Davis was born as Betty Mabry in Durham, North Carolina, USA. Mabry's debut was as a songwriter, with The Chambers Brothers's Uptown (1967, Columbia). When Betty turned sixteen, she moved to New York and met several musicians including Jimi Hendrix and Sly Stone. She met Miles Davis in 1967 and married him in 1968. As he stated in his autobiography, in addition to creating turmoil in his personal life, his wife helped him to explore music by introducing him to psychedelic rock guitarist Hendrix and funk innovator Stone. There is plenty of circumstantial evidence, though seemingly no credible documentation, to support the idea that Miles Davis named his masterpiece jazz-fusion album Bitches Brew after Betty.
After the breakup of her marriage, Davis moved to London to pursue her modelling career. She wrote music - a passion since childhood - while in the U.K. and returned to the U.S. with the intention of recording songs with Santana and The Commodores. When those projects didn't work out, she organised a group of talented West Coast funk musicians and recorded the songs under her own name.
Her first album, Betty Davis, was released in 1973 and her band included members of Sly and the Family Stone, Graham Central Station, The Pointer Sisters, Tower of Power, and Neil Schon who came from Santana, but went on to form Journey. Davis released two more studio albums: They Say I'm Different (1974) and Nasty Gal (1975). Her backing band, Funkhouse,consisted of her cousin, Larry Johnson on bass, Fred Mills on keyboards, double-platinum artist Carlton Morales on guitar, and Nikki Neal on drums. None of the three albums was a commercial success, and Davis's 1976 album Is It Love or Desire remained unreleased until 2009.
Davis remained a cult figure as a singer, due in part to her open sexual attitude, which was controversial for the time and remains so thirty years later. Some of her shows were boycotted and her songs not played on the radio due to pressure by religious groups. With the passage of time her records have become highly regarded by collectors of soul and funk music. Davis eventually stopped making music and returned to the city where she had attended high school, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She continues to live there as a recluse from the music industry.
Material from a 1979 recording session,which was recorded at Cherokee Studios in Hollywood, where Kevan Tynes attended, and Alfonse Mouson was the drummer, with Carlton Morales on guitar, and Davis's 1979 material was eventually used for two further albums: Hangin' Out in Hollywood (1995) and Crashin' from Passion (1996). A greatest hits album, Anti Love: the Best of Betty Davis, was released in 2000.
Don't Call Her No Tramp
Betty Davis Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And superficial
An elegant hustler
But don′t you call her no tramp
I said it don't take too much
To make her happy
Wine or dine her
To a few fine people
That gal, she′ll be yours for the taking
You can make her, any way you wanna
When you find out she's just using you
Don't you call her no tramp
And when she leaves you ′cause
You don′t need her no more and you feel like a fool
Don't you call her no tramp
I said, I said uh, huh, oh yeah
You can call her stupid
And superficial
A chic shakin′ hustler
But don't you call her no tramp
It don′t take too much
To make her happy
Just giver her some spare change
She might treat you alright
She'll be ready for your arm (now!)
Hold her head up in the sky
When you find out where she′s really at
But don't you call her no tramp
And when you catch her with your best friend, slap that girl's face
But don′t you call her no tramp
No, no, no, no, no
I said it don′t take too much (no, don't take too much)
To maker her happy (yeah, to maker your girl happy)
So don′t you call her no tramp, I said (don't you call her no tramp)
Don′t you call her no tramp (don't you call her no tramp)
Don′t you call her no tramp
Don't you call her no tramp
Don't you call that girl dirty
Don′t you call her no sleazy skive
Don′t you call that girl triflin'
Don′t you call her no tramp
No, no, no, no, no
Don't you call her no tramp (don′t you call that girl dirty)
Don't you call her no tramp (don′t you call her no sleazy skive)
Don't you call her no tramp (don't you call that girl triflin′)
Don′t you call her no tramp, no, no, no, no, no!
Don't you call her no tramp
Don′t you call her no tramp
Don't you call her no tramp, no, no, no, no, no
Don′t you call her no tramp, no no no no no!
Don't you call her no tramp, no no no no no!
Don′t you call her no tramp, no no no no no!
Don't you call her no tramp, no no no no no!
The lyrics of Betty Davis's song "Don't Call Her No Tramp" revolve around a woman who is often judged and labeled by others based on her appearance and behavior. The opening lines suggest that people may see her as trendy, superficial, and an elegant hustler, but the singer warns against calling her a tramp. The song emphasizes that it doesn't take much to make her happy, such as wining and dining her or introducing her to influential people.
The lyrics portray her as someone who can be easily molded and influenced by others. It suggests that if someone showers her with attention and treats her the way she wants, they can have her as their own. However, it also warns that once you realize she is merely using you, it is important not to pass judgment and refer to her as a tramp. The song underscores that she is not to be labeled or degraded, despite any perceived shortcomings or questionable choices she may make.
Overall, "Don't Call Her No Tramp" carries a message of refraining from judging others based on appearances or actions, and highlights the need for understanding and empathy rather than labeling and demeaning.
