Born in Forest, Mississippi and living and working in throughout the South and Midwest as a migrant worker for a time, he and his family returned to Mississippi in 1926. He sang gospel, then began his career as a blues singer around Clarksdale, Mississippi. He visited Chicago as member of the Harmonizing Four in 1939 and stayed there to work as a solo musician, but barely made a living as a street singer. Record producer Lester Melrose allegedly found him while he was living in a packing crate, introduced him to Tampa Red and signed him to a contract with RCA Victor's Bluebird label.
He recorded with RCA in the late 1940s and with Ace Records, Checker Records and Trumpet Records in the early 1950s and toured throughout the country, specifically Black establishments in the South, with Sonny Boy Williamson II and Elmore James. He also recorded under the names Elmer James and Percy Lee Crudup.
Crudup stopped recording in the 1950s, however, after further battles over royalties. He returned to recording with Fire Records and Delmark Records and touring in the 1960s, sometimes labeled "The Father of Rock and Roll", a title which he accepted with some bemusement. Throughout this time Crudup worked as a laborer to augment the small wages he received as a singer and non-existent royalties. Crudup returned to Mississippi after a dispute with Melrose over royalties, then went into bootlegging, and later moved to Virginia where he had lived and worked as a musician and laborer. In the early 1970's, two local Virginia activists, Celia Santiago and Margaret Carter, both assisted him in attempting to gain Royalties he felt he were due, to little gain.
From the mid 60's Crudup returned to bootlegging and working as an agricultural laborer, chiefly in Virginia, where he lived with his family including three sons and several of his own siblings. On the Eastern Shore of Virginia, while he lived in relative poverty as a field laborer, he occasionally sang and supplied moonshine to a number of drinking establishments, including one called the Dew Drop Inn, in Accomack County for some time prior to his eventual death, due to complications from heart disease and diabetes. (There was some confusion as to his actual date of death because of his use of several names, including those of his siblings.) He passed away in the Nassawadox hospital in Northampton County, Virginia, also on the Eastern Shore in 1976.
That's All Right Mama
Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Miscellaneous
Thats All Right Mama
THAT'S ALL RIGHT MAMA
Well, that's all right mama
That's all right for you
That's all right now mama
That's all right
That's all right
That's all right now mama
Any way you do
Well mama she done told me
Papa done told me too
Son that gal you're foolin' with
She ain't no good for you, but
That's all right
That's all right
That's all right now mama
Any way you do
(Musical)
I'm leavin' town my baby
I'm leavin' town for sure
Well then you won't be bothered
With me hangin' 'round your door
But that's all right
That's all right now mama
Any way you do
De de de de,
I need your lovin'
That's all right
That's all right now mama
Any way you do
-- Carl Perkins
The lyrics of Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup's song That's All Right Mama describe a man who is facing criticism from his parents about his relationship with a girl, but he defends her and his choice. He assures his mom that everything is fine and that she should not worry about him. The song also includes a guitar solo section, giving the song a bluesy feel. The man ultimately decides to leave town to avoid being a burden to his girlfriend, but still longs for her love.
The lyrics are a classic example of a blues song that deals with themes of love, heartbreak, and parental conflict. The singer's defiance towards his parents and their wishes for him shows a sense of self-confidence and a desire to make his own decisions. The guitar solos throughout the song add to the emotional depth of the song, giving us an insight into the singer's feelings.
Overall, That's All Right Mama is a powerful blues song filled with strong emotions and a musical style that has influenced the likes of Elvis Presley, who covered the song and turned it into a rock and roll classic.
Line by Line Meaning
Well, that's all right mama
It's okay with me, mama
That's all right for you
If it's okay with you, that's fine
That's all right now mama
I'm okay with it now, mama
That's all right
Everything is fine
That's all right
Everything is fine
That's all right now mama
I'm okay with it now, mama
Any way you do
It doesn't matter how you do it
Well mama she done told me
My mother has already told me
Papa done told me too
My father also told me
Son that gal you're foolin' with
The girl you're hanging out with, son
She ain't no good for you, but
She's not good for you, however
I'm leavin' town my baby
I'm leaving town, my love
I'm leavin' town for sure
I'm definitely leaving town
Well then you won't be bothered
So you won't be troubled
With me hangin' 'round your door
Because I won't be hanging around your door anymore
De de de de,
Musical interlude
I need your lovin'
I need your love
Writer(s): Arthur Big Boy Crudup
Contributed by Camilla C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@kelliintexas3575
That's between Sun & Arthur. Elvis has stated NUMEROUS TIMES IN INTERVIEWS Marty Robbins version was the only version he had heard on the Grand Old Opry that inspired him to record it. Same with Hound Dog WASN'T inspired by Thorpe.
