Born in Sharon, Mississippi, Douglas was a rural blues stylist in the San Francisco/Oakland area of California. Douglas was influenced by Tommy Johnson, whose "Canned Heat Blues" he adapted on his album, Big Road Blues. Douglas produced a blues classic when he recorded "Mercury Boogie" in 1949. The tune, which paid homage to the American automobile, was later renamed "Mercury Blues" and covered by Steve Miller, David Lindley, and Dwight Yoakam. Alan Jackson had a number one hit when he recorded the tune in 1992.
In the early 1960s Douglas recorded such songs as "Born in the Country," "Catfish Blues," "Fanny Lou," "Hear Me Howlin'," "K.C.'s Doctor Blues," and "Wake Up Workin' Woman" for Chris Strachwitz, mostly released on Strachwitz's Arhoolie Records and the Prestige Bluesville label. In 1961, Douglas played guitar on Sidney Maiden's album, Trouble An' Blues, thus reuniting a working partnership for both of them that had started in the 1940s.
Douglas did not reach his peak until the 1970s. He played at the San Francisco Blues Festival in 1973 and 1974. He formed a quartet and became a frequent performer at coffeehouses, clubs, and bars in the East Bay/Modesto/Stockton area.
Succumbing to a fatal heart attack in Berkeley, California in October 1975, Douglas was buried in the Pleasant Green Cemetery in Sharon, Mississippi.
While in his 30s and working at a garage, Douglas taught blues guitar to the young grandson of his employer - Steve Wold.
Country Girl
K.C. Douglas Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I spend lots of my time flying out to LA
And if you've never been there you don't know how lonesome big towns can be
Oh what I'd give to be a country girl again to be with my people my man and my kids
To live in a house about a mile down the road from mama
Oh Lord what I'd give to be a country girl again
To go walking down a country road at sunset
To hear the gentle breeze is blowing at the treetops
No out in the country there is no talk that God is dead
Oh what I'd give to be...
The lyrics of K.C. Douglas's song Country Girl express the longing of a woman who has moved from her rural hometown to big cities like New York, Texas, and LA. She feels lonely in these places and yearns to be a country girl again. The artist highlights how the pace of life is different in big towns, and despite all the entertainment and glamour, they are often lonesome. The country girl misses her community, her family, and the simple life that she used to lead. She craves to walk down a country road at sunset, to see the beautiful colors of sunset with her own eyes, feel the calm of the gentle breeze, and listen to rustling of the leaves. Living in the country provides her with a sense of spirituality and closeness to nature, which is lost in the flurry of life in the city.
The verses of Country Girl depict how living in a big city can be overwhelming and isolating. The transition from a close-knit community to an individualistic lifestyle is something that many people find challenging. The song highlights how we can take for granted the simple joys of life until they are gone. The song poses the question, ‘What I'd give to be a country girl again?’ and speaks to anyone who has moved to the city and lost touch with their roots.
Line by Line Meaning
New York is a long way from Texas Vegas is a long way from Abilene
I travel a lot and go to big cities far from my hometown in Texas.
I spend lots of my time flying out to LA
I spend a lot of time flying to Los Angeles for work or other reasons.
And if you've never been there you don't know how lonesome big towns can be
If you've never experienced living in a big city, you won't understand how lonely it can be.
Oh what I'd give to be a country girl again to be with my people my man and my kids
I really wish I could go back to being a country girl and be with my family and loved ones.
To live in a house about a mile down the road from mama
I want to live in a house near my mother, only a short walk away.
Oh Lord what I'd give to be a country girl again
I am so nostalgic and desperate to go back to my roots as a country girl.
To go walking down a country road at sunset
I miss taking long walks on country roads during the beautiful sunsets.
And see colors you could almost touch right over head
The sunset skies in the countryside are so vivid that you feel like you can almost touch them.
To hear the gentle breeze is blowing at the treetops
I love listening to the sound of the gentle breeze blowing through the trees in the countryside.
No out in the country there is no talk that God is dead
In the country, people believe in God and have faith, unlike in the city where there is often no talk of God.
Oh what I'd give to be...
I can't stress enough how much I want to go back to being a country girl.
Lyrics © BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC, CARLIN AMERICA INC
Written by: BRIAN EDWARD SMITH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind