His family considered it normal to play music, with his father playing guitar and harmonica, his mother playing piano, and a relative who was a one-man band. At the age of three, Musselwhite moved to Memphis, Tennessee. When he was a teenager, Memphis experienced the period when rockabilly, western swing, electric blues, and some forms of African American music were combining to give birth to rock and roll. The period featured legendary figures such as Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Johnny Cash, as well as minor legends such as Gus Cannon, Furry Lewis, Will Shade, Royal Bell, Memphis Willie B., Johnny Burnette, Red Roby, Abe McNeal, and Slim Rhodes. Musselwhite supported himself by digging ditches, laying concrete and running moonshine in a 1950 Lincoln. This environment was Musselwhite's school for music as well as life, and he acquired the nickname "Memphis Charlie."[citation needed]
In true bluesman fashion, Musselwhite then took off in search of the rumored "big-paying factory jobs" up the "Hillbilly Highway", legendary Highway 61 to Chicago, where he continued his education on the South Side, making the acquaintance of even more legends including Muddy Waters, Junior Wells, Sonny Boy Williamson, Buddy Guy, Howlin' Wolf, Little Walter, and Big Walter Horton. Musselwhite immersed himself completely in the musical life, living in the basement of, and occasionally working at Jazz Record Mart (the record store operated by Delmark Records founder Bob Koester) with Big Joe Williams and working as a driver for an exterminator, which allowed him to observe what was happening around the city's clubs and bars. He spent his time hanging out at the Jazz Record Mart at the corner of State and Grand and the nearby bar, Mr. Joe's, with the city's blues musicians, and sitting in with Big Joe Williams and others in the clubs, playing for tips. There he forged a lifelong friendship with John Lee Hooker; though Hooker lived in Detroit, Michigan, the two often visiting each other, and Hooker serving as best man at Musselwhite's wedding. Gradually Musselwhite became well known around town.
In time, Musselwhite led his own blues band, and, after Elektra Records' success with Paul Butterfield, he released the classic[citation needed] Stand Back! album in 1966 on Vanguard Records (as "Charley Musselwhite"), to immediate and great success. He took advantage of the clout this album gave him to move to San Francisco, where, instead of being one of many competing blues acts, he held court as the king of the blues in the exploding countercultural music scene, an exotic and gritty figure to the flower children. Musselwhite even convinced Hooker to move out to California.
Since then, Musselwhite has released over 20 albums, as well as guesting on albums by many other musicians, such as Bonnie Raitt's Longing in Their Hearts and The Blind Boys of Alabama's Spirit of the Century, both winners of Grammy awards. He also appeared on Tom Waits' Mule Variations and INXS' Suicide Blonde. He himself has won 14 W. C. Handy awards and six Grammy nominations, as well as Lifetime Achievement Awards from the Monterey Blues Festival and the San Javier Jazz Festival in San Javier, Spain, and the Mississippi Governor's Award for Excellence in the Arts.
In 1979, Musselwhite recorded The Harmonica According to Charlie Musselwhite in London for Kicking Mule Records, intended to go with an instructional book; the album itself became so popular that it has been released on CD.
Unfortunately, Musselwhite, as with many of his peers, fell victim to alcoholism; by his own admission[citation needed], he had never been on stage sober until after he stopped drinking entirely in 1987.
In 1990 Musselwhite signed with Alligator Records, a step led to a resurgence of his career.
Over the years, Musselwhite has branched out in style. His 1999 recording, Continental Drifter, is accompanied by Quarteto Patria, from Cuba's Santiago region, the Cuban music analog of the Mississippi Delta. Because of the political differences between Cuba and the United States, the album was recorded in Bergen, Norway, with Musselwhite's wife ironing out all the details.
Musselwhite believes the key to his musical success was finding a style where he could express himself. He has said, "I only know one tune, and I play it faster or slower, or I change the key, but it’s just the one tune I’ve ever played in my life. It’s all I know."[1]
His past two albums, Sanctuary and Delta Hardware have both been released on Real World Records.
Trouble No More
Charlie Musselwhite Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I don't care how long you stay
It's good kind treatment
Bring you home someday
Someday baby, you ain't gonna trouble...poor me...anymore!
Now you keep on bettin'
That the dice won't pass
Someday baby, you ain't gonna trouble...poor me...anymore!
Yeah
I'll tell everybody ... in my neighborhood
You're a kind little woman...but you don't do me no good
But someday baby, you ain't gonna trouble...poor me...anymore!
Yeah, baby
I know you're leaving...if you call that's gone
Oh without my lovin'...yeah
Oh, you can't stay long.
But someday baby, you ain't gonna trouble...poor me...anymore!
Hell, yeah
Well good bye baby...yeah, well take my hand
I don't want no woman, no...who can't have no man
But someday baby, you ain't gonna trouble...poor me...anymore!
Trouble no more
Oh yeah
Yeah, baby
In Charlie Musselwhite's song "Trouble No More," the singer seems to be addressing a romantic partner who has caused them a significant amount of distress in the past. The chorus of the song, "Someday baby, you ain't gonna trouble poor me anymore," is a defiant proclamation that the singer will not allow themselves to be taken advantage of or mistreated any longer. The singer seems to have come to terms with the fact that this person may not change, but they are determined to cut ties with the toxic relationship and move on. The verse about the partner gambling and living too fast suggests that they are reckless and dangerous, and the singer is wise to distance themselves before they become further entangled in this person's harmful behavior.
The overall tone of the song is one of resilience and empowerment. The singer is taking ownership of their own well-being and refusing to be a victim any longer. The upbeat tempo and energetic instrumentation of the song contribute to this feeling of strength and determination. This song could be interpreted as a commentary on power dynamics in relationships and the importance of knowing when to walk away from an unhealthy situation.
Line by Line Meaning
Don't care how long you gone
I don't care how long you've been away
I don't care how long you stay
I don't care how long you plan on staying
It's good kind treatment
I'll treat you kindly
Bring you home someday
I'll bring you back home one day
Someday baby, you ain't gonna trouble...poor me...anymore!
One day you won't be causing me any more problems
Now you keep on bettin'
You continue to gamble
That the dice won't pass
You think you won't lose
Well I know and I know...whoa...oh, you're livin' too fast.
I know that you're living recklessly
I'll tell everybody ... in my neighborhood
I'll tell everyone in my area
You're a kind little woman...but you don't do me no good
You're a good person but you're not good for me
But someday baby, you ain't gonna trouble...poor me...anymore!
One day you won't be causing me any more problems
I know you're leaving...if you call that's gone
I know you're going away, even if you say you're just leaving
Oh without my lovin'...yeah
Without my love, yeah
Oh, you can't stay long.
You can't stay for long
But someday baby, you ain't gonna trouble...poor me...anymore!
One day you won't be causing me any more problems
Well good bye baby...yeah, well take my hand
Goodbye, take my hand
I don't want no woman, no...who can't have no man
I don't want a woman who can't have a man
But someday baby, you ain't gonna trouble...poor me...anymore!
One day you won't be causing me any more problems
Trouble no more
Stop causing trouble
Oh yeah
Yeah
Yeah, baby
Yeah, baby
Contributed by Leah H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
bharfarar
I still have this Memphis Tennessee LP from right after its release...has a different cover. This album was, I think, Charlie's best of his career. This was the tightest band he ever had, and Skip Rose had a lot to do with that. The best cut of Charlie's career is on this album, "Arkansas Boogie." The penultimate blues harmonica album.
Rocco9457
This lp was my first taste of the blues. It left me wanting more & more.
Zenon G
Grand Master of the little instrument!