THIS is NOT the song Elvis heard. This is a MYTH that started in the 1970's after all the race & Civil rights drama. They tried the same crap with Hound Dog and several others. Elvis after recording would go on to purchase Arthur's version & Thortons 'Hound Dog'.. Elvis was JUST LIKE the youth today and listened to the current songs on the Radio. Right before he recorded ' That's all Right' Marty Robbins had recorded it and had it as a top hit in 1954-55. Elvis would go on to re-record current hits for the rest of his life. He did it with ALL HIS FAVORITE ARTISTS up until his death. Neil Diamond, Mac Davis, Kris KRISTOPHERSON, Willie Nelson, Tom Jones, Olivia Newton John, HUNDREDS of top performing artists. Some within weeks of the artists release dates. He always asked first or was requested by the Artists or writer. Dolly has a story about begging Elvis to release hers.
Hound Dog he heard in Las Vegas in 1956 when he was performing in the same casino as Freddie Bell and the Bellboys. Their manager tells the story about how Elvis went to meet them to ask for permission to record and release it. This is why Elvis' version AGAIN sounds NOTHING like Thorps. Elvis would go on to get her record for his collection because he appreciated the original but the lyrics and Arrangement he recorded was Freddie Bells EXACTLY.
I could point you to 90MILLION times people have done this saying he "stole Black music" and he just recorded what he heard ON THE GRAND OLD OPRY, GOSPEL CHURCH & Memphis Blues .
He took a little music from church, a little bit from his neighborhood, and a little bit from his family. The rest is history. HIM AND BAZ NEVER SAY THE CORRECT COMBINATION OF ROCK AND ROLL. IT IS BLUES, GOSPEL AND COUNTRYYYYYYY.
HE LISTENED TO THE GRAND OL' Opry EVERY WEEKEND AND LISTENED TO COUNTRY MUSIC ALL DAY EVERY DAY.
ELVIS SAYS IT A MILLION TIMES IN ALL HIS RECORDED INTERVIEWS. WITHOUT COUNTRY YOU DO NOT HAVE ROCK AND ROLL. THATS WHY HIS SONG WRITERS/ FREINDS ARE MAC DAVIS, DOLLY PARDON, KRIS KRISTOPHERSON, WILLIE NELSON, GLEN CAMBELL, RED FOLEY, CHET ADKINS, ERNEST TUBB, TEX RITTER, MISSISSIPPI SLIM, SLIM, MOTHER MAYBELL, JUNE CARTER & THE CARTER FAMILY/SISTERS, Webb Pierce, Wanda Jackson, Johnny Cash and Charlie Feathers, Hank Snow! LOOK AT HIS RECORD COLLECTION!! HE HAD BLACK GOSPEL & COUNTRY BY THE MILLIONS. ITS WHY HE CHOSE NASHVILLE & RCA.
It was also country music that he saw as his way to fulfilling his dreams. Let’s not forget that in the exact moment before Elvis popularised rock’n’roll, he was singing a country song (Leon Payne’s ‘I Love You Because’), and that the song that he turned to after the seismic shift of ‘That’s All Right’ was Bill Monroe’s classic ‘Blue Moon Of Kentucky’, albeit taken at a breakneck speed.
That move from a sentimental country ballad to hopped-up country blues sprang from Elvis’ life at the time- upwardly mobile and finding freedom in music that he’d never experienced before.
The old life was the fatalistic Saturday night / Sunday morning dichotomy embedded in the country music of the time: you could have a good time, but you would have to pay for it. Elvis at his best said that maybe you didn’t have to do that anymore – as Greil Marcus points out in his masterful book Mystery Train, he took the guilt out of it.
Country music had shaped him and he changed it; it was his home but he left. As he told the first person who ever asked him who he sounded like: “I don’t sound like nobody”.
