A composer of well known standards such as "Come On" (covered by Jimi Hendrix) and Professor Longhair's "Big Chief", he is an important figure in New Orleans R&B music.
His father, a local piano player, died when King was still a baby, and he was brought up by his mother. With his mother, he started going to church at an early age. In his youth he sang gospel music, but took the advice of a friend to switch to blues to make a better living.
King started to play guitar at age 15. Soon he started entering talent contests at local clubs including the Dew Drop Inn. It was at one of those clubs where he met his idol Guitar Slim. King started imitating Slim, and his presence gave a big impact on his musical directions. In 1954, when Slim was injured in an automobile accident (right around the time Slim had the #1 R&B hit with "The Things That I Used To Do"), King was deputized to continue Slim's band tour, representing himself as Slim. After succeeding in this role, King became a regular at the Dew Drop Inn.
His first recording came in 1953. He released a 78 "Have you Gone Crazy" b/w "Begging At Your Mercy" on Savoy label as Earl Johnson. The following year, talent scout Johnny Vincent introduced King to Specialty label, and he recorded some sides including "Mother's Love" which created a little stir locally. In 1955, King signed with Johnny Vincent's label, Ace. His first single from the label "Those Lonely, Lonely Nights" become hit reaching #7 on the US Billboard R&B chart. He continued to record during his five year stay at the label, and during that time, he also he started writing songs for other artists such as Roland Stone and Jimmy Clanton.
In 1960,
Dave Bartholomew invited King to record for the Imperial Records. At the label, he was backed by host of musicians including Bob and George French, James Booker, and Wardell Quezergue. It was at this label he recorded his signature songs "Come On" and "Trick Bag". The former of which remained a much covered standard for decades especially for Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Anson Funderburgh. The latter has also been widely covered including versions by The Meters and Robert Palmer.
King also co-wrote a number of songs with Bartholomew, either under his own name or under the pseudonyms of "Pearl King" and "E.C. King".[citation needed] One of the best known collaborations between Bartholomew and King is the rhythm and blues standard, "I Hear You Knocking", originally recorded in 1955. The latter song is variously credited to Pearl King and E.C King as the co-writer, with Bartholomew.
King recorded for Imperial till 1963, but he went without a recording contract for the remainder of the 1960s. During this time, he mostly concentrated in producing and songwriting for local labels NOLA and Watch. His compositions from this era includes Professor Longhair's "Big Chief", Willie Tee's "Teasin' You", and Lee Dorsey's "Do-Re-Mi". He also went to Detroit for an audition with Motown Records and recorded a few tracks in the mid 1960s. Three tracks from the session appeared on the Motown's Blue Evolution CD released in 1996).
In 1972, he was joined by Allen Toussaint and the Meters to record the album Street Parade. Though Atlantic initially showed interest in releasing it, they eventually declined. The title cut "Street Parade" was released as a single from Kansu label at the time, but the rest had to wait till 1982 to see the light of the day, when the album was finally released by Charly Records in the UK.
During the 1970s, he recorded another album That Good Old New Orleans Rock 'n Roll which was released by Sonet in 1977. He also appeared on the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival 1976 album.
In the early 1980s, he also met Hammond Scott, co-owner of Black Top Records, and started to record for the label. The first album Glazed, backed up by Roomful of Blues was released in 1986, and a second album, Sexual Telepathy came in 1990. It featured Snooks Eaglin as a guest on two tracks, and also Ronnie Earl & The Broadcasters backed him up on some tracks. His third from the label Hard River To Cross (1993) was backed by George Porter, Jr., David Torkanowsky, and Herman V. Ernest, III.
In 2001, he was hospitalized for an illness during a tour to New Zealand, however, that did not stop him from performing. In December of the same year, he toured Japan, and he continued to perform off and on locally in New Orleans until his death.
He died on April 17, 2003, from diabetes related complications, just a week before the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. His funeral was held during the Festival period on April 30, and many musicians including Dr. John, Leo Nocentelli and Aaron Neville were in attendance. His Imperial recordings, which have been long out-of-print, were reissued on CD soon after he died. The June 2003 issue of a local music magazine OffBeat paid a tribute to King by doing a series of special articles on him.
Trick Bag
Earl King Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You told me, baby, you was going to the drugstore
But-a in my mind i knew you was lyin'
The drugstore close at a quarter to nine
I said, saw you kissin' Willie across the fence
I heard you tellin' Willie i don't have no sense
The way you been actin' is such a drag
When-a i come home, you start an argument
Just to keep me from askin' where my food done went
Walk in the front door, i hear the back door slam
Peep out my window, somebody's takin' on a lam
But i saw you kissin' Willie across the fence
I heard you tellin' Willie i don't have no sense
The way you been actin' is such a drag
You done put me in a trick-bag
We had a fight, then you got mad
Got on the telephone, call your mom and dad
They came a-runnin down with bats in their hands
"Don't you hit her no more, you understand?"
