Baker was born in Chicago, Illinois. She is occasionally referred to as Delores Williams because of an early marriage to Eugene Williams; in the late 1940s she was identified in RCA Victor record company files as "D. L. McMurley." She was the niece of blues singer Merline Johnson and was also related to Memphis Minnie.
She began singing in Chicago clubs such as the Club DeLisa around 1946, often billed as Little Miss Sharecropper, and first recorded under that name in 1949. She changed her name briefly to Bea Baker when recording for Okeh Records in 1951, and then became LaVern Baker when singing with Todd Rhodes and his band in 1952.
In 1953 she signed for Atlantic Records as a solo artist, her first release being "Soul on Fire". Her first hit came in early 1955, with the Latin-tempo "Tweedlee Dee" reaching #4 on the R&B chart and #14 on the national US pop charts. Georgia Gibbs' note-for-note cover of Baker's "Tweedle Dee" reached #1; subsequently Baker made an unsuccessful attempt to sue her and petitioned Congress to consider such covers copyright violations.
Baker had a succession of hits on the R&B charts over the next couple of years with her backing group The Gliders, including "Bop-Ting-A-Ling" (#3 R&B), "Play It Fair" (#2 R&B), and "Still" (#4 R&B). At the end of 1956 she had another smash hit with "Jim Dandy" (#1 R&B, #17 pop). It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc. Further hits followed for Atlantic, including the follow-up "Jim Dandy Got Married" (#7 R&B), "I Cried a Tear" (#2 R&B, #6 pop in 1959), "I Waited Too Long" (#5 R&B, #3 pop, written by Neil Sedaka), "Saved" (#17 R&B, written by Leiber and Stoller), and "See See Rider" (#9 R&B in 1963).
In addition to singing, Baker also did some work with Ed Sullivan and Alan Freed on TV and in films, including Rock, Rock, Rock and Mr. Rock & Roll. In 1964, she recorded a Bessie Smith tribute album, before leaving Atlantic and joining Brunswick Records, where she recorded the album "Let Me Belong to You".
In 1966, Baker recorded a duet single with Jackie Wilson. The controversial song, "Think Twice", featured raunchy lyrics that were not considered appropriate for airplay at that time or even today. Three versions were recorded, one of which is the X-rated version with the raunchy lyrics.
In the late 1960s, Baker became seriously ill after a trip to Vietnam to entertain American soldiers. While recovering at the US Subic Bay Naval Base in the Philippines, her husband, Slappy White filed for a divorce. A friend recommended that she stay on as the entertainment director at the Marine Corps Staff NCO club there, and she remained there for 22 years.
In 1988 she returned to perform at Madison Square Garden for Atlantic Records' 40th anniversary. She then worked on the soundtracks to films such as Shag, (1989), Dick Tracy, (1990) and A Rage in Harlem (1991), which were all issued on CD.
In 1990, she made her Broadway debut replacing Ruth Brown as star of the hit musical Black and Blue. In 1991, Rhino Records released a new album Live in Hollywood recorded at the Hollywood Roosevelt Cinegrill, as well as a compilation of her greatest Atlantic hits entitled Soul on Fire. In 1992, she recorded a well-received studio album, Woke Up This Morning, for DRG Records. She continued performing after having both legs amputated from diabetes complications in 1994 and made her last recording, "Jump Into the Fire," for the 1995 Harry Nilsson tribute CD, For the Love of Harry on the Music Masters label.
She received the 1990 Pioneer Award from the Rhythm and Blues Foundation. In 1991, Baker became the second female solo artist inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, following Aretha Franklin in 1987. Her song "Jim Dandy" was named one of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll and was ranked #343 on the Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
LaVern Baker died from cardiovascular disease on March 10, 1997, at the age of 67. Originally buried in an unmarked plot in Maple Grove Cemetery in Kew Gardens, Queens, New York, her grave received a headstone on May 4, 2008, after a fundraiser was held by local historians.
