Dirty blues (also known as bawdy blues) is a form of blues music that deals with socially taboo and obscene subjects, often referring to sexual acts and drug use. Because of the sometimes graphic subject matter, such music was often banned from radio and available only on jukeboxes. The style was most popular in the years before World War II, although it experienced a revival in the early 1950s.
Many songs used innuendo, slang terms, or double entendres, such as Lil Johnson's[1] "Press My Button (Ring My Bell)" ("Come on baby, let's have some fun / Just put your hot dog in my bun").[2] However, some were very explicit. The most extreme examples were rarely recorded at all, a notable exception being Lucille Bogan's obscene version of "Shave 'Em Dry" (1935),[3] which Elijah Wald has noted as "by far the most explicit blues song preserved at a commercial pre-war recording session".[4]
The noteworthy musicians who used the style included Bo Carter, Bull Moose Jackson,[1] Harlem Hamfats, Wynonie Harris, and Hank Ballard and The Midnighters.
Compilation albums include The Copulatin' Blues (Stash Records: 1976,[5] re-released Mojo Records: 1996),[6] Them Dirty Blues (Jass Records: 1989)[7] and You Got to Give Me Some of It: 55 Risque Blues and R&B Classics 1928–1954 (Jasmine Records: 2015).[8]
| Year | Title | Artist | References | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1924 | "See See Rider" | Ma Rainey | ||
| 1927 | "Bow Wow Blues" | The Allen Brothers | [9] [10] | |
| 1928 | "It's Tight Like That" | Tampa Red and Georgia Tom | [11] | |
| "The Duck's Yas-Yas-Yas" | James "Stump" Johnson | [12] | ||
| "Empty Bed Blues" | Bessie Smith | [13] | ||
| 1929 | "I Had to Give Up Gym" | The Hokum Boys | ||
| "Rock That Thing" | Lil Johnson | [14] | ||
| "You'll Never Miss Your Jelly Until Your Jelly Roller Is Gone" | Lil Johnson | [15] | ||
| "Bumblebee" | Memphis Minnie | |||
| 1930 | "Please Warm My Weiner" | Bo Carter | [16] [17] | |
| "Good Grinding" | Irene Scruggs | |||
| "Must Get Mine in Front" | [18] | |||
| "On the Wall" | [19] [20] | |||
| 1931 | "Pin in Your Cushion" | Bo Carter | ||
| "Banana in Your Fruit Basket" | Bo Carter | |||
| "My Pencil Won't Write No More" | Bo Carter | |||
| "My Girl's Pussy" | Harry Roy | [21] | ||
| "Need a Little Sugar in My Bowl" | Bessie Smith | [22] | ||
| "You've Got to Save That Thing" | Ora Alexander | |||
| 1932 | "I Crave Your Lovin' Every Day" | Ora Alexander | ||
| 1933 | "Tom Cat and Pussy Blues" | Jimmie Davis | [23] | |
| 1935 | "Shave 'Em Dry" | Lucille Bogan | ||
| "Let Me Roll Your Lemon" | Bo Carter | |||
| "Get 'Em from the Peanut Man (Hot Nuts)" | Lil Johnson | [24] | ||
| "Anybody Want to Buy My Cabbage?" | Lil Johnson | |||
| "Press My Button (Ring My Bell)" | Lil Johnson | |||
| 1936 | "Trucking My Blues Away" | Blind Boy Fuller | [25] | |
| "Sam the Hot Dog Man" | Lil Johnson | [26] | ||
| "My Stove Is In Good Condition" | Lil Johnson | [27] | ||
| 1937 | "They're Red Hot" | Robert Johnson | [28] [29] [30] | |
| "Meat Balls" | Lil Johnson | |||
| "If It Don't Fit (Don't Force It)" | Lil Johnson | |||
| 1938 | "Don't You Feel My Leg?" | Blue Lu Barker | ||
| 1939 | "I Want Some of Your Pie" | Blind Boy Fuller | [31] | |
| 1941 | "Crosscut Saw" | Tommy McClennan | [32] | |
| 1942 | "Let Me Play With Your Poodle" | Tampa Red | [33] | |
| 1944 | "Salty Papa Blues" | Dinah Washington | ||
| 1946 | "Gotta Gimme Whatcha Got" | Julia Lee | [34] | |
| "Shaving Cream" | Paul Wynn | |||
| 1947 | "(Opportunity Knocks But Once) Snatch and Grab It" | Julia Lee | ||
| "Mother Fuyer" | Dirty Red | [35] | ||
| 1948 | "Lolly Pop Mama" | Wynonie Harris | [36] | |
| "King Size Papa" | Julia Lee | |||
| "I Want A Bowlegged Woman" | Bull Moose Jackson | [37] | ||
| 1949 | "Long John Blues" | Dinah Washington | ||
| "Mountain Oysters" | Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis | [38] | ||
| 1950 | "Butcher Pete" | Roy Brown | ||
| "My Man Stands Out" | Julia Lee | |||
| "I Like My Baby's Pudding" | Wynonie Harris | |||
| "Sittin On It All The Time" | Wynonie Harris | |||
| "I'm a Hi-Ballin' Daddy" | Tiny Bradshaw | [39] | ||
| "Silent George" | Lucky Millinder | [40] | ||
| 1951 | "Rocket 69" | Todd Rhodes | ||
| "Sixty Minute Man" | Billy Ward and His Dominoes | [41] | ||
| "Lemon Squeezing Daddy" | The Sultans | |||
| "The Walkin' Blues (Walk Right In, Walk Right Out)" | Fluffy Hunter | |||
| "It Ain't the Meat (It's the Motion)" | The Swallows | |||
| 1952 | "Keep On Churnin' (Till the Butter Comes)" | Wynonie Harris | ||
| "Big Ten Inch Record" | Bull Moose Jackson | |||
| "Nosey Joe" | Bull Moose Jackson | [42] | ||
| "Little Girl Sing Ding-A-Ling" | Dave Bartholomew | [43] | ||
| "Drill Daddy Drill" | Dorothy Ellis | |||
| 1953 | "Wasn't That Good" | Wynonie Harris | ||
| "Laundromat Blues" | The "5" Royales | |||
| 1954 | "Work with Me, Annie" | The Midnighters | [44] | |
| "Shake, Rattle and Roll" | Big Joe Turner | [45] | ||
| "Big Long Slidin' Thing" | Dinah Washington | |||
| "Baby Let Me Bang Your Box" | The Toppers | |||
| "Mr Thrill" | Mildred Jones | [46] | ||
| "Rotten Cocksuckers' Ball" | The Clovers | |||
| "Toy Bell" | The Bees | |||
| "Sexy Ways" | Hank Ballard | [47] | ||
| 1956 | "Salty Dog" | Blind Willie McTell | [48] |