Although he came to his greatest fame in the 1950s with his pioneering rock and roll recordings, particularly "Shake, Rattle and Roll", Turner's career as a performer stretched from the 1920s into the 1980s.
(for stride pianist Joseph H. Turner (3.11.07-21.7.90) > Joe Turner)
Known variously as The Boss of the Blues, and Big Joe Turner (due to his 6'2", 300+ lbs stature), Turner was born in Kansas City and first discovered his love of music through involvement in the church. Turner's father was killed in a train accident when Joe was only four years old. He began singing on street corners for money, leaving school at age fourteen to begin working in Kansas City's club scene, first as a cook, and later as a singing bartender. He eventually became known as The Singing Barman, and worked in such venues as The Kingfish Club and The Sunset, where he and his piano playing partner Pete Johnson became resident performers. The Sunset was managed by Piney Brown. It featured "separate but equal" facilities for white patrons. Turner wrote "Piney Brown Blues" in his honor and sang it throughout his entire career.
At that time Kansas City was a wide-open town run by "Boss" Tom Pendergast. Despite this, the clubs were subject to frequent raids by the police, but as Turner recounts, "The Boss man would have his bondsmen down at the police station before we got there. We'd walk in, sign our names and walk right out. Then we would cabaret until morning".
His partnership with boogie-woogie pianist Pete Johnson proved fruitful. Together they headed to New York in 1936, where they appeared on a bill with Benny Goodman, but as Turner recounts, "After our show with Goodman, we auditioned at several places, but New York wasn't ready for us yet, so we headed back to K.C.". Eventually they were spotted by the talent scout, John H. Hammond in 1938, who invited them back to New York to appear in one of his "From Spirituals to Swing" concerts at Carnegie Hall, which was instrumental in introducing jazz and blues to a wider American audience.
Due in part to their appearance at Carnegie Hall, Turner and Johnson scored a major hit with "Roll 'Em Pete". The track contained one of the earliest recorded examples of a back beat. It was a song which Turner recorded many times, with various combinations of musicians, over the ensuing years.
In 1939, along with boogie players Albert Ammons and Meade Lux Lewis, they began a residency at Café Society, a club in New York City, where they appeared on the same bill as Billie Holiday and Frank Newton's band. Besides "Roll 'Em, Pete", Turner's best-known recordings from this period are probably "Cherry Red", "I Want A Little Girl" and "Wee Baby Blues".
In 1941, he headed to Los Angeles where he performed in Duke Ellington's revue Jump for Joy in Hollywood. He appeared as a singing policeman in a sketch called "He's on the Beat." Los Angeles became his home base for a time, and in 1944 he worked in Meade Lux Lewis's Soundies musical films. Although he sang on the soundtrack recordings, he was not present for the filming, and his vocals were mouthed by comedian Dudley Dickerson for the camera. In 1945 Turner and Pete Johnson opened their own bar in Los Angeles, The Blue Moon Club.
Turner made lots of records, not only with Johnson but with the pianists Art Tatum and Sammy Price and with various small jazz ensembles. He recorded on several record labels, particularly National Records, and also appeared with the Count Basie Orchestra. In his career, Turner successively led the transition from big bands to jump blues to rhythm and blues, and finally to rock and roll. Turner was a master of traditional blues verses and at the legendary Kansas City jam sessions he could swap choruses with instrumental soloists for hours.
In 1951, while performing with the Count Basie Orchestra at Harlem's Apollo Theater as a replacement for Jimmy Rushing, he was spotted by Ahmet and Nesuhi Ertegün, who signed him to their new recording company, Atlantic Records. Turner recorded a number of hits for them, including the blues standards, "Chains of Love" and "Sweet Sixteen". Many of his vocals are punctuated with shouts to the band members, as in "Boogie Woogie Country Girl" ("That's a good rockin' band!", "Go ahead, man! Ow! That's just what I need!" ) and "Honey Hush" (he repeatedly sings "Hi-yo, Silver!", probably in reference to The Treniers singing the phrase in their Lone Ranger parody "Ride, Red, Ride"). Turner's records shot to the top of the rhythm-and-blues charts; although they were sometimes so earthy that some radio stations wouldn't play them, the songs received heavy play on jukeboxes and records.