Slow Rollin
LaVern Baker Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
'Cause I need every ounce of it
To bake my cake
'Cause I'm a slow rollin' mama
And I need a big long rollin' pin
To get it ready and just right
For my red hot oven
Honey, let's roll it slow and easy
If it takes all night
'Cause if you try to rush it
It'll never come out right
'Cause I'm a slow rollin' mama
And I need a big long rollin' pin
To get it ready and just right
For my red hot oven
We'll roll it side to side
We'll roll it up and down
And if it still won't be enough
We'll roll it round and round
You know that I'm a slow rollin' mama
And I need a big long rollin' pin
To get it ready and just right
For my red hot oven
Now darlin', we'll roll it on the table
We'll roll it on the floor
And if it still needs pounding
You know we can roll it just a little more
You know that I'm a slow rollin' mama
And I need a big long rollin' pin
To get it ready and just right
For my red hot oven
I wanna get it ready and just right
For my red hot oven
The lyrics to LaVern Baker's song Slow Rollin' Mama have double meanings - on one hand, they can be interpreted as a woman talking about baking a cake, but on the other hand, they can be seen as suggestive lyrics about sex. The lines "But don't you let it break / 'Cause I need every ounce of it / To bake my cake" can be seen as a metaphor for preserving a man's stamina during sex. The mention of a "big long rollin' pin" is another suggestive reference.
However, the overall message of the lyrics is about taking things slow and steady to achieve the desired result. In both the baking and sexual interpretation, rushing things will not yield the best outcome. The repetition of the lines "We'll roll it slow and easy / If it takes all night" emphasizes the importance of taking one's time.
The lyrics also depict a playful and flirtatious relationship between the singer and her partner. The line "Now darlin', we'll roll it on the table / We'll roll it on the floor" suggests a fun and adventurous attitude towards sex.
Line by Line Meaning
But don't you let it break
Don't lose heart or give up
'Cause I need every ounce of it
Referring to the previous line, keep your confidence because I need your help for my recipe
To bake my cake
I need your support to make my ultimate goal a success
'Cause I'm a slow rollin' mama
I have my own pace and I will do things the way I want to do them
And I need a big long rollin' pin
I require a special tool to help me prepare my recipe
To get it ready and just right
To achieve the perfect balance and blend in my recipe
For my red hot oven
To cook it in the right heat and the right time for perfection
Honey, let's roll it slow and easy
Let's take our time and enjoy the process of preparing my recipe
If it takes all night
Time is not a concern as long as we achieve our goal of making my recipe masterpiece
'Cause if you try to rush it
Forcing things to happen quickly may ruin the quality of the recipe
It'll never come out right
Everything will be a mess and should not expect a good outcome in haste
We'll roll it side to side
Rotating the rolling pin all over to achieve the perfect shape and balance in my recipe
We'll roll it up and down
Covering every angle and curve of the mixture to achieve the perfect consistency for baking
And if it still won't be enough
If we fail, we will try again until we make it perfect
We'll roll it round and round
We'll apply more efforts and techniques until it meets our satisfaction
Now darlin', we'll roll it on the table
Let's move on to another work surface to achieve another level of perfection in my recipe
We'll roll it on the floor
We can do what it takes to achieve our goal of having the best version of my recipe
And if it still needs pounding
If it needs more effort to blend everything together and make it perfect, we won't give up
You know we can roll it just a little more
Small things make a difference, and we will go the extra mile to ensure that my recipe will come out perfectly
I wanna get it ready and just right
My goal is to achieve the perfect blend, texture, and taste for my recipe
For my red hot oven
To get the perfect result and bake it in the best way possible
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: ANDREW D. PALEY, BARRY MARSHALL, DOC POMUS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Skate & Tortillas
Special thanx to Caesuri Muzicale for posting this god damn cool song of Lavern Baker :D
Skate & Tortillas
Please remove my doubt, I don't understand why there is a missing sentence in ALL the lyrics I see over the internet. I'm french, so I always need to read original lyrics to understand what I'm listening. From what I hear, she said : "We twist it and we shake it" in the begining, right? Thanx
reuireuiop0
Yup ! And now roll on to Jerrey Lee's wild Whiskey Talking !!