Line by Line Meaning
You can call her trendy
You can describe her as fashionable
And superficial
And shallow
An elegant hustler
A sophisticated hustler
But don't you call her no tramp
But do not label her as promiscuous
I said it don't take too much
I'm telling you it doesn't require a lot
To make her happy
To bring her joy
Wine or dine her
Take her out for a nice meal
Or introduce her (now, now, mhmm-mhmm)
Or introduce her to important people
To a few fine people
To some respectable individuals
That gal, she'll be yours for the taking
She will be yours to win over
You can make her, any way you wanna
You can mold her the way you desire
When you find out she's just using you
When you discover she is only exploiting you
Don't you call her no tramp
Do not label her as promiscuous
And when she leaves you 'cause
And when she departs because
You don't need her no more and you feel like a fool
You no longer require her presence and feel foolish
Don't you call her no tramp
Do not label her as promiscuous
I said, I said uh, huh, oh yeah
I emphasized that point, yes indeed
You can call her stupid
You can call her foolish
And superficial
And shallow
A chic shakin' hustler
A stylish, confident hustler
But don't you call her no tramp
But do not label her as promiscuous
It don't take too much
It doesn't require much
To make her happy
To bring her joy
Just give her some spare change
Just offer her a small amount of money
She might treat you alright
She may treat you well
She'll be ready for your arm (now!)
She will be eager to accompany you
Hold her head up in the sky
Lift her spirits
When you find out where she's really at
When you discover her true intentions
But don't you call her no tramp
But do not label her as promiscuous
And when you catch her with your best friend, slap that girl's face
And when you catch her with your closest companion, physically reprimand her
But don't you call her no tramp
But do not label her as promiscuous
I said it don't take too much (no, don't take too much)
I'm telling you it doesn't require a lot (no, it doesn't require a lot)
To make her happy (yeah, to make your girl happy)
To bring her joy (yeah, to bring your girlfriend joy)
So don't you call her no tramp, I said (don't you call her no tramp)
Therefore, do not label her as promiscuous, I repeated (do not label her as promiscuous)
Don't you call her no tramp (don't you call her no tramp)
Do not label her as promiscuous (do not label her as promiscuous)
Don't you call her no tramp
Do not label her as promiscuous
Don't you call her no tramp
Do not label her as promiscuous
Don't you call that girl dirty
Do not refer to that girl as unclean
Don't you call her no sleazy skive
Do not label her as a shady slacker
Don't you call that girl triflin'
Do not refer to that girl as frivolous
Don't you call her no tramp
Do not label her as promiscuous
Don't you call her no tramp (don't you call that girl dirty)
Do not label her as promiscuous (do not refer to that girl as unclean)
Don't you call her no tramp (don't you call her no sleazy skive)
Do not label her as promiscuous (do not label her as a shady slacker)
Don't you call her no tramp (don't you call that girl triflin')
Do not label her as promiscuous (do not refer to that girl as frivolous)
Don't you call her no tramp, no, no, no, no, no!
Do not label her as promiscuous, no!
Don't you call her no tramp
Do not label her as promiscuous
Don't you call her no tramp
Do not label her as promiscuous
Don't you call her no tramp, no, no, no, no, no
Do not label her as promiscuous, no!
Don't you call her no tramp, no no no no no!
Do not label her as promiscuous, no!
Don't you call her no tramp, no no no no no!
Do not label her as promiscuous, no!
Don't you call her no tramp, no no no no no!
Do not label her as promiscuous, no!
Writer(s): Betty Mabry (pka Betty Davis)
Contributed by Lily G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Brianna Bush
You can call her trendy
And superficial
An elegant hustler
But don't you call her no tramp
I said it don't take too much
To make her happy
Wine or dine her
Or introduce her (now now mhmm mhmm)
To a few fine people
That gal, she'll be yours for the taking
You can make her, any way you wanna
When you find out she's just using you
Don't you call her no tramp
And when she leaves you cause she don't need you no more and you feel like a fool
Don't you call her no tramp
I said I said uh huh oh yeah
You can call her stupid
And superficial
A chic shakin' hustler
But don't you call her no tramp
It don't take too much
To make her happy
Just giver her some spare change
She might treat you alright
She'll be ready for your arms (now!)
With her head up in the sky
When you find out where she's really at
Don't you call her no tramp
And when you catch her with your best friend, slap that gal's face
But don't you call her no tramp
No no no no no
I said it don't take too much
To maker her happy
So don't you call her no tramp, I said
Don't you call her no tramp
Don't you call her no tramp x2
Don't you call that girl dirty
Don't you call her no sleazy skive
Don't you call that girl triflin'
Don't you call her no tramp
No no no no no
Don't you call her no tramp (Don't you call that girl dirty)
Don't you call her no tramp (Don't you call her no sleazy skive)
Don't you call her no tramp (Don't you call that girl triflin')
Don't you call her no tramp, no no no no no!
Don't you call her no tramp x3
Don't you call her no tramp, no no no no no!
Will Coker
Rest in peace, Queen. Thank you for all of the nasty grooves.
Franco Huber
I said it before
I wrote it before
She was the Queen
The Queen of Funk 🎵
Nothing and Nobody can't mess with her 😎🤘
MrMcGoofty
"I said, I said, uh huh, oh yeaaah!"
The delivery of that line is so awesome. Betty Davis is amazing.
D Perry
MrMcGoofty it's so raw and raunchy! Funkin Betty Mabry dude!
Blossom Hicks
Love you.
Blossom Hicks
@D Perry no one else had this style the seventies.
bailchic
I was 12. My mother played this relentlessly. I'm 56 now. Still thinking about this.
bailchic
But I'm a nice girl. Never into any trouble but I have shaved and paddled a few people.
Fascist Baby Utopia
Wow!!! Mom's was bad ass for burning this down... Shout out to her!!!!
Blossom Hicks
So did I , I love your mother!!