But i saw her kissin' Willie across the fence
I heard her tellin' Willie i don't have no sense
The way she's been actin' is such a drag
You done put me in a trick-bag
You git me wrong, but i know i'm right
It wasn't i that started the fight
"She's my daughter and i'm her paw
"You ain't nothing, a-but a son-in-law"
But i saw her kissin' Willie across the fence
I heard her tellin' Willie i don't have no sense
The way she's been actin' is such a drag
You done put me in a trick-bag
"Trick Bag" by Earl King is a blues song about a man who discovers that his significant other is cheating on him. The song has a fast-paced tempo with a prominent guitar riff and a funky horn section. The lyrics open with the singer following his partner outside the house late in the night, discovering that she is lying about going to the drugstore. He confronts her later, revealing that he saw her kissing Willie across the fence and overheard her saying things about him to Willie. This prompts the singer’s suspicions that she's been keeping something from him. However, just as he gets back home, he encounters someone sneaking out of his back door, adding to his misery. The conflict comes to a head when the singer's parents, who live next door, intervene in the couple's argument.
The song provides insight into a narrative about a man’s struggle to come to terms with his significant other's unfaithfulness. The lyrics make it clear that the singer doesn’t appreciate the situation he finds himself in but is determined to confront it head-on. In typical blues style, the song delivers a message that is raw, unfiltered, and powerful. Earl King's "Trick Bag" is a great example of the way blues roots music infuses personal experiences with societal issues to create a meaningful cultural narrative.
Line by Line Meaning
Twelve o'clock at night, you walk out of door
It's midnight and you leave the house
You told me, baby, you was going to the drugstore
You claimed you were going to the store
But-a in my mind i knew you was lyin'
I suspected you were lying
The drugstore close at a quarter to nine
The store closes earlier than midnight
I said, saw you kissin' Willie across the fence
I saw you kissing someone else
I heard you tellin' Willie i don't have no sense
I heard you insulting me to someone else
The way you been actin' is such a drag
Your behavior is causing problems
You done put me in a trick-bag
You have trapped me in a difficult situation
When-a i come home, you start an argument
When I get home, you pick a fight
Just to keep me from askin' where my food done went
To distract me from asking about the missing food
Walk in the front door, i hear the back door slam
I hear a noise indicating someone is leaving through the back door
Peep out my window, somebody's takin' on a lam
I see someone running away
We had a fight, then you got mad
We argued and you got upset
Got on the telephone, call your mom and dad
You called your parents for help
They came a-runnin down with bats in their hands
Your parents arrived with weapons
"Don't you hit her no more, you understand?"
They warned me not to hit you
You git me wrong, but i know i'm right
You misunderstand me, but I'm certain I'm correct
It wasn't i that started the fight
I didn't initiate the argument
"She's my daughter and i'm her paw
Your dad asserted his position as your father
"You ain't nothing, a-but a son-in-law"
He belittled my status in the family
But i saw her kissin' Willie across the fence
I saw you cheating on me
I heard her tellin' Willie i don't have no sense
I heard you insulting me to your lover
The way she's been actin' is such a drag
Your actions are causing problems
You done put me in a trick-bag
You have trapped me in a difficult situation
Contributed by Alexander W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@haydonyoung18
Had a blues band inATL back in 90's. Everyone ❤it when we did this tune. Never heard other bands do it. ❤it.
@pretorious700
My band did the Meters' version for many years. I actually like it better.
@Maki.1028
come onも有名だけど
このtrick bagもめっちゃめっちゃカッコいいのだ♪
@RobertoGinsburg
Absolute a PROTO-FUNK , along Lee Morgan's "The Sidewinder", Professor Longhair's "Go To The Mardi Grass" and "Big Chief", Ray Charles "Unchained My Heart" and "Blue Funk", Frank Foster's "Samba Blues", Herbie Hancock's "Watermelon Man"..
@nawlins8609
Yes!! .Rhythm and Blues / Soul Jazz
@starcloud4959
nice line up.
@verbavolant6895
First time I heard Proto-Funk was on a website call Digitaldreamdoor , they had a list of 100 Greatest Funk songs of all time and as a newbie looking into funk music I thought that was a great place to start. When I scrolled down, they had a section call 'Proto-Funk' and listed these songs;
Limbo Jimbo - James Brown
Think - James Brown
Testify Part I - Isley Brothers
Green Onions - Booker T. & The MGs
Land of 1,000 Dances - Wilson Pickett
@Ryan-ye2fm
I think that Bon Ton Roula by Clarence Garlow is the proto-est of proto-funk (1949). But who knows? It's like trying to find the headwaters of the nile....
@allanlangdon7237
Robert Palmer does an amazing cover of this (Riptide Album)
@cancerrising69
Classic New Orleans funk from the early 60's