Dirty blues encompasses forms of blues music that deal with socially

taboo A taboo or tabu is a social group's ban, prohibition, or avoidance of something (usually an utterance or behavior) based on the group's sense that it is excessively repulsive, sacred, or allowed only for certain persons.''Encyclopædia Britannica ...

and

obscene An obscenity is any utterance or act that strongly offends the prevalent morality of the time. It is derived from the Latin ''obscēnus'', ''obscaenus'', "boding ill; disgusting; indecent", of uncertain etymology. Such loaded language can be us ...

subjects, often referring to sexual acts and drug use. Due to the sometimes graphic subject matter, such music was often banned from radio and only available on a

jukebox A jukebox is a partially automated music-playing device, usually a coin-operated machine, that will play a patron's selection from self-contained media. The classic jukebox has buttons, with letters and numbers on them, which are used to sele ...

. The style was most popular in the years before

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, although it had a revival in the early 1950s. Many songs used innuendo, slang terms, or

double entendre A double entendre (plural double entendres) is a figure of speech or a particular way of wording that is devised to have a double meaning, of which one is typically obvious, whereas the other often conveys a message that would be too socially ...

s, 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 Lucille Bogan (born Lucile Anderson; April 1, 1897August 10, 1948) was an American classic female blues singer and songwriter, among the first to be recorded. She also recorded under the pseudonym Bessie Jackson. Music critic Ernest Borneman not ...

's obscene version of " Shave 'Em Dry" (1935), which

Elijah Wald Elijah Wald (born 1959) is an American folk blues guitarist and music historian. He is a 2002 Grammy Award winner for his liner notes to ''The Arhoolie Records 40th Anniversary Box: The Journey of Chris Strachwitz''. Life Wald was born in 1959 ...

has noted as "by far the most explicit blues song preserved at a commercial pre-war recording session". The more noteworthy musicians who utilised the style included

Bo Carter Armenter (or Armentia) Chatmon (March 21, 1893 or January 1894 – September 21, 1964), known as Bo Carter, was an early American blues musician. He was a member of the Mississippi Sheiks in concerts and on a few of their recordings. He also m ...

, Bull Moose Jackson, Harlem Hamfats,

Wynonie Harris Wynonie Harris (August 24, 1915 – June 14, 1969) was an American blues shouter and rhythm-and-blues singer of upbeat songs, featuring humorous, often ribald lyrics. He had fifteen Top 10 hits between 1946 and 1952. Harris is attributed by ...

, and

Hank Ballard Hank Ballard (born John Henry Kendricks; November 18, 1927 – March 2, 2003) was an American singer and songwriter, the lead vocalist of The Midnighters and one of the first rock and roll artists to emerge in the early 1950s. He played an inte ...

and

The Midnighters The Midnighters were an American vocal group from Detroit, Michigan. They were an influential group in the 1950s and early 1960s, with many R&B hit records. They were also notable for launching the career of lead singer Hank Ballard and the wo ...

. 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

*NB. According to

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

, this list of dirty blues songs also included "What the Blues Is All About" by

Chick Willis Robert Lee "Chick" Willis (September 24, 1934 – December 7, 2013) was an American blues singer and guitarist, who performed and recorded from the 1950s to the 2000s. Biography He was born in Cabaniss, Monroe County, Georgia, the cousin of Ch ...

, "Cigarette" by Backwards Sam Firk, and "

Georgia Grind "Georgia Grind" is a jazz and dirty blues tune, written by Spencer Williams and copyrighted by him in 1926. The lyrics were added by Bud Allen. A recording was released by Louis Armstrong with his Hot Five by Okeh Records on a 78 rpm, mono 10" ...

" (1926). The latter's music was written by

Spencer Williams Spencer Williams (October 14, 1889 – July 14, 1965) was an American jazz and popular music composer, pianist, and singer. He is best known for his hit songs " Basin Street Blues", "I Ain't Got Nobody", " Royal Garden Blues", " I've Found a New ...

and recorded by

Blue Lu Barker Louisa "Blue Lu" Barker (née Louise Dupont) (November 13, 1913 – May 7, 1998) was an American jazz and blues singer. Her better-known recordings include "Don't You Feel My Leg" (1938), which she wrote with her husband, "Georgia Grind" and "Lo ...

and Louis Armstrong among others.

References

{{Blues Blues music genres Hokum blues songs Off-color humor Obscenity controversies in music

Notable songs

See also

References