Turner hit it big in 1954 with "Shake, Rattle and Roll", which not only enhanced his career, turning him into a teenage favorite, but also helped to transform popular music. The song is fairly raw, as Turner yells at his woman to "get outa that bed, wash yo' face an' hands" and comments that she's "wearin' those dresses, the sun comes shinin' through!" He sang the number on film in the 1955 theatrical feature Rhythm and Blues Revue.
Although the cover version of the song by Bill Haley and His Comets, with the risqué lyrics incompletely cleaned up, was a bigger hit, many listeners sought out Turner's version and were introduced thereby to the whole world of rhythm and blues. Elvis Presley showed he needed no such introduction. His version of "Shake, Rattle and Roll" combined Turner's lyrics with Haley's arrangement, but was not successful as a single.
In addition to the rock 'n' roll songs, he found time to cut the classic Boss of the Blues album.
After a number of hits in this vein, Turner left popular music behind and returned to his roots as a singer with small jazz combos, recording numerous albums in that style in the 1960s and 1970s. In 1966, Bill Haley helped revive Turner's career by lending him the Comets for a series of popular recordings in Mexico (apparently no one thought of getting the two to record a duet of "Shake, Rattle and Roll", as no such recording has yet surfaced). In 1977 he recorded a version of Guitar Slim's song, "The Things I Used to Do".
In the 1960s and 1970s he was reclaimed by jazz and blues, appearing at many festivals and recording for the impresario Norman Granz's Pablo label, once with his friendly rival, Jimmy Witherspoon. He also worked with the German boogie-woogie pianist Axel Zwingenberger.
It is a mark of his dominance as a singer that he won the Esquire magazine award for male vocalist in 1945, the Melody Maker award for best 'new' vocalist in 1956, and the British Jazz Journal award as top male singer in 1965. His career thus stretched from the bar rooms of Kansas City in the 1920s (at the age of twelve when he performed with a pencilled moustache and his father's hat), on to the European jazz music festivals of the 1980s.
In 1983, only two years before his death, Turner was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame.
He died in Inglewood, California in November 1985, at the age of 74 of a heart attack, having suffered the earlier effects of arthritis, a stroke and diabetes. Big Joe Turner was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987.
Tribute
The late, New York Times music critic Robert Palmer, said: "...his voice, pushing like a Count Basie solo, rich and grainy as a section of saxophones, which dominated the room with the sheer sumptuousness of its sound.
Most famous recordings
"Roll 'Em, Pete" - 1938; (available in many versions over the years. Used for the million-dollar first scene in Spike Lee's film, Malcolm X).
"Chains Of Love" - 1951 † (this was Turner's first million seller. The song was written by 'Nugetre' (words) - Ahmet Ertegün, Van Wallis (music), and the disc reached the million by 1954).
"Honey Hush" - 1953 †
"Shake, Rattle and Roll" - 1954
"Flip Flop And Fly" - 1955 † (has sold a million through the years. The song was written by Charles Calhoun and Turner, although credited to the latter's wife, Lou Willie Turner).
"Cherry Red" - 1956
"Corrine, Corrina" - 1956 † (the fourth million seller...with adaption by J. Mayo Williams, Mitchell Parish and Bo Chatmon in 1932. This disc was #41, and spent 10 weeks in the Billboard chart).
"Wee Baby Blues" - 1956; (a song Turner had been singing since his Kingfish Club days)
"Love Roller Coaster" 1956
"Midnight Special" - 1957
Tracks marked as † were million selling discs.
