Hi guys! I need desperate help with some lyrics. I live in Norway and I really love playing old blues. But since I'm Norwegian it can be hard to figure out lyrics sometimes. I can get most lyrics but I'm having a hard time with 4 specific songs. Of course, I could have improvised but I want to make it right :)
The songs are 3 Snooky Pryor numbers: Uncle Sam, please don't take my man Boogie twist My head is turning Grey
I'll help you out with the SBWII song, which is a wonderful example of SBW's marvelous imagery. This is what I hear:
Trying to Get Back on My Feet (Sonny Boy Williamson II)
I'm trying, (to) get back on my feet again. I'm trying, (to) get back on my feet again. If I ever get my hands on a dollar again I'm going to hold it, hold it, hold it 'til the eagle grins.
I'm trying, (to) get on my feet just one more time. Yes, I'm trying, (to) get on my feet just one more time. If I ever get my hands on a dollar again I'm going to hold that money, hold that money Nobody else gonna get me down.
I asked my brother, would he do something for me. He said "I will", but then he began to lose intrigue. If I ever get my hands on a dollar again I'm going to hold it, hold it, hold it 'til the eagle grins. ----------
Last Edited by mr_so&so on Feb 22, 2016 10:33 AM
I thought it would be fun to give it try but can't quite make everything out. Here's what I got anyway, maybe someone else can figure more out. I put the parts I'm not sure about in brackets (although not sure bout lots of it)
I like the song, his voice reminds me of Ozzy Osbournes in this one. Unfortunately it's almost equally as hard to understand both of them!
Uncle Sam please don't take my man
I think you've heard bout the news of long because everybodys end up gone Yeah if you've heard bout the news of long because everybodys end up gone well every time i pick up the paper (I can read everyday about the war) ?
I can hear women screaming and crying uncle sam please don't take my man well I can hear women screaming and crying uncle sam please don't take my man yes well they qualified for the army and the men/Man don't understand
well then look at your big gun, (y'all know?) (If they could hit out in the wood )?? well look at your big gun (ya know??) (If they could hit out in the wood)??
yes i believe i'll drop a bomb cause my spaceship won't do no good
Last Edited by Dragonbreath on Feb 22, 2016 8:18 PM
Well, did you hear 'bout the news up North? Because everybody's end up gone Well, did you hear 'bout the news up North? Because everybody's end up gone Well every time I pick up a paper I can read something about the war
...
Well then look at your big gun, y'all know Your big gun hit out in the wood Well look at your big gun, ya'll know (come over here) Your big gun hit out in the wood Yes I believe I'll drop a bomb Cause my spaceship won't do no good
Last Edited by MindTheGap on Feb 23, 2016 12:30 AM
Yeah did you hear 'bout the news up north it was everybody's Santa Claus Yeah did you hear 'bout the news up north it was everybody's Santa Claus well every time i pick up a paper I can read something about the war
I can hear women screaming and crying uncle sam please don't take my man well I can hear women screaming and crying uncle sam please don't take my man yes the men aint qualified for the army and the Man don't understand
well just look at them big guns yonder them big guns hid out in the wood well just look at them big guns yonder them big guns hid out in the woods
yes i believe i'll drop a bomb cause my spaceship won't do no good
There's a known effect, I was reading about it a while ago but can't remember what they call it, where if you hear some ambiguous/unclear speech you can definitely hear it as one thing as the mind tries to fit something (anything) to it. But when you are shown the correct words, your mind flips to definitely hear that.
Last Edited by MindTheGap on Feb 23, 2016 12:46 AM
Wikipedia: "A mondegreen is a mishearing or misinterpretation of a phrase as a result of near-homophony, in a way that gives it a new meaning."
The deciphering of blues lyrics is a particular interest of mine. People often assume that just because you can Google the lyrics of most songs these days that there is some authority who has checked them. Many blues lyrics are horribly transcribed because of both the accents and vernacular of the blues singers. Sometimes even if we hear it correctly, we don't know what it means, and if we can't really make it out to begin with we try to insert our own outsider's understanding and way of speaking into it. The latter case often results in laughably poor results.
While I'm at it, another problem is that many blues songs are "recycled" or assembled from verses from other songs and authors. After a song has been passed from one person to another enough times, you get the "broken telephone" or "Chinese whispers" (a new term to me) phenomenon happening where miscommunications introduce nonsense and/or popular misconceptions and/or irrelevant content, and the essence of the story gets lost. St. James Infirmary Blues is a great example of this, as is God Moves on the Water.
Anyway it makes for some fun if you want to put a song into your repertoire. ----------
Last Edited by mr_so&so on Feb 23, 2016 9:59 AM
