Shaw's first musical influences were her uncle and grandmother, who loved to sing and play gospel music on the family’s hi-fi record player. As a young girl, Shaw was also involved with numerous gospel singing groups. Her first experience singing before a large audience was with her uncle, who played trumpet and exposed her to the music of jazz greats like Dizzy Gillespie. At only 10 years old, Shaw performed with her uncle at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, and they were asked to return for the next week's show. As she recalls, her uncle got booked elsewhere on the same night, and a young Shaw had to take the stage solo at the Apollo for the second show.
Shaw's professional aspirations were rejuvenated after she was married and living on an Air Force base near Springfield, Massachusetts. Encouraged by friends, she auditioned and got gigs near the base, then made a demo tape in the garage of Charlie Parent, a local drummer. The tape eventually landed her a regular gig at the Concord, a resort hotel in the Catskill Mountains in upstate New York.
Shaw's big break was an invitation to sing with the Count Basie Orchestra. Basie’s accountant heard her at the New York Playboy club. Basie was sent a copy of one of her records, while Shaw met with Basie alumnus and trumpeter Frank Foster to arrange charts of some of her numbers. The next thing she knew, she was flown out to meet the whole band at the Sands Hotel in Las Vegas.
She met with representatives of the Chess Records music label, and soon signed with them. She released her first two albums on their subsidiary Cadet Records. A 1969 album track "California Soul", a funk-soul tune written by Ashford & Simpson and originally issued as a single by American pop quintet The 5th Dimension, later became a staple of the UK rare groove scene. This song has appeared in television commercials for Dockers, KFC[3] and Dodge Ram trucks. Unable to find her own style at Chess, she moved to the jazz-oriented Blue Note Records in 1972.
In 1977 she released an LP Sweet Beginnings on Columbia that contained: "Yu Ma / Go Away Little Boy", a medley containing the old Goffin and Carole King standard, originally recorded by Nancy Wilson. The album also contained the track Look at Me, Look at You, popular on the U.K. rare groove scene. She sings the theme song "Don't Ask to Stay Until Tomorrow" from the 1977 film Looking for Mr. Goodbar that's also found on its soundtrack. She also recorded one of the disco era's biggest hits, a remake of "Touch Me in the Morning", also on Columbia Records.
In 1982 Shaw recorded the Gary Taylor ballad called "Without You in My Life" from the LP Let Me in Your Life that was jointly produced by Johnny Bristol and Webster Lewis on South Bay records. This had moderate chart success in the USA. In 1983 she recorded the vocals for "Could It Be You", a track by Phil Upchurch on his Name of the Game album.
Shaw continued to perform and record. In 1999, 2001 and again in 2007, Shaw was one of the performers at the North Sea Jazz Festival in the Netherlands.
Liberation Conversation
Marlena Shaw Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Blues ain't nothing but a good woman gone bad
Blues ain't nothing but a good woman gone bad
Woo, Ha, ha
Blues ain't nothing but a good woman gone bad
Blues ain't nothing but a good woman gone bad
Blues ain't nothing but a good woman gone bad
Blues ain't nothing but a good woman gone bad
Blues ain't nothing but a good woman gone bad
Blues ain't nothing but a good woman gone bad
Stormy, Stormy, Stormy, Stormy, Stormy, Stormy Monday
Stormy Monday, Stormy Monday, Woo, Stormy Monday
Stormy, Stormy, Stormy, Raining Monday
The lyrics to Marlena Shaw's "Liberation Conversation" suggest that blues music originates from the hardships and heartbreaks of women. The repeating refrain "Blues ain't nothing but a good woman gone bad" reinforces this theme and suggests that the genre is a way for women to express their pain and suffering. The use of the word "bad" can also be interpreted as a commentary on society's tendency to label women as such when they don't conform to traditional gender roles or expectations.
The song then transitions into a reference to the classic song "Stormy Monday," with the repeated chant of "Stormy, Stormy Monday" further highlighting the idea of hardship and struggle. The use of "raining" also adds to this imagery, evoking feelings of sadness and despair. The overall message of the song seems to be one of empowerment and liberation, suggesting that by expressing their pain through music, women are able to break free from the societal constraints placed upon them.
Line by Line Meaning
Blues ain't nothing but a good woman gone bad
The blues genre often portrays the sadness and sorrow of a woman who has been mistreated or betrayed, causing her to turn to music as an outlet for her pain.
Woo, Ha, ha
This line is an emotional expression of the pain and sadness that accompanies the blues music genre.
Stormy, Stormy, Stormy, Stormy, Stormy, Stormy Monday
The repetitive use of the word 'stormy' conjures up feelings of chaos, tension, and negativity that often accompany life's struggles.
Stormy Monday, Stormy Monday, Woo, Stormy Monday
The mention of Monday adds to the negative connotations, as Monday is often viewed as the least popular day of the week.
Stormy, Stormy, Stormy, Raining Monday
The rain metaphorically represents the tears and pain that come with life's struggles as symbolized by the ongoing storm.
Writer(s): Marlena Shaw
Contributed by Sadie O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.