Koko Taylor (September 28, 1928 - June 3, 2009) was an American blues music… Read Full Bio ↴Koko Taylor (September 28, 1928 - June 3, 2009) was an American blues musician, popularly known as the "Queen of the Blues." She was known primarily for her rough and powerful vocals and traditional blues stylings.

Taylor was born as Cora Walton on a farm just outside Memphis, Tennessee. In 1954, Taylor left Memphis for Chicago with her husband, truck driver Robert "Pops" Taylor. In the late 1950s she began singing in Chicago blues clubs and was spotted by Willie Dixon in 1962, leading to wider performances and her first recording contract. In 1965, Taylor was signed by Chess Records, for which her single Wang Dang Doodle (written by Dixon, and a hit for Howlin' Wolf five years earlier) became a major hit, reaching number four on the R&B charts in 1966 and selling a million copies. Taylor recorded many versions of this Dixon-penned song over the past several decades and added more material, both original and covers, but never repeated that initial chart success.

National touring in the late 1960s and early 1970s improved her fan base, and she became accessible to a wider record-buying public when she signed with Alligator Records in 1975. Recording over a dozen albums for that label (many nominated for Grammy awards), she came to dominate the female blues singer ranks, winning 24 W. C. Handy Awards -- more than any other artist. After her recovery from a near-fatal car crash in 1989, the 1990s found Taylor in movies such as Blues Brothers 2000. She opened a blues club on Division St. in Chicago in 1994, but closed it in 1999. Taylor released a new album in 2007 called "Old School."

Koko Taylor influenced such musicians as Bonnie Raitt, Shemekia Copeland, Janis Joplin, Shannon Curfman, and Susan Tedeschi.

Koko Taylor died on the afternoon of June 3rd 2009 (at the age of 80), while recovering from surgery to repair gastrointestinal bleeding. Koko Taylor is still referred to by fellow blues musicians and her fans as the "Queen of the Blues".

Twenty-Nine Ways
Koko Taylor Lyrics

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I got 29 ways just to get to my baby's door
I got 29 ways just to get to my baby's door
And if he need me bad i can find about two or three more

I got a way through the window,
I got a way down the hall,
And if the goin' get rough i got a hole in the wall
I got 29 ways to get to my baby's door

And when he need me bad i can find about two or three more

I got 29 ways just to get to my baby's door
I got 29 ways just to get to my baby's door
And when he need me bad i can find about two or three more

Now i got ways that i never have said
I got a trapdoor right under his bed
I got 29 ways just to get to my baby's door
And when he need me bad i can find about two or three more

I got 29 ways just to get to my baby's door
I got 29 ways just to get to my baby's door
And if he need me bad i can find about two or three more

I got a way through the front,
I got a way through the back,
I got a loose hole and i can ease through the crack
I got 29 ways just to get to my baby's door
And if he need me bad i can find about two or three more

I got 29 ways now
I got 29 ways y'all
I got 29 ways yeah

I got 29 ways now
I got 29 ways just to get to my baby's door

Overall Meaning

In the song "Twenty-Nine Ways," Koko Taylor describes the many ways she can get to her lover's door. She boasts that she has twenty-nine unique methods of entry, including a way through the window, down the hall, and even through a hole in the wall. Taylor suggests that she has even more ways to reach her lover, should he need her urgently. She reveals that she has a trapdoor under his bed and even a "loose hole" that she can easily slip through.

The song is a clever analogy for the lengths that one will go to for love. Koko Taylor's lyrics suggest that when love is real, there is no obstacle too great to keep one from his or her beloved. The colorful descriptions of Taylor's various methods of entry give the song a lighthearted, playful feel. However, the underlying message is one of devotion and commitment.

Overall, "Twenty-Nine Ways" is a fun, upbeat blues song that celebrates the many ways love can find a way. It showcases Koko Taylor's powerful vocals and the roots of blues music. The song is an anthem for anyone who's ever gone to great lengths for love and is a reminder that love is worth fighting for.

Line by Line Meaning

I got 29 ways just to get to my baby's door
I have a variety of methods to reach my lover's residence

And if he need me bad i can find about two or three more
In case of urgency, I have a couple of additional approaches in mind

I got a way through the window,
I have a means of entry through an open window

I got a way down the hall,
I have a pathway that leads down the corridor

And if the goin' get rough i got a hole in the wall
When the situation gets difficult, I have a gap in the plaster to escape through

Now i got ways that i never have said
I have some secret tactics that I haven't shared before

I got a trapdoor right under his bed
I have a hidden entrance located below my sweetheart's bed

I got a way through the front,
I can approach from the front entrance

I got a way through the back,
I can use a rear entry point

I got a loose hole and i can ease through the crack
I found a gap in the floorboard that allows me to slip through easily

I got 29 ways now
I still have multiple techniques at my disposal