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.
Man You Won't Give Me No Money
Memphis Minnie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Man you won′t give me no money, you won't buy me no clothes to wear
Want to take me off in France,
And know I ain't got no business over there
Tell me men, what do you expect for us poor women to do
Tell me men, what do you expect for us poor women to do
Work and give you all our money, and be used like a doggone tool
I′m so glad, that I ain′t nobody's fool
I′m so glad, that I ain't nobody′s fool
If I keep every dime of my money, sure got to come under my rule
Know when you was a schoolboy, when you was going to school
Know when you was a schoolboy, when you was going to school
You know if you take my money, you be done broke your teacher's rule
I don′t mind trying to help you, please don't play me for no fool
I don't mind trying to help you, please don′t play me for no fool
Don′t forget these last words, you sure got to come under my rule
In Memphis Minnie's song "Man You Won't Give Me No Money," she expresses frustration and disappointment towards a man who refuses to provide for her financially. The lyrics depict a woman pleading with her partner to support her by buying her clothes and taking her on trips, but he consistently denies her these basic necessities. She questions the expectations placed on poor women like herself, who are expected to work and give away all their earnings, only to be treated like objects.
Minnie's lyrics convey a sense of empowerment as she refuses to be taken advantage of. She declares that she is glad she isn't anyone's fool, and she asserts her autonomy over her own money. By keeping every dime for herself, Minnie asserts her control and independence, signaling that she won't tolerate being treated unfairly.
The song also touches on the idea of education and societal expectations. Minnie suggests that the man in question should remember the rules he learned when he was a schoolboy. Taking her money would not only break her trust but also go against the principles instilled in him during his education.
In the final lines, Minnie warns the man about the consequences of his actions. She implies that if he continues to mistreat her, he will ultimately have to answer to her authority. It is a reminder that she is not to be taken lightly and that she has the power to dictate the terms of their relationship.
Overall, "Man You Won't Give Me No Money" conveys Minnie's frustration with a partner who fails to support her financially and treats her as a means to an end. However, she asserts her independence and warns him of the consequences of his actions.
Line by Line Meaning
Man you won′t give me no money, you won't buy me no clothes to wear
Sir, you refuse to provide me with any monetary assistance, and you neglect to purchase any apparel for me.
Want to take me off in France, And know I ain't got no business over there
You desire to take me away to France, despite the fact that I have no legitimate reason to be there.
Tell me men, what do you expect for us poor women to do
Gentlemen, kindly enlighten me on what you anticipate impoverished women like myself to undertake.
Work and give you all our money, and be used like a doggone tool
Toil and surrender our earnings to you, only to be utilized and taken advantage of like a foolish, insignificant instrument.
I′m so glad, that I ain′t nobody's fool
I am extremely content and gratified that I am not a gullible individual under anyone's control.
If I keep every dime of my money, sure got to come under my rule
If I retain every penny of my hard-earned money, it is undeniable that it must be subject to my own authority.
Know when you was a schoolboy, when you was going to school
Recall the time when you were just a young, naive student attending school.
You know if you take my money, you be done broke your teacher's rule
You are aware that by confiscating my funds, you would be defying the moral principles imparted by your educators.
I don′t mind trying to help you, please don't play me for no fool
I don't object to making an effort to assist you, but I implore you not to deceive or manipulate me.
Don′t forget these last words, you sure got to come under my rule
Do not disregard these final statements, as it is absolute that you will eventually be subjected to my authority.
Writer(s): Minnie Mccoy
Contributed by Sarah I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.