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.
Black Eyed Blues
Ma Rainey Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Black cat on my doorstep, black cat on my windowsill
If one black cat don't cross me, another black cat will
It's bad luck if I'm jolly, bad luck if I cry
It's bad luck if I'm jolly, bad luck if I cry
It's bad luck if I stay here, it's still more bad luck if I die
Last night a hootin' owl came and sat right over my door
A feelin' seems to tell me, I'll never see my man no more
I feel my left eye jumpin', my heart a-bumpin'
I'm on my P's and Q's
I feel my brain a-thumpin', I got no time to lose
Mama's superstitious, tryin' to overcome these blues
The song "Black Cat Hoot Owl Blues" by Ma Rainey talks about superstitious beliefs and the fear of bad luck. The black cat symbolizes a constant threat, as one might leave but another one will come, and it's never good. The same goes with one's mood – whether they're happy or sad, it's always bad luck. Rainey talks about the feeling of being trapped and the inevitability of misfortune that looms over everything.
The mention of the hoot owl serves as a reinforcement of the sinister aura of the song. The owl is known to be a symbol of death and misfortune, and for it to sit over someone's door signifies that someone in the household might be doomed. Ma Rainey seems to be trying to ward off this feeling of bad luck by being extra careful and vigilant, as she senses something might be coming her way.
Line by Line Meaning
Black cat on my doorstep, black cat on my windowsill
There's a black cat on my doorstep and windowsill.
Black cat on my doorstep, black cat on my windowsill
Another black cat is likely to cross my path.
It's bad luck if I'm jolly, bad luck if I cry
No matter what I do, it seems like bad luck is following me.
It's bad luck if I'm jolly, bad luck if I cry
Staying where I am is bad luck, but leaving could be worse.
Last night a hootin' owl came and sat right over my door
An owl sat on my door last night.
Last night a hootin' owl came and sat right over my door
I have a feeling that something bad is going to happen.
I feel my left eye jumpin', my heart a-bumpin'
My left eye is twitching and my heart is racing.
I'm on my P's and Q's
I'm being extra cautious.
I feel my brain a-thumpin', I got no time to lose
My mind is racing and I don't have any time to waste.
Mama's superstitious, tryin' to overcome these blues
My mother is very superstitious and is trying to help me overcome my sadness.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: THOMAS A. DORSEY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@ladyleesutter
Down in Hogan's Alley lived Miss Nancy Ann,
Always fussin', squabbling with her man;
Then I heard Miss Nancy say,
"Why do you treat your gal that way?"
I went down the alley, other night,
Nancy and her man had just had a fight;
He hit Miss Nancy 'cross the head,
When she rose to her feet, she said,
"You low down alligator, just watch me sooner or later,
Gonna catch you with your britches down.
You 'buse me and mistreats me, you dog me around and beat me,
Still I'm gonna hang around.
"Take all my money, blacken both of my eyes,
Give it to another woman, come home and tell me lies;
You low down alligator, just watch me sooner or later,
Gonna catch you with your britches down, I mean it,
Gonna catch you with your britches down."
@Gracenotesmusic
Today we celebrate Ma Rainey (4-26-1886) She was the earliest known professional blues singer & the first of such singers to record. She was billed as The Mother of the Blues. She mentored younger blues women, such as Bessie Smith! Since we have no videos from back then, thanks to Jazz onTheTube for this
@itoral
Per DAHR (ADP) this was composed by Rainey but recorded w steel guitar by Jimmie Tarlton in Atlanta on 12/4/1930 toward issue on Columbia 15651-D.
@ladyleesutter
Down in Hogan's Alley lived Miss Nancy Ann,
Always fussin', squabbling with her man;
Then I heard Miss Nancy say,
"Why do you treat your gal that way?"
I went down the alley, other night,
Nancy and her man had just had a fight;
He hit Miss Nancy 'cross the head,
When she rose to her feet, she said,
"You low down alligator, just watch me sooner or later,
Gonna catch you with your britches down.
You 'buse me and mistreats me, you dog me around and beat me,
Still I'm gonna hang around.
"Take all my money, blacken both of my eyes,
Give it to another woman, come home and tell me lies;
You low down alligator, just watch me sooner or later,
Gonna catch you with your britches down, I mean it,
Gonna catch you with your britches down."
@ladyleesutter
Especially pertinent now, nearly 90 years later, when women and those who care about them are rightfully ANGRY.
@fearfeasa1
This great recording was made in September 1928 !
@johninman7545
Kudos to the REAL EMPRESS OF THE BLUES,herd this on 'Miles Stone in 1970
@brianwings6908
Mother not empress. A greater title by far imo.
@SaphirSouenEstherG
Shared on Google+, April 26, 2018.
@downloadexists7292
Happy Birthday Ma Rainey.
@lhdollbaby
The best!