Lizzie Douglas was born on June 3, 1897 in Algiers, Louisiana. She was the eldest from her 13 other siblings. Her parents Abe and Gertrude Douglas nicknamed her the Kid during her early childhood. At the age of 7 she and her family moved to Walls, Mississippi, which was just south of Memphis. The following year after she moved, she received her first guitar for Christmas. She began to practice and learn how to play both the banjo and the guitar and it was seen that she had a great talent as a musician. When she first began performing she did not use her first name Lizzie, but played under the name Kid Douglas. When she was 13 years old she ran away from her home to live on Beale Street in Memphis, Tennessee. She would play on street corners for most of her teenage years and would eventually go home when she ran out of money. She began to get noticed singing and playing guitar on the street corners. This brought an opportunity for her to tour, travel, and play with the Ringling Brothers Circus. Eventually she came back to Beale Street and got consumed in the blues scene. At the time, women, whiskey, and cocaine were high in demand with the people and places she would be around. She made her money by playing guitar, singing, and prostitution, which was not uncommon at the time. Most of the female performers were prostitutes because of financial desperation. It was said “She received $12 for her services-an outrageous fee for the time.” (Memphis Minnie Biography,1). She was known as a woman that was very strong and that could take care of herself.
She had been married three times in her life; first with Will Weldon sometime in the 1920s, then Joe McCoy (1929–1934), and finally to Earnest Lawlars (a.k.a. Little Son Joe), in 1939. She and McCoy would perform together during their marriage. During this time, a talent scout from Columbia Records discovered her. When she and McCoy went to record in New York, she decided to change her name to Memphis Minnie. During the next few years she and McCoy released many singles and duets. She released the song “Bumble Bee” in 1930, which ended up being one of her favorite songs, and led her to a recording contract with the label Vocalion. Under this label, they continued to produce recording for two years, one of them being “I’m Talking About You”, which was one of her more popular songs. They soon decided to leave Vocalion and move to Chicago. She and McCoy introduced country blues to the urban environment and became very well known.
Memphis Minnie continued to have success throughout the years recording under many different labels like Decca Records and Chess Records. Some believe her fame was the reason for her divorce with McCoy due to jealousy and resentment towards her. She remarried after to Earnest Lawlars (a.k.a. Little Son Joe) and began recording material with him. She became very well known in the blues industry and ended up being one of the most famous blues performers of all time, competing with both men and women.
She continued to record throughout the 50’s, but her health began to become a problem for her. She retired from her musical career and ended up going back to Memphis. “Periodically, she would appear on Memphis radio stations to encourage young blues musicians. As the Garons wrote in Women With Guitar, 'She never laid her guitar down, until she could literally no longer pick it up.'” She suffered a stroke in 1960, which caused her to be bound by wheelchair. The following year her husband, Earnest “Little Son Joe” Lawlars died. She had another stroke a short while after and eventually ended up in the Jell Nursing Home. She could no longer survive on her social security income so magazines wrote about her and readers sent her money for assistance. On August 6, 1973 she died of a stroke. She was buried in an unmarked grave at the New Hope Cemetery in Memphis. A headstone paid for by Bonnie Raitt was erected by the Mt. Zion Memorial Fund on October 13, 1996 with 35 family members in attendance including her sister, numerous nieces (including Laverne Baker) and nephews. Her headstone is marked:
Lizzie "Kid" Douglas Lawlers
aka Memphis Minnie
The inscription on the back of her gravestone reads:
"The hundreds of sides Minnie recorded are the perfect material to teach us about the blues. For the blues are at once general, and particular, speaking for millions, but in a highly singular, individual voice. Listening to Minnie's songs we hear her fantasies, her dreams, her desires, but we will hear them as if they were our own."
After her death some of her old work began to surface and some of her songs were featured on blues compilations. She was one of the first 20 blues artists that were inducted in the Blues Hall of Fame.
Goin' Back to Texas
Memphis Minnie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It really is wrong, that we must part
You learned I love you, more's all the rest
Your leaving me, breaks my happiness
I'll count the hours, lover when I'm gone
Think of you, wish you back home
My lonesome heart, will shake with fear
The very hour, I call your name
Every hour :
Not at ease, with anyone else
I'll haunt the line, for you I know
I'm asking you dear, please don't go
Oh honey babe, mama ray
Glory be, I see that thing
The song "Goin' Back to Texas" by Memphis Minnie is a melancholic love song that speaks to the pain of heartbreak and the longing to be reunited with a loved one. The lyrics reveal the singer's deep affection for someone who has left her, causing her heart to ache. She laments the fact that they must part and explains that the person she loves is more important to her than anyone else. The singer also reveals her fear and loneliness in the absence of her beloved.
The chorus of the song is a plea for the person she loves not to leave her, and she promises to think of them every hour and wait for their return. The lyrics suggest that the singer is suffering from intense emotional distress and that the thought of losing her lover is almost unbearable. As she sings of her love and longing, the listener can feel the depth of emotion behind the words, and the pain that comes with losing someone so important to you.
Overall, "Goin' Back to Texas" is a powerful song that reflects the universal experience of heartbreak and the longing for love and connection. The song speaks to the deeper emotions that we all experience, and the vulnerability that comes with opening up our hearts to others.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh mercy dear, you caused my heart
My love, you have caused my heart to break with sadness
It really is wrong, that we must part
It's truly unfair that we must say goodbye and go our separate ways
You learned I love you, more's all the rest
You finally realized the depth of my love for you, which surpasses anyone else's affection
Your leaving me, breaks my happiness
Your departure has shattered my joy and sense of contentment
I'll count the hours, lover when I'm gone
During the time I'm apart from you, I'll be keeping track of every hour that passes
Think of you, wish you back home
My thoughts will be consumed by you and I'll long for your return home
My lonesome heart, will shake with fear
My lonely heart will be filled with fear and anxiety
The very hour, I call your name
The moment I utter your name, my emotions will overwhelm me
Not at ease, with anyone else
I cannot find comfort or connection with anyone else
I'll haunt the line, for you I know
I'll constantly be waiting by the phone, hoping to hear from you
I'm asking you dear, please don't go
I beg of you, my love, please don't leave me
Oh honey babe, mama ray
My sweet love, my darling
Glory be, I see that thing
Oh my goodness, I finally see what's been missing in my life
Contributed by Leo C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.