"Empty Bed Blues" is a 1928 "

dirty blues Dirty blues encompasses forms of blues music that deal with socially taboo and obscene 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 ...

" song written by J. C. Johnson and first recorded by

Bessie Smith Bessie Smith (April 15, 1894 – September 26, 1937) was an American blues singer widely renowned during the Jazz Age. Nicknamed the " Empress of the Blues", she was the most popular female blues singer of the 1930s. Inducted into the Rock and ...

. Bessie Smith recorded the song in New York on March 20, 1928. The accompanying musicians were

Porter Grainger Porter Grainger ( Granger; October 22, 1891 − October 30, 1948) was an American pianist, songwriter, playwright, and music publisher. Biography When Grainger was born in Bowling Green, Kentucky, the Granger family name did not include an "i". A ...

(piano) and Charlie Green (trombone). The recording was issued by

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

. In 1983, Smith's recording was inducted to the

Grammy Hall of Fame The Grammy Hall of Fame is a hall of fame to honor musical recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance. Inductees are selected annually by a special member committee of eminent and knowledgeable professionals from all branches of ...

. "Empty Bed Blues", ''Grammy Hall of Fame''
Retrieved 9 November 2022 The song was "the most notorious recording of mith'scareer". The lyrics are "full of sexual innuendos",Marybeth Hamilton, “Sexuality, Authenticity and the Making of the Blues Tradition.” ''Past & Present'', no. 169, 2000, pp. 132–60.
Retrieved 9 November 2022 and contain numerous oblique references to penetrative sex, in its references to "grinding" coffee, as well as to "bacon" and "cabbage"; and to

cunnilingus Cunnilingus is an oral sex act performed by a person on the vulva or vagina of another person. The clitoris is the most sexually sensitive part of the human female genitalia, and its stimulation may result in a woman becoming sexually aroused ...

("He's a deep-sea diver, with a stroke that can't go wrong/ He can touch the bottom, and his wind holds out so long"). The song was later recorded by artists including

Della Reese Delloreese Patricia Early (July 6, 1931 – November 19, 2017), known professionally as Della Reese, was an American jazz and gospel singer, actress, and ordained minister whose career spanned seven decades. She began her long career as a s ...

(1959),

Judy Henske Judith Anne "Judy" Henske (December 20, 1936 – April 27, 2022) was an American singer and songwriter, dubbed "the Queen of the Beatniks" by producer Jack Nitzsche. Initially performing in folk clubs in the early 1960s, her performances and r ...

(1963),

Bette Midler Bette Midler (;''Inside the Actors Studio'', 2004 born December 1, 1945) is an American singer, actress, comedian and author. Throughout her career, which spans over five decades, Midler has received List of awards and nominations received by Be ...

(1977), and

Maria Muldaur Maria Muldaur (born Maria Grazia Rosa Domenica D'Amato; September 12, 1942) is an American folk and blues singer who was part of the American folk music revival in the early 1960s. She recorded the 1973 hit song "Midnight at the Oasis" and has ...

(2007).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Empty Bed Blues 1928 songs Blues songs Bessie Smith songs