio tracks and alternate mixes of released tracks. Many of these are described as work-in-progress or alternate mixes made during the original production rather than new remixes generated to highlight discarded recording elements. The first companion album consists of the 10 October 1969 concert in Paris. The albums were released in chronological order, each with inverted album covers.

The Soul of a Man is an album of "twenty haunting spiritual blues songs" recorded in the late 1920s and 1930 by the American gospel blues singer and guitarist Blind Willie Johnson that was released by Charly Records in 2003.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Humphrey, Mark (1994). The Complete Bukka White (Album notes). Bukka White. Legacy Recordings. pp. 6–7. CK 52782.
  2. 1 2 Herzhaft, Gerard (1992). "Shake 'Em on Down". Encyclopedia of the Blues. University of Arkansas Press. p.  470. ISBN   1-55728-252-8.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Burton, Thomas G. (1981). Tom Ashley, Sam McGee, Bukka White: Tennessee Traditional Singers. University of Tennessee Press. p.  173. ISBN   0-87049-260-8.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Gioia, Ted (2008). Delta Blues. W. W. Norton. pp.  90–93. ISBN   978-0-393-33750-1.
  5. 1 2 Popoff, Martin (2017). Led Zeppelin: All the Albums, All the Songs. MBI. p. 88. ISBN   978-0-76035-211-3.