He was an acclaimed multi-instrumentalist, who played an array of musical instruments such as guitar, fiddle, mandolin, viola as well as harmonica and drums. He won a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Album in 1983 for his album, Alright Again! He is regarded as one of the most influential exponents of blues fiddle and has had enormous influence in American fiddle circles.
Brown's two biggest musical influences were Louis Jordan and T-Bone Walker.
His professional musical career began in 1945, playing drums in San Antonio, Texas. He was tagged with the "Gatemouth" handle by a high school instructor who accused Brown of having a "voice like a gate". Brown used it to his advantage throughout his career. His career was boosted while attending a 1947 concert by T-Bone Walker in Don Robey's Bronze Peacock Houston nightclub. When Walker became ill, Brown took up his guitar and quickly wrote and played "Gatemouth Boogie," to the delight of the audience right on the spot.
In 1949 Robey founded Peacock Records in order to showcase Brown's virtuoso guitar work. Brown's "Mary Is Fine"/"My Time Is Expensive" was a hit for Peacock in 1949. A string of Peacock releases in the 1950s were less successful commercially, but were nonetheless pioneering musically. Particularly notable was the 1951 instrumental "Okie Dokie Stomp", in which Brown solos continuously over a punchy horn section (other instrumentals from this period include "Boogie Uproar" and "Gate Walks to Board"). Okie Dokie Stomp was also recorded by Cornell Dupree in the 1970s and he had success with it as well. As for his gutsy violin playing, Robey allowed him to record "Just Before Dawn" as his final Peacock release in 1959.
In the 1960s Brown moved to Nashville, Tennessee to participate in a syndicated R&B television show, and while he was there recorded several country singles. He struck up a friendship with Roy Clark and made several appearances on the television show Hee Haw. In 1966, Brown was the musical director for the house band on the short-lived television program, The !!!! Beat.
However, in the early 1970s several countries in Europe had developed an appreciation for American roots music, especially the blues, and Brown was a popular and well-respected artist there. He toured Europe twelve times, beginning in 1971 and continuing throughout the 1970s. He also became an official ambassador for American music, and participated in several tours sponsored by the U.S. State Department, including an extensive tour of Eastern Africa. Brown appeared at the 1973 Montreux Jazz Festival, where he jammed with American blues rock band Canned Heat. In 1974, he recorded as a sideman with the New Orleans pianist Professor Longhair on his album, Rock 'N' Roll Gumbo (originally a Blue Star Records release). He moved to New Orleans in the late 1970s. In 1979, through his manager at the time, Jim Halsey, Brown embarked on a 6 week, 44 concert tour of the Soviet Union. This was an historic event as it marked the first time the Soviet Union made a contract with a U.S. private citizen (Jim Halsey) as regards a musical tour. All previous tours were under the auspices of the U.S. State Department. To date, this was by far the most extensive tour an American band had taken in the USSR.
In the 1980s, a series of releases on Rounder Records and Alligator Records revitalized his U.S. career, and he toured extensively and internationally, usually playing between 250 and 300 shows a year. He won a Grammy in 1983 for the album Alright Again! and was nominated for five more. "Alright Again!" is credited with putting Brown back on the musical map. He also won 8 WC Handy Awards. In 1999 Brown was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame.
In his last few years, he maintained a full touring schedule, including Australia, New Zealand, and countries with political conflicts in Central America, Africa, and the former Soviet Union. His final record "Timeless" was released in 2004.
In September 2004, Brown was diagnosed with lung cancer. Already suffering from emphysema and heart disease, he and his doctors decided to forgo treatment. This greatly affected his musical career. Later his home in Slidell, Louisiana was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and he was evacuated to his childhood home town of Orange, Texas, where he died on September 10, 2005 at the apartment of a niece, at the age of 81. Brown is buried in the Hollywood Cemetery in Orange, Texas. However, flooding caused by Hurricane Ike in September 2008 damaged his grave. His grave has since been refurbished and through donations a very impressive headstone has been erected in his honor.
Got My Mojo Working
Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Got my mojo working, but it just won't work on you
I wanna love you so bad till I don't know what to do
Got my mojo working
Got my mojo working
Got my mojo working
Got my mojo working
I'm going down to Louisiana to get me a mojo hand
I'm going down to Louisiana to get me a mojo hand
I'm gonna have all you women right here at my command
Got my mojo working
Got my mojo working
Got my mojo working
Got my mojo working
Got my mojo working, but it just won't work on you
I got a gypsy woman giving me advice
I got a gypsy woman giving me advice
She got some red hot tips I'm keepin' them on ice.
Got my mojo working
Got my mojo working
Got my mojo working
Got my mojo working
Got my mojo working, but it just won't work on you
The lyrics of "Got My Mojo Working" by Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown exude a sense of intense longing and desire for a person who seems to be immune to the singer's powers. The song talks about the singer's attempts to use his mojo hand, which is a magical charm known to bring love and good fortune, to win over the object of his affection, but to no avail.
He sings about his frustration in being unable to attract the person he wants, despite his best efforts, and his decision to seek out the help of a gypsy woman for advice. The repetition of the phrase "Got my mojo working" emphasizes the singer's confidence and determination to find a solution to his problem.
The song also makes reference to Louisiana, a state renowned for its connection to voodoo and magic, further highlighting the mystical undertones of the lyrics. The final line, "But it just won't work on you," emphasizes the singer's intense emotional attachment to the person who continues to elude him.
Overall, the lyrics of "Got My Mojo Working" offer a glimpse into the world of love and desire, with a focus on the mystical and unexplainable forces that can shape human emotions.
Line by Line Meaning
Got my mojo working, but it just won't work on you
I have my magic charm that usually works to make people fall for me, but it doesn't seem to affect you.
Got my mojo working
I have my magical charm.
I wanna love you so bad till I don't know what to do
I desire to love you so much that it puts me in a state of unknowing.
I'm going down to Louisiana to get me a mojo hand
I am traveling to Louisiana to acquire a powerful charm.
I'm gonna have all you women right here at my command
I will be able to have all the women under my influence.
I got a gypsy woman giving me advice
I have a woman of gypsy descent who is providing me with guidance.
She got some red hot tips I'm keepin' them on ice.
She has some very valuable recommendations that I am saving for later.
Contributed by Lincoln V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@PtolemyJones
Something special about how the real greats can sit back and let others share the spotlight, because it's all about the all together. Incredible.
@SSINHA700
this is by far one of the better gatemouth brown clips - i have had the great fortune of attending many of mr. brown live appearances - it's first rate music - so good it makes one cry. he is one of the vanguards of the american musical tradition
@ellisfield159
Gatemouth was my neighbor as a kid one of the coolest guys ever
@jamesfloyd1864
Lucky, you!!!! Would love to hear your stories.
@GP2141BC
Can’t put my finger on what I’m hearing from gatemouth... mindblowingly smooth and musical!! Great ensemble!
@theherbpuffer
He's pickin the hell out of that guitar, that's what you're hearing
@gerryfortier6416
Incredible , These guys were having FUN !!!!!
@Gatesgirl79
Gatemouth makes other guitar playing sound rudimentary!!! The best guitarist of all time and I'm not just saying that because he's my dad! The essence of music daddy. :)
@TheBhannah
he was always in touch with his audience at a deep level ...and would sit in the bar during his breaks so you could chat with him !I love him so much !
@Poppafunkband
Saw him many times. Fiddle - piano - musical genius!!!