@kelliintexas3575
THIS is NOT the song Elvis heard that inspired his. Marty Robbins version from 1954-1955 is the version he first heard. This is a MYTH that started in the 1970's after all the race & Civil rights drama. They tried the same crap with Hound Dog and several others. Elvis after recording would go on to purchase Arthur's version & Thortons 'Hound Dog'.. Elvis was JUST LIKE the youth today and listened to the current songs on the Radio. Right before he recorded ' That's all Right' Marty Robbins had recorded it and had it as a top hit in 1954-55. Elvis would go on to re-record current hits for the rest of his life. He did it with ALL HIS FAVORITE ARTISTS up until his death. Neil Diamond, Mac Davis, Kris KRISTOPHERSON, Willie Nelson, Tom Jones, Olivia Newton John, HUNDREDS of top performing artists. Some within weeks of the artists release dates. He always asked first or was requested by the Artists or writer. Dolly has a story about begging Elvis to release hers.
Hound Dog he heard in Las Vegas in 1956 when he was performing in the same casino as Freddie Bell and the Bellboys. Their manager tells the story about how Elvis went to meet them to ask for permission to record and release it. This is why Elvis' version AGAIN sounds NOTHING like Thorps. Elvis would go on to get her record for his collection because he appreciated the original but the lyrics and Arrangement he recorded was Freddie Bells EXACTLY.
I could point you to 90MILLION times people have done this saying he "stole Black music" and he just recorded what he heard ON THE GRAND OLD OPRY, GOSPEL CHURCH & Memphis Blues .
He took a little music from church, a little bit from his neighborhood, and a little bit from his family. The rest is history. HIM AND BAZ NEVER SAY THE CORRECT COMBINATION OF ROCK AND ROLL. IT IS BLUES, GOSPEL AND COUNTRYYYYYYY.
HE LISTENED TO THE GRAND OL' Opry EVERY WEEKEND AND LISTENED TO COUNTRY MUSIC ALL DAY EVERY DAY.
ELVIS SAYS IT A MILLION TIMES IN ALL HIS RECORDED INTERVIEWS. WITHOUT COUNTRY YOU DO NOT HAVE ROCK AND ROLL. THATS WHY HIS SONG WRITERS/ FREINDS ARE MAC DAVIS, DOLLY PARDON, KRIS KRISTOPHERSON, WILLIE NELSON, GLEN CAMBELL, RED FOLEY, CHET ADKINS, ERNEST TUBB, TEX RITTER, MISSISSIPPI SLIM, SLIM, MOTHER MAYBELL, JUNE CARTER & THE CARTER FAMILY/SISTERS, Webb Pierce, Wanda Jackson, Johnny Cash and Charlie Feathers, Hank Snow! LOOK AT HIS RECORD COLLECTION!! HE HAD BLACK GOSPEL & COUNTRY BY THE MILLIONS. ITS WHY HE CHOSE NASHVILLE & RCA.
It was also country music that he saw as his way to fulfilling his dreams. Let’s not forget that in the exact moment before Elvis popularised rock’n’roll, he was singing a country song (Leon Payne’s ‘I Love You Because’), and that the song that he turned to after the seismic shift of ‘That’s All Right’ was Bill Monroe’s classic ‘Blue Moon Of Kentucky’, albeit taken at a breakneck speed.
That move from a sentimental country ballad to hopped-up country blues sprang from Elvis’ life at the time- upwardly mobile and finding freedom in music that he’d never experienced before.
The old life was the fatalistic Saturday night / Sunday morning dichotomy embedded in the country music of the time: you could have a good time, but you would have to pay for it. Elvis at his best said that maybe you didn’t have to do that anymore – as Greil Marcus points out in his masterful book Mystery Train, he took the guilt out of it.
Country music had shaped him and he changed it; it was his home but he left. As he told the first person who ever asked him who he sounded like: “I don’t sound like nobody”.
@williamjackson6705
No wonder Elvis fell in love with this tune. Recorded in 1946 but still sounds fresh & energetic. You can hear the roots of Rock in this.
@cockrellm1969
This is blues not rock
@williamjackson6705
@Cockrell M Rock is rooted in the Blues. Which is why Rock guitarists study the Blues masters that came before them. I never said they were the same.
@olivetyeet7110
@William Jackson u got him, hes quiet.
@steverichardson8080
@Cockrell M Rock comes from blues. This song was waaay ahead of its time, an obvious precursor of what was to come.
@AQuinn0630
@Cockrell M Rock music is derived from blues
@77JMW
Someone needs to do a movie on all these blues founding fathers. Their place in history is often lost or ignored. Incredible music.
@bgaineshunter
Can you really tell the difference between that song and rock and roll?
@FrustratedBaboon
@@bgaineshunter This is better than rock. These are original sole blues music doesn't matter what you call it. The minor pentatonic scale at its best.
@impacc4182
@@FrustratedBaboonthank you