She first appeared on stage in Columbus in "A Bunch of Blackberries" at the age of 14. She then joined a traveling vaudeville troupe, the Rabbit Foot Minstrels. After hearing a blues song at a theater in St. Louis sung by a local girl in 1902, she started performing in a blues style. She claimed at that time that she was the one who coined the name "blues" for the style that she specialized in. Musicians and singers who had sang and played in the style said there were no such origins and that the blues had always been. A pioneer in the style, Bunk Johnson said that in the 1880s the blues had already been developed.
She married fellow vaudeville singer William 'Pa' Rainey in 1904, changing her name to Ma Rainey. The pair toured with the Rabbit Foot Minstrels as Rainey & Rainey, Assassinators of the Blues, singing a mix of blues and popular songs. In 1912, she took the young Bessie Smith into the Rabbit Foot Minstrels, trained her, and worked with her until Smith left in 1915.
Also known, though less discussed, is the fact that she was bisexual. Rainey never shied away from her feelings in her music, as is apparent in the lyrics of "Prove It On Me":
"Went out last night with a crowd of my friends,
They must have been women, 'cause I don't like no men.
Wear my clothes just like a fan, Talk to gals just like any old man
'Cause they say I do it, ain't nobody caught me, Sure got to prove it on me."
Rainey was outspoken on women's issues and a role model for future women entertainers who took control of their own careers.
Ma Rainey was already a veteran performer with decades of touring with African-American shows in the U.S. Southern States when she made her first recordings in 1923. Rainey signed with Paramount Records and, between 1923 and 1928, she recorded 100 songs, sometimes accompanied such jazz notables as Louis Armstrong, Kid Ory, Fletcher Henderson and others. Rainey was extremely popular among southern blacks in the 1920s, but the Great Depression and changing tastes ended her career by 1933, when she retired.
Rainey died of a heart attack in 1939.
The 1982 August Wilson play Ma Rainey's Black Bottom was based on her.
Barrel House Blues
Ma Rainey Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Barrel house
Blues, feeling awfully dry
Got the barrel house blues, feeling awfully dry
I can't drink
Moonshine
'cause I'm afraid I'd die
Papa likes his sherry, mama likes her port
Papa likes to shimmy, mama likes to sport
Papa likes his bourbon, mama likes her gin
Papa likes his bourbon, mama likes her gin
Papa likes his outside women, mama likes outside men
The song Barrel House Blues by Ma Rainey speaks about the singer's struggle with addiction and their inability to indulge in moonshine for fear of death. The opening line "Got the barrel house blues, feeling awfully dry" sets the tone for the rest of the song; the singer is not only thirsty but also feeling down and out. They are unable to satisfy their thirst using moonshine, which implies that alcohol addiction is what has led them to this place.
The second half of this verse highlights the gender roles entrenched in relationships during the time when the song was written, with the father liking his sherry and the mother liking her port. However, they differ in their choices of partners, with the father preferring women outside of the marriage, and the mother preferring men outside of the marriage. These lines suggest that hypocrisy and infidelity are rampant in the singer's family and are perhaps contributing to the singer's addiction.
Overall, the song Barrel House Blues addresses addiction, gender roles, and the hypocrisy of relationships during the early 20th century.
Line by Line Meaning
Got the Barrel house Blues, feeling awfully dry
I am feeling very thirsty and longing for a drink.
I can't drink Moonshine 'cause I'm afraid I'd die
I am afraid to drink illegally distilled alcohol because it could be dangerous.
Papa likes his sherry, mama likes her port
My father prefers sherry and my mother likes port wine.
Papa likes to shimmy, mama likes to sport
My father enjoys dancing while my mother likes to play.
Papa likes his bourbon, mama likes her gin
My father prefers bourbon while my mother likes gin.
Papa likes his outside women, mama likes outside men
My father has affairs with other women while my mother has affairs with other men.
Contributed by Alexander K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@nicklol8667
bop