Rollin' and Tumblin'
| "Roll and Tumble Blues" | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Single by Hambone Willie Newbern | |
| B-side | "Nobody Knows What the Good Deacon Says" |
| Released | 1929 |
| Recorded | March 14, 1929, Atlanta, Georgia |
| Genre | Blues |
| Length | 3:03 |
| Label | Okeh |
| Songwriter(s) | Unknown (Newbern credited on single) |
"Rollin' and Tumblin'" (or "Roll and Tumble Blues") is a blues song first recorded by American singer-guitarist Hambone Willie Newbern in 1929.[1] Called a "great Delta blues classic", it has been interpreted by hundreds of Delta and Chicago blues artists, including well-known recordings by Muddy Waters.[2]
Original song
Hambone Willie Newbern recorded "Roll and Tumble Blues" on March 14, 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia for Okeh Records. It shares several elements of "Minglewood Blues", first recorded in 1928 by Gus Cannon's Jug Stompers.[3] Newbern's "Roll and Tumble Blues" is a solo piece with his vocal and slide-guitar accompaniment.
The song is performed in the key of A using an open tuning and an irregular number of bars. [4] The tempo varies from an initial 140 beats per minute to a final 158 bpm.[4] A key feature of the song is that the first verse begins on the IV chord, rather than on the more usual I chord (e.g., in the key of A this would be the D chord rather than the A chord). After the first two measures the IV chord resolves to the I chord. Often the IV chord moves to IV♭7 on the second measure or the last two beats of the second measure.[3]
The lyrics follow a standard blues AAB pattern and relate a failed relationship:
And I rolled and I tumbled and I cried the whole night long (2×)
And I rose this mornin' mama and I didn't know right from wrong ...
And I fold my arms lord and I walked away (2×)
Said "that's all right sweet mama your trouble gon' come some day"
"Roll and Tumble Blues" is one of six songs Newbern recorded during his only recording session. It was released before the advent of race records charts, however, it soon became "an oft-covered standard"[5] and Newbern's best-known song.
Renditions
Robert Johnson adapted "Rollin' and Tumblin'" with the title "If I Had Possession Over Judgment Day" during his third recording session in San Antonio, Texas, in 1936.[6] Musically, his version is based on the original, but added new lyrics: "where Newbern sang about love, Robert sang about sex and power, combining his own fears of them with the fantasy of controlling them", according to biographers.[7] The song was not released until 1961, when it was included on the first Johnson compilation album, King of the Delta Blues Singers. He also based his "Traveling Riverside Blues" on Newbern's song.[7]
In 1950, Muddy Waters' recorded perhaps the best-known version for the Chess brothers' Aristocrat label. Leonard Chess insisted that Waters record the song less than a month after Waters had recorded a version for the rival Parkway label, featuring his bandmates Little Walter and Baby Face Leroy Foster.[8] The Parkway label credits the Baby Face Leroy Trio, with vocals by Leroy, and Muddy Waters as the songwriter. In 1960, Elmore James recorded a different arrangement of the song[9] and a year later, Howlin' Wolf recorded "Down in the Bottom", which employed a new set of lyrics and is credited to Willie Dixon.[10]
References
- ^ Robert Palmer (1981). Deep Blues. Penguin Books. p. 123. ISBN 978-0-14-006223-6.
- ^ Herzhaft, Gerard (1992). "Rollin' and Tumblin'". Encyclopedia of the Blues. Fayetteville, Arkansas: University of Arkansas Press. p. 468. ISBN 1-55728-252-8.
- ^ a b Obrecht, Jas. "Rollin' and Tumblin': The Story of a Song". Jas Obrecht Music Archive. Retrieved August 19, 2013.
- ^ a b Titon, Jeff Todd (1978). Early Downhome Blues: A Musical and Cultural Analysis. University of Illinois Press. pp. 121–122.
- ^ Ankeny, Jason. "Hambone Willie Newbern: Artist Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved August 19, 2013.
- ^ Wald, Elijah (2004). Escaping the Delta: Robert Johnson and the Invention of the Blues (1st. ed.). New York City: HarperCollins. ISBN 978-0060524272.
- ^ a b Conforth, Bruce; Wardlow, Gayle Dean (2019). Up Jumped the Devil: The Real Life of Robert Johnson. Chicago Review Press. pp. 181, 214. ISBN 978-1-64160-094-1.
- ^ Gordon, Robert G. (2002). Can't Be Satisfied: The Life and Times of Muddy Waters. Little, Brown. p. 100. ISBN 0-316-32849-9.
- ^ Morris, Chris; Haig, Diana (1992). Elmore James: King of the Slide Guitar (Box set booklet). Elmore James. Nashville, Tennessee: Capricorn Records. 9 42006-2.
- ^ Fancourt, Les; Morris, Chris; Shurman, Dick (1991). Howlin' Wolf: The Chess Box (Box set booklet). Howlin' Wolf. Universal City, California: MCA Records/Chess Records. p. 29. CHD3-9332.
