Fuller was born in Jonesboro, Georgia, near Atlanta. He was sent by his mother to live with foster parents when he was a young child, in a rural setting where he was badly mistreated. Growing up, he worked a multitude of jobs: grazing cows for ten cents a day, working in a barrel factory, a broom factory, a rock quarry, on a railroad and a streetcar company, shining shoes, and even peddling hand-carved wooden snakes.
He came west and in the 1920s worked briefly as a film extra in The Thief of Bagdad and East of Suez. Eventually he settled in Oakland, California, across the bay from San Francisco, where he worked for the Southern Pacific railroad. During World War II, he worked as a shipyard welder, but when the war ended he found it increasingly difficult to find work. Around the early 1950s, Fuller's thoughts turned toward the possibility of making a living playing music.
Up to this point, Fuller had never worked professionally as a musician, but had certainly been exposed to music, and had learned to play guitar and picked up quite a number of songs: country blues, work songs, ballads, spirituals and instrumentals. And he had carried his guitar with him and played for money by passing the hat. When he decided to try to work as a professional, he found it hard to find other musicians to work with: thus his one-man band act was born.
Starting locally, in clubs and bars in San Francisco and across the bay in Oakland and Berkeley, Fuller became more widely known when he performed on television in both the Bay Area and Los Angeles, and in 1958 his recording career started with his first album on the Good Time Jazz record label. Fuller's instruments included 12-string guitar, harmonica, kazoo, cymbal (high-hat) and fotdella, several of which could be played simultaneously, particularly with the use of a head-piece to hold the harmonica and kazoo, often at the same time.
Much later, the Grateful Dead covered a few of Fuller's songs, including "The Monkey and the Engineer" and "Beat It on Down the Line". Others who have covered his work include Hot Tuna, Peter, Paul and Mary, Glenn Yarbrough, Eric Clapton, Paul McCartney, and Bob Dylan, on his debut in 1962.
The fotdella
The fotdella was a musical instrument of Fuller's own creation and construction. As a one-man band, the problem was how to supply a more substantial accompaniment than the typical high-hat (cymbal) or bass drum used by street musicians. Fuller's solution was the fotdella. It was a foot-operated percussion bass, consisting of a large upright wood box, shaped like the top of a double bass. Attached to a short neck at the top of this box were six bass strings, stretched over the body. And finally, there was the means to play those strings: six foot pedals, each connected to a padded hammer which struck the string, in a homemade wooden contraption.
The six notes of the fotdella allowed him to play a bass line in several keys, though he occasionally would play without it if a song exceeded its limited range.
The name was coined by his wife, who took to calling the instrument a "foot-diller" (as in a "killer-diller" instrument played with the foot), which was shortened to fotdella.
Fuller died in January 1976 in Oakland, California, from heart disease. He was 79 years of age. He was interred at Evergreen Cemetery in Oakland.
San Francisco Bay Blues
Jesse Fuller Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The ocean liner's gone so far away.
Didn't mean to treat her so bad, she was the best girl I ever have had,
She said goodbye, I can take a cry, I want to lay down and die.
I ain't got a nickel and I ain't got a lousy dime.
She don't come back, think I'm going to lose my mind.
If she ever gets back to stay, it's going to be another brand new day,
Sitting down looking from my back door, wondering which way to go,
The woman I'm so crazy about, she don't love me no more.
Think I'll catch me a freight train, 'cause I'm feeling blue,
And ride all the way to the end of the line, thinking only of you.
Meanwhile, in another city, just about to go insane,
Thought I heard my baby, Lord, the way she used to call my name.
If I ever get her back to stay, it's going to be another brand new day,
Walking with my baby down by the San Francisco Bay.
Walking with my baby down by the San Francisco Bay.
Walking with my baby down by the San Francisco Bay.
Jesse Fuller's "San Francisco Bay Blues" is a classic blues song about a man who is heartbroken after his girlfriend left him by the San Francisco Bay. The lyrics reveal his love and admiration for the woman he lost and his desperate desire to get her back. The repetition of the line, "Walking with my baby down by the San Francisco Bay," creates a sense of nostalgia, yearning, and loss.
The song opens with the resonator guitar, which sets a mournful tone, and Fuller's deep, rich voice delivers the lyrics in a soulful, melancholic manner. The imagery of the ocean liner going away and the man not having a nickel or a dime creates a sense of hopelessness and helplessness, highlighting how much he needs his lost love. The line, "She said goodbye, I can take a cry, I want to lay down and die," portrays how deeply the singer is feeling the pain of his loss.
As the song progresses, the singer is shown to be struggling to make sense of his emotions and find a way forward. He talks about thinking of ways to escape his pain, including taking a freight train to the end of the line. However, his mind wanders back to his lost love, and he ends the song with hopeful aspirations of getting her back and walking with her by the San Francisco Bay.
Line by Line Meaning
I got the blues from my baby left me by the San Francisco Bay,
This song is about a man who is feeling very sad because his girlfriend left him by the San Francisco Bay.
The ocean liner's gone so far away.
The woman he loves has gone away on a ship, and he feels like he will never see her again.
Didn't mean to treat her so bad, she was the best girl I ever have had,
He realizes now that he treated her badly, but she was the best girl he's ever had.
She said goodbye, I can take a cry, I want to lay down and die.
He is so sad that she left him that he wants to cry and feels like he can't go on.
I ain't got a nickel and I ain't got a lousy dime.
He's broke and has no money.
She don't come back, think I'm going to lose my mind.
If she doesn't come back to him, he feels like he will go crazy.
If she ever gets back to stay, it's going to be another brand new day,
If she comes back to him, they can start over and it will be like a new beginning.
Walking with my baby down by the San Francisco Bay.
He imagines himself walking with his girlfriend by the San Francisco Bay.
Sitting down looking from my back door, wondering which way to go,
He is sitting at home, confused about what to do now that she's gone.
The woman I'm so crazy about, she don't love me no more.
He is very much in love with her, but she doesn't feel the same way about him.
Think I'll catch me a freight train, 'cause I'm feeling blue,
He's so sad that he's considering running away from it all by catching a freight train.
And ride all the way to the end of the line, thinking only of you.
He would travel a long way and think only of her the whole time.
Meanwhile, in another city, just about to go insane,
Meanwhile, she is in another city and he imagines that she must be feeling just as crazy as he is.
Thought I heard my baby, Lord, the way she used to call my name.
He thinks he hears her voice calling his name, but it's just his imagination.
Walking with my baby down by the San Francisco Bay.
The song ends with him imagining himself walking with her by the San Francisco Bay, like they used to do.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: JESSE FULLER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
R. R. Rubin
I got the blues when my baby left me down by the Frisco Bay;
An ocean liner came and took her away
I didn't mean to treat her bad, she was the best gal I ever had;
She said good-bye, made me cry
Made me wanna lay down my head and die
Well I ain't got a nickel, and I ain't got a lousy dime?
She don't come back, I think I'm gonna lose my mind
She ever comes back to stay, it's gonna be another brand new day
Walkin' with my baby by the San Francisco Bay
Well, I'm sittin' here on the back porch, don't know which way to go;
The gal that I'm so crazy about, she don't love me anymore
Think I'm gonna take a freight train, cause I'm feelin' blue
Gonna ride it to the end of the line, thinkin' only of you
Well I ain't got a nickel, and I ain't got a lousy dime?
She don't come back, I think I'm gonna lose my mind
She ever comes back to stay, it's gonna be another brand new day
Walkin' with my baby by the San Francisco Bay
Walkin' with my baby by the San Francisco Bay
Walkin' with my baby by the San Francisco Bay
Carl Mally
The second chorus is different.
Stay a while livin’ in the city Just about to go insane
Sounds like I heard my baby When she used to call my name
If she ever come back to stay It’ll be a brand new day
Walkin’ with my baby by the San Francisco bay
,.
Bob Kass
I've been playing the guitar for over 50 years, and this is my favorite song to play. Today is the first time I "saw" Jesse Fuller himself playing and singing. Truly amazing!
BigRed 473
SAME HERE!! aside the 50 years part. came here from the jim croce version i wanted to hear today that gave recognition to this fella!
Ken Hutley
I'm in da same club Bob. Many hours of joy knockin' this great classic out for more than half a century!
David Colton
Saw him do this live several times. Wonderful song, wonderful musicianship, wonderful man who radiated warmth and gentle kindness. RIP dear soul.
john cooper
I saw him several times and still have his debut album. An icon!
Stäni Steinbock
Wonderful, and in this version a fast song, but really sad lyrics, with, perhaps a ray of hope at the end?
Leslie Berman
So glad to see the "fotdella" in action. What an amazing combination of instrument sounds!
ray brotherton
This brings back so many memories. I was lucky to see Jesse, purely by accident, in the Cavern (Yes! that one) in 1959/1960. He was unknown to most of us at the time, but he just captivated the whole audience. Not only did he sing and do his "one man band", he actually got up and did a dance while playing. We loved him. In 1967 I caught him again at the "Basset" near Southampton , he was just as good. Thank you.
darkjanggo
wow, what a tale! thanks for sharing
Linda West
THIS is the way to hear this great song, from the man who wrote & performed it as a one-man band! Much homage has been paid by many other musicians...