Select discography
Big Joe Rides Again (1956)
The Boss of the Blues (1956)
Bosses of the Blues, Vol. 1 (1969)
Texas Style (1971)
Flip, Flop & Fly (1972)
Life Ain't Easy (1974)
The Trumpet Kings Meet Joe Turner (1974)
Shake Rattle and Roll
Big Joe Turner Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Get outta that bed, wash your face and hands
Well, you get in that kitchen, make some noise with the pots 'n pans
Way you wear those dresses, the sun comes shinin' through
Way you wear those dresses, the sun comes shinin' through
I can't believe my eyes, all that mess belongs to you
I believe to my soul you're the devil and now I know
Well, the more I work, the faster my money goes
I said shake, rattle and roll, shake, rattle and roll
Shake, rattle and roll, shake, rattle and roll
Well, you won't do right to save your doggone soul
Yeah, blow Joe
I'm like a one-eyed cat peepin' in a seafood store
I'm like a one-eyed cat peepin' in a seafood store
Well, I can look at you till you ain't no child no more
Ah, shake, rattle and roll, shake, rattle and roll
Shake, rattle and roll, shake, rattle and roll
Well, you won't do right to save your doggone soul
I get over the hill and way down underneath
I get over the hill and way down underneath
You make me roll my eyes, even make me grit my teeth
I said shake, rattle and roll, shake, rattle and roll
Shake, rattle and roll, shake, rattle and roll
Well, you won't do nothin' to save your doggone soul
Shake, rattle and roll
The lyrics to "Shake Rattle And Roll" by Big Joe Turner describe the frustration and irritation the singer feels towards his lover. He urges her to get out of bed and do her chores, telling her to make noise with the pots and pans in the kitchen. He compliments her appearance but also criticizes her for being messy. He believes that she is a devil and a hindrance to his financial stability, lamenting that no matter how much he works, his money quickly disappears.
The chorus of the song is repeated several times, in which the singer demands that his lover shake, rattle, and roll, but also acknowledges that she won't do right to save her soul. He compares himself to a one-eyed cat peeking into a seafood store, suggesting he desires his lover but knows she is trouble. Ultimately, the singer has had enough and decides to move on, as he notes that his lover won't do anything to save her "doggone soul."
Interestingly, "Shake Rattle And Roll" originally had different lyrics and was written by Jesse Stone for a female singer named Big Mama Thornton. It was then covered by Bill Haley and the Comets in 1954, where it became a hit and helped to popularize rock and roll. Big Joe Turner also recorded a version of the song in the same year, which was a hit in its own right. The song has since been covered by numerous artists, including Elvis Presley and Jerry Lee Lewis.
Line by Line Meaning
Get outta that bed, wash your face and hands
Get up and start your day by cleaning yourself up
Well, you get in that kitchen, make some noise with the pots 'n pans
Start cooking, be busy and make some noise by hitting the pots and pans
Way you wear those dresses, the sun comes shinin' through
Your dresses are so sheer that the sun shines through them
I can't believe my eyes, all that mess belongs to you
I can't believe that you own all that mess and chaos
I believe to my soul you're the devil and now I know
I truly believe that you are the devil, and now I have proof
Well, the more I work, the faster my money goes
The harder I work, the faster I spend my money
Shake, rattle and roll, shake, rattle and roll
Move your body and make some noise
Well, you won't do right to save your doggone soul
No matter what happens, you won't do the right thing
I'm like a one-eyed cat peepin' in a seafood store
I feel like I am in a good situation, but I can't take full advantage of it
Well, I can look at you till you ain't no child no more
I can stare at you for so long that you won't be a child anymore
I get over the hill and way down underneath
I am getting old and struggling
You make me roll my eyes, even make me grit my teeth
You make me so frustrated that I even grit my teeth
Lyrics © Kanjian Music, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Royalty Network, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Charles Calhoun
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@usmc1917916
Man! This is Music History........These guys were the real deal......RIP
@nobodyyouknow222
I have been listening to Big Joe Turner almost every day for a couple of years.. listening to the arrangements.. the horns playing one line behind the soloist.. and the bass.. its just the classic early early rock back ups.. with jazz players, and Joe. The 48-55 transition from R&B / jazz of the day into Rock and modern R&B is some rich territory... the horns went away, replace by voices and guitars.. but the stuff was all laid down here.
@donmacquarrie9161
I'm just figuring out this is the man who invented rock and roll...one of his early songs is spoken almost like rap...incredible.
@tungstun1977
Thank goodness for YouTube how else would I have ever found this...thanks for posting
@THEMOJOMANsince1959
The Beginning these kids today have missed SO MUCH. This is where it came from. I was about 12-13 then
@anthonycorreia6491
this is pure rock n roll born out of the blues, god's music
@davecyr1063
Big Joe rules !!!!! Thanks for posting this fine video of what most consider his best-known composition. One of the finest examples of rock and roll being born from the blues. YES !!!!!!!
@animequeen5624
This is my dad's favorite song rip to my dad I miss him
@marsha-madness-super-badness
The brother on the bass knew what the hell he was doing. Damn.
@ryanb7476
very well played on that bass