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.
When the Levee Breaks
Memphis Minnie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
If it keeps on rainin', levee's goin' to break
And the water gonna come in, have no place to stay
Well all last night I sat on the levee and moan
Well all last night I sat on the levee and moan
Thinkin' 'bout my baby and my happy home
If it keeps on rainin', levee's goin' to break
If it keeps on rainin', levee's goin' to break
And all these people have no place to stay
Now look here mama what am I to do
Now look here mama what am I to do
I ain't got nobody to tell my troubles to
I works on the levee mama both night and day
I works on the levee mama both night and day
I ain't got nobody, keep the water away
Oh cryin' won't help you, prayin' won't do no good
Oh cryin' won't help you, prayin' won't do no good
When the levee breaks, mama, you got to lose
I works on the levee, mama both night and day
I works on the levee, mama both night and day
I works so hard, to keep the water away
I had a woman, she wouldn't do for me
I had a woman, she wouldn't do for me
I'm goin' back to my used to be
I's a mean old levee, cause me to weep and moan
I's a mean old levee, cause me to weep and moan
Gonna leave my baby, and my happy home
In "When the Levee Breaks," Memphis Minnie laments the potential destruction of the levee. The song is about the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927, which resulted in significant losses of life and property. Despite the evident danger, the singer still sits on the levee, thinking about her baby and happy home. The lyrics express the helplessness of those who depend on the levees to safeguard their homes and lives.
The phrase "when the levee breaks" is also used metaphorically to depict a situation where everything falls apart, and there's no returning. After all, the levee is like the last line of defense of many people's homes and life around the Mississippi River. The phrase has been used in many songs, including Led Zeppelin's "When the Levee Breaks."
The song is an expression of the blues style of music popularized by Memphis Minnie. She was a renowned blues artist and guitarist in the 1920s and 30s. Her music was often a feminist manifesto, and she refused to bow to the social norms of the time. She was one of the few female musicians who could make a decent living from the blues genre.
Line by Line Meaning
If it keeps on rainin', levee's goin' to break
The continued heavy rains will eventually cause the levee to break
And the water gonna come in, have no place to stay
The floodwaters will inundate the land and displace people
Well all last night I sat on the levee and moan
The singer spent the entire night on the levee, expressing sorrow and grief
Thinkin' 'bout my baby and my happy home
The artist is reminiscing about the joys of family life that are threatened by the flood
And all these people have no place to stay
The flood has caused widespread displacement and homelessness among the people affected
Now look here mama what am I to do
The singer is expressing helplessness and seeking guidance from a parental figure
I ain't got nobody to tell my troubles to
The singer is feeling isolated and alone in their suffering
I works on the levee mama both night and day
The artist is employed in efforts to prevent the levee from breaking
I ain't got nobody, keep the water away
The artist lacks the assistance needed to effectively prevent flooding
Oh cryin' won't help you, prayin' won't do no good
Mourning and prayer will not prevent the inevitable flooding and destruction
When the levee breaks, mama, you got to lose
When the levee breaks, there will be significant losses and devastation
I works so hard, to keep the water away
The artist is working tirelessly to prevent flooding, despite the odds being stacked against them
I had a woman, she wouldn't do for me
The singer had a romantic partner who was unsupportive or unhelpful
I'm goin' back to my used to be
The singer is considering returning to a previous romantic partner or a simpler time in their life
I's a mean old levee, cause me to weep and moan
The singer is personifying the levee as cruel and the cause of their sadness and suffering
Gonna leave my baby, and my happy home
The flood will force the artist to abandon their family and the stability of their previous life
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Joe McCoy
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind