"See See Rider", also known as "C.C. Rider", "See See Rider Blues" or "Easy Rider", is a popular American

12-bar blues The 12-bar blues (or blues changes) is one of the most prominent chord progressions in popular music. The blues progression has a distinctive form in lyrics, phrase, chord structure, and duration. In its basic form, it is predominantly based on ...

song that became a standard in several genres.

Gertrude "Ma" Rainey Gertrude "Ma" Rainey ( Pridgett; April 26, 1886 – December 22, 1939) was an American blues singer and influential early blues recording artist. Dubbed the "Mother of the Blues", she bridged earlier vaudeville and the authentic expression of ...

was the first to record it on October 16, 1924, at

Paramount Records Paramount Records was an American record label known for its recordings of jazz and blues in the 1920s and early 1930s, including such artists as Ma Rainey, Tommy Johnson and Blind Lemon Jefferson. Early years Paramount Records was formed in 19 ...

in New York. The song uses mostly

traditional blues lyrics In the folk tradition, there are many traditional blues verses that have been sung over and over by many artists. Blues singers, who include many country and folk artists as well as those commonly identified with blues singers, use these traditi ...

to tell the story of an unfaithful lover, commonly called an "easy rider": "See see rider, see what you have done", making a play on the word "see" and the sound of "easy".

Background

"See See Rider" is a traditional song that may have originated on the

black vaudeville Black Vaudeville was based on performances that came out of the movement and style of African Americans. The vaudeville years were the early 1880s until the early 1930s. These acts were unique on the vaudeville scene because the performers brough ...

circuit. It is similar to "

Poor Boy Blues "Poor Boy Blues", or "Poor Boy, Long Ways From Home", is a traditional blues song that has been cited as one of the oldest in the genre. As with most traditional blues songs, there is great variation in the melody and lyrical content as perfor ...

" as performed by

Ramblin' Thomas Willard "Ramblin'" Thomas (1901 or 1902 – 1944 or 1945) was an American country blues singer, guitarist and songwriter. He is best remembered for his slide guitar playing and for several recordings he made in the late 1920s and early 1930s. ...

. Jelly Roll Morton recollected hearing the song as a young boy some time after 1901 in New Orleans, Louisiana, when he performed with a spiritual quartet that played at funerals. Older band members played "See See Rider" during get-togethers with their "sweet mamas" or as Morton called them "fifth-class whores". Big Bill Broonzy claimed that "when he was about 9 or 10—that is, around 1908, in the Delta (Jefferson County, Arkansas)—he learned to play the blues from an itinerant songster named "See See Rider", "a former slave, who played a one-string fiddle ... one of the first singers of what would later be called the blues."

Lead Belly Huddie William Ledbetter (; January 20, 1888 – December 6, 1949), better known by the stage name Lead Belly, was an American folk music, folk and blues singer notable for his strong vocals, Virtuoso, virtuosity on the twelve-string guita ...

and

Blind Lemon Jefferson Lemon Henry "Blind Lemon" Jefferson (September 24, 1893 – December 19, 1929)Some sources indicate Jefferson was born on October 26, 1894. was an American blues and gospel singer-songwriter and musician. He was one of the most popular blues sing ...

performed the song in Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas area between 1912 and 1917. The song is possibly connected to the Shelton Brooks composition "

I Wonder Where My Easy Rider's Gone "I Wonder Where My Easy Rider's Gone?" is a ragtime/blues song written by Shelton Brooks in 1913. Sometimes categorized as hokum, it led to an answer song written in 1915 by W.C. Handy, "Yellow Dog Rag", later titled "Yellow Dog Blues". Lines and ...

" (1913) that was inspired by the mysterious 1907 disappearance of the 28-year-old jockey Jimmy Lee, "The Black Demon", a well-known black rider who won every race on the card at

Churchill Downs Churchill Downs is a horse racing complex located on Central Avenue in south Louisville, Kentucky, United States, famed for hosting the annual Kentucky Derby. It officially opened in 1875 and was named for Samuel Churchill, whose family was ...

Composition

Ma Rainey's rendition of "See See Rider" is based on a traditional folk 12-bar blues, such as the rendition by Lead Belly in which the lyrics follows the traditional repetition of the first line of the stanza structure (AAB). Ma Rainey's rendition opens with the three couplet introduction credited to Lena Arant that explains why the songstress is blue. The following lines are adapted in the less typical repetition of the second line of the stanza (ABB) pattern. Gates Thomas collected a version of "C.C. Rider" in the 1920s in south Texas. It repeated the second line of the stanza (ABB) rather than the first (AAB) that is more common in blues. Folklorists recorded regional variations in stanza patterns such as ABB and ABA in Texas versus AB in New Orleans.

Renditions

In October 1924, "Ma" Rainey was the first to record "See See Rider Blues" at Paramount Records New York Studio. Her Georgia Jazz Band included

Louis Armstrong Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and several era ...

on cornet, Charlie Green on trombone,

Buster Bailey William C. "Buster" Bailey (July 19, 1902 – April 12, 1967) was an American jazz clarinetist. Career history Early career Buster Bailey was taught clarinet by classical teacher Franz Schoepp, who also taught Benny Goodman. Bailey gained his s ...

on clarinet,

Fletcher Henderson James Fletcher Hamilton Henderson (December 18, 1897 – December 29, 1952) was an American pianist, bandleader, arranger and composer, important in the development of big band jazz and swing music. He was one of the most prolific black musi ...

on piano, and Charlie Dixon on banjo. The record was released in 1925. While the copyright listed Lena Arant as a composer, she was responsible only for the first three rhymed couplets at the beginning of the song. In 1943, a version by Wee Bea Booze reached number one on ''Billboard'' magazine's Harlem Hit Parade, a precursor of the rhythm and blues chart. Some blues critics consider this to be the definitive version of the song. Later rocked-oriented versions were recorded by Chuck Willis (as "C.C. Rider", a number one R&B hit and a number 12 pop hit in 1957) and

LaVern Baker Delores LaVern Baker (November 11, 1929 – March 10, 1997) was an American R&B singer who had several hit records on the pop chart in the 1950s and early 1960s. Her most successful records were "Tweedle Dee" (1955), " Jim Dandy" (1956), and "I ...

(number nine R&B and number 34 pop in 1963). Mitch Ryder & the Detroit Wheels' version of the song (as part of the medley "Jenny Take a Ride!") reached number 10 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in 1965 the US. In 1966,

Eric Burdon & the Animals The Animals (also billed as Eric Burdon and the Animals) are an English rock music, rock band, formed in Newcastle upon Tyne in the early 1960s. The band moved to London upon finding fame in 1964. The Animals were known for their gritty, blues ...

recorded "See See Rider" for their fourth American album, ''

Animalization ''Animalization'' is the fourth American album by British rock group The Animals, and was released in August 1966 on MGM Records. It has a track listing somewhat similar to the British album ''Animalisms''. The album, which reached #20 on the U ...

''. It was also released as a single, which reached number 10 on the Hot 100. ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' said that it is an "excellent re-working" in which the Animals play "the bluesy sturdie in an infectious, hard-pounding rollicking style."

Recognition and influence

In 2004, Ma Rainey's "See See Rider" was selected for the National Recording Registry of the Library of Congress to preserve its legacy for future generations. In 2004, her recording received a Grammy Hall of Fame Award. Film director Martin Scorsese credited the song with stimulating his interest in music. He commented: In 2018, the Blues Foundation inducted "See See Rider" into the Blues Hall of Fame as a "classic of blues recording". The induction statement noted that the song "became a standard recorded by countless artists in many genres ithhit singles ndmany other versions by blues, soul, jazz, pop, country, and rock performers". It is also specifically recognized as a

blues standard Blues standards are blues songs that have attained a high level of recognition due to having been widely performed and recorded. They represent the best known and most interpreted blues songs that are seen as standing the test of time. Blues s ...

. John "Big Nig" Bray, the leader of a crew that hauled cypress logs from Louisiana swamps in the 1930s, borrowed the frame and tune of "See See Rider" for his "Trench Blues" (1934), a semi-autobiographical heroic blues ballad recounting the experience of an African American soldier in World War I, as recorded by Alan Lomax. "See See Rider" was among the most known African American play party songs in Alabama in the 1950s.

Origins of the term

There are many theories and conjectures about the origin and meaning of the title; none of them have been proven correct, and the song's complex history may make proof impossible. Performers have interpreted the song in more than one way, and have sometimes changed words to suit their interpretations. The spelling See See Rider might be a pronunciation spelling of "C. C. Rider". Many sources indicate that "c. c. rider" refers to either early "church circuit" traveling preachers who did not have established churches or "county circuit" riders who were attorneys following a circuit judge. Debra Devi, a researcher of the language of the blues, recorded a hypothesis that during the American Civil War C.C. stood for

Cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry ...

Corporal, a horseman officer. "Riding" is also a common metaphor for sexual intercourse in the blues, and "rider" a term for a sexual partner. In African American usage a "rider" can be either male or female. This folk etymology appears to stem from somebody by the name Alex Washburn who came across this interpretation of "c.c. rider" in a folk song collection by

Alan Lomax Alan Lomax (; January 31, 1915 – July 19, 2002) was an American ethnomusicologist, best known for his numerous field recordings of folk music of the 20th century. He was also a musician himself, as well as a folklorist, archivist, writer, sch ...

, a prominent American field researcher of folk music. The term ''see see rider'' is sometimes taken as synonymous with '' easy rider'' (an unscrupulous man living off his lover's earnings). In dirty blues songs, "easy rider" can also refer to a woman who had liberal sexual views, had been married more than once, or was skilled at sex. Likewise, in jazz singer and guitarist Wee

Bea Booze Bea Booze (March 23, 1912 – November 11, 1986), often credited as Wee Bea Booze, was an American R&B and jazz singer most popular in the 1940s. She was one of the few female blues guitarists of that time. Biography She was born Beatrice Booze ...

's version of "See See Rider Blues", which reached number one on the US Billboard R&B chart in 1943, the well audible lyrics are "now your girl come", hence addressing a man. Another theory is that the term could refer to a

prostitute Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-penet ...

and there would be a lyric such as "You made me love you, now your man done come", "your man" would refer to the woman's pimp. In this interpretation, rather than being directed to a male "easy rider", the song would be an admonition to a prostitute to give up her evil ways. There are further theories: * ''Easy rider'' was sometimes used to refer to the partner of a hypersexual woman who therefore does not have to work or pay for sex. * ''Easy rider'' sometimes referred to the guitar hung across the back of a travelling blues singer. * Big Bill Broonzy states, on his album ''Big Bill Broonzy'' (recorded in Baarn, the Netherlands, early 1956 and released late 1956), that the first time he heard that song was by a man who "loved to be on the water, and that's why he wrote this title, and that's the title of the song: it's ''Sea Sea Rider''".Big Bill Broonzy quote "The first time I hear this song was by a guy... he was a Negro, I'm sure... He was... the first guy that would give me an idea of buying some box and making me a fiddle. And this guy, the first song I heard him playing in my life... that was 1908. And he told me that he learnt this song because he was a rouster, on a boat. And he loved to be on the water, and that's why he wrote this title, and that's the title of the song: it's ''Sea Sea Rider''. * Big Bill Broonzy also states, in a conversation about his youth with Bill Randle on his album ''The Bill Broonzy Story'' (recorded on July 12, 1957), that See See Rider was a blues singer (AVID Roots, Classic Box Set, AMSC1159) before playing the tune.

Notes