Dirty blues (also known as bawdy blues) is a form of blues music that deals with socially taboo and obscene subjects, often referring to sexual acts and drug use. Because of the sometimes graphic subject matter, such music was often banned from radio and available only on jukeboxes. The style was most popular in the years before World War II, although it experienced a revival in the early 1950s.
Many songs used innuendo, slang terms, or double entendres, such as Lil Johnson's "Press My Button (Ring My Bell)" ("Come on baby, let's have some fun / Just put your hot dog in my bun"). However, some were very explicit. The most extreme examples were rarely recorded at all, a notable exception being Lucille Bogan's obscene version of "Shave 'Em Dry" (1935), which Elijah Wald has noted as "by far the most explicit blues song preserved at a commercial pre-war recording session".Elijah Wald, The Dozens: A History of Rap's Mama, Oxford University Press, 2012, p. 60.
The noteworthy musicians who used the style included Bo Carter, Bull Moose Jackson, Harlem Hamfats, Wynonie Harris, and Hank Ballard and The Midnighters.
Compilation albums include The Copulatin' Blues (Stash Records: 1976, re-released Mojo Records: 1996), Them Dirty Blues (Jass Records: 1989) and You Got to Give Me Some of It: 55 Risque Blues and R&B Classics 1928–1954 (Jasmine Records: 2015).
Notable songs Year Title Artist References 1924 "See See Rider" Ma Rainey 1927 "Bow Wow Blues" The Allen Brothers 1928 "It's Tight Like That" Tampa Red and Georgia Tom "The Duck's Yas-Yas-Yas" James "Stump" Johnson "Empty Bed Blues" Bessie Smith 1929 "I Had to Give Up Gym" The Hokum Boys "Rock That Thing" Lil Johnson "You'll Never Miss Your Jelly Until Your Jelly Roller Is Gone" Lil Johnson "Bumblebee" Memphis Minnie 1930 "Please Warm My Weiner" Bo Carter "Good Grinding" Irene Scruggs "Must Get Mine in Front" Irene Scruggs "On the Wall" Louise Johnson 1931 "Pin in Your Cushion" Bo Carter "Banana in Your Fruit Basket" Bo Carter "My Pencil Won't Write No More" Bo Carter "Need a Little Sugar in My Bowl" Bessie Smith "You've Got to Save That Thing" Ora Alexander 1932 "I Crave Your Lovin' Every Day" Ora Alexander1933 "Tom Cat and Pussy Blues" Jimmie Davis "Steady Grinding" James "Stump" Johnson and Dorothea Trowbridge 1935 "Shave 'Em Dry" Lucille Bogan "Let Me Roll Your Lemon" Bo Carter "Get 'Em from the Peanut Man (Hot Nuts)" Lil Johnson "Anybody Want to Buy My Cabbage?" Lil Johnson "Press My Button (Ring My Bell)" Lil Johnson 1936 "Trucking My Blues Away" Blind Boy Fuller "Sam the Hot Dog Man" Lil Johnson "My Stove Is In Good Condition" Lil Johnson 1937 "They're Red Hot" Robert Johnson "Meat Balls" Lil Johnson "If It Don't Fit (Don't Force It)" Lil Johnson 1938 "Don't You Feel My Leg?" Blue Lu Barker 1939 "I Want Some of Your Pie" Blind Boy Fuller 1941 "Crosscut Saw" Tommy McClennan 1942 "Let Me Play With Your Poodle" Tampa Red 1944 "Salty Papa Blues" Dinah Washington 1946 "Gotta Gimme Whatcha Got" Julia Lee 1947 "(Opportunity Knocks But Once) Snatch and Grab It" Julia Lee "Mother Fuyer" Dirty Red 1948 "Lolly Pop Mama" Wynonie Harris "King Size Papa" Julia Lee "I Want A Bowlegged Woman" Bull Moose Jackson 1949 "Long John Blues" Dinah Washington "Mountain Oysters" Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis 1950 "Butcher Pete" Roy Brown "My Man Stands Out" Julia Lee "I Like My Baby's Pudding" Wynonie Harris "Sittin' on It All the Time" Wynonie Harris "I'm a Hi-Ballin' Daddy" Tiny Bradshaw "Silent George" Lucky Millinder 1951 "Rocket 69" Todd Rhodes "Sixty Minute Man" Billy Ward and His Dominoes "Lemon Squeezing Daddy" The Sultans "The Walkin' Blues (Walk Right In, Walk Right Out)" Fluffy Hunter "It Ain't the Meat (It's the Motion)" The Swallows 1952 "Keep On Churnin' (Till the Butter Comes)" Wynonie Harris "Big Ten Inch Record" Bull Moose Jackson "Nosey Joe" Bull Moose Jackson "Little Girl Sing Ding-A-Ling" Dave Bartholomew "Drill Daddy Drill" Dorothy Ellis 1953 "Wasn't That Good" Wynonie Harris "Laundromat Blues" The "5" Royales 1954 "Work with Me, Annie" The Midnighters "Shake, Rattle and Roll" Big Joe Turner "Big Long Slidin' Thing" Dinah Washington "Baby Let Me Bang Your Box" The Toppers "Mr Thrill" Mildred Jones "Rotten Cocksuckers' Ball" The Clovers "Toy Bell" The Bees "Sexy Ways" Hank BallardNite, Norm N. Rock On: The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock n' Roll (The Solid Gold Years). Thomas Y. Crowell (1974), pp. 428–29. . 1956 "Salty Dog" Blind Willie McTell
NB. According to AllMusic, this list of dirty blues songs also included "What the Blues Is All About" by Chick Willis, "Cigarette" by Backwards Sam Firk, and "Georgia Grind" (1926). The latter's music was written by Spencer Williams and recorded by Blue Lu Barker and Louis Armstrong among others.
See also Dirty rap Hokum
References