Born Lizzie Douglas in Algiers, Louisiana, she was one… Read Full Bio ↴Memphis Minnie -
Born Lizzie Douglas in Algiers, Louisiana, she was one of the most influential and pioneering female blues musicians and guitarists of all time. Minnie recorded for forty years, virtually unheard of for any woman in show business at the time, and possibly unique among female blues artists. A flamboyant character who wore bracelets made of silver dollars, she was the biggest female blues singer from the early Depression years through World War II. One of the first blues artists to take up the electric guitar, in 1942, she combined her Louisiana-country roots with Memphis-blues to produce her unique country-blues sound; along with Big Bill Broonzy and Tampa Red, she took country blues into electric urban blues, paving the highway for giants like Muddy Waters, Little Walter, and Jimmy Rogers to travel from the small towns of the south to the big cities of the north. She was married three times, and each husband was an accomplished blues guitarist: Joe McCoy (a.k.a. "Kansas Joe") later of the Harlem Hamfats, Casey Bill Weldon of the Memphis Jug Band, and Ernest Lawlers.
After learning to play guitar and banjo as a child, at the age of thirteen she ran away from home to Memphis, Tennessee, playing guitar in nightclubs and on the street as Lizzie "Kid" Douglas. The next year, she joined the Ringling Brothers circus. Her second marriage and recording debut came in 1929, both with Kansas Joe McCoy, when a Columbia Records talent scout heard them playing in a Beale Street barbershop in their distinctive "Memphis style", and their song "Bumble Bee" became a hit. In the 1930s she moved to Chicago, Illinois with Joe. She and McCoy broke up in 1935 and by 1939 she was with Little Son Joe, with whom she recorded nearly 200 records. In the 1940s she formed a touring Vaudeville company. From the 1950s on, however, public interest in her music declined and in 1957 she and Little Son Joe returned to Memphis. In 1961, Joe died and Minnie suffered a stroke which forced her to spend the rest of her life in nursing homes until she died in 1973.
Kansas Joe McCoy (May 11, 1905–January 28, 1950)-
Joe McCoy played music under a variety of stage names but is best known as "Kansas Joe McCoy." Born in Raymond, Mississippi, he was the older brother of blues accompanist Papa Charlie McCoy. As a young man, he was drawn to the music scene in Memphis, Tennessee where he played guitar and sang vocals during the 1920s. He teamed up with future wife Lizzie Douglas, a brilliant guitarist known as Memphis Minnie, and their 1929 recording of a song called "Bumble Bee" on the Columbia Records label was a hit. In 1930, the couple moved to Chicago where they were an important part of the burgeoning blues scene. Following their divorce, McCoy teamed up with his brother to form a band known as the Harlem Hamfats that performed and recorded during the second half of the 1930s.
In 1936, the Harlem Hamfats released a record with the song "The Weed Smoker's Dream" on it. McCoy later refined the tune, changed the lyrics and retitled the new song "Why Don't You Do Right?" for Lil Green, who recorded it in 1941. It was covered a year later by Benny Goodman and Peggy Lee, becoming Ms. Lee's first hit single. "Why Don't You Do Right?" remains a jazz standard and is McCoy's most lasting composition.
At the outbreak of World War II Charlie McCoy entered the military but a heart condition kept Joe McCoy from service. Out on his own, he created a band known as "Big Joe and His Rhythm" that performed together throughout most of the 1940s. In 1950, at the age of 44, Joe McCoy died of heart disease only a few months before his brother Charlie. They are buried in Restvale Cemetery in Alsip, Illinois.
Led Zeppelin vocalist Robert Plant took his and Memphis Minnie's recording of "When The Levee Breaks," which was in his personal collection, and presented it to guitarist Jimmy Page, who revamped it and slightly altered it lyrically, and produced it on their 1971 album Led Zeppelin IV. It is a favorite of many Zeppelin fans, and a highlight of the album.
Can I Do It for You Part 1
Memphis Minnie & Kansas Joe Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Do anything in this world I can, I want to do something to you
Hear me saying, I want to do something to you
Naw, you can't do nothing to me, naw, you can't do nothing to me
I don't care what in the world you do, you can't do nothing for me
Hear me saying, you can't do nothing for me
Buy you a watch and chain, I want to do something to you
Hear me saying, I want to do something to you
I don't want no watch and chain, I don't want no watch and chain
I don't want nothing in the world you got, and you can't do nothing for me
Hear me saying, you can't do nothing for me
Buy you a house and home, buy you a house and home
Buy you a house and home, I want to do something to you
Hear me saying, I want to do something to you
I don't want no house and home, I don't want no house and home
I don't want nothing in the world you got, and you can't do nothing to me
Hear me saying, you can't do nothing to me
Buy you a strip of land, buy you a strip of land
Buy you a strip of land, I want to do something to you
Hear me saying, I want to do something to you
I don't want no strip of land, I don't want no strip of land
I don't want nothing in the world you got, and you can't do nothing to me
Hear me saying, you can't do nothing to me
Buy you a diamond ring, buy you a diamond ring
Buy you a diamond ring, I want to do something to you
Hear me saying, I want to do something to you
I don't want no diamond ring, I don't want no diamond ring
I don't want nothing in the world you got, and you can't do nothing for me
Hear me saying, you can't do nothing for me
Can I do it to you, can I do it to you?
Do anything in this world I can, I want to do it to you
Hear me saying, I want to do do it to you
No you can't do it to me, no you can't do it to me
I don't care what in the world you do, but you can't do it to me
Hear me saying, you can't do it to me
The song "Can I Do It for You Part 1" by Memphis Minnie is a playful back and forth between a man and a woman. The woman is expressing her desire to do something for the man, to please him in any way she can. She offers to buy him a watch and chain, a house and home, a strip of land, or a diamond ring. However, each time the man responds that he doesn't want any of those things from her and that she can't do anything for him. Despite this, the woman persists in asking if she can "do it" for him, suggesting a sexual connotation to the phrase.
The lyrics can be interpreted as a commentary on power dynamics within relationships, and the tension between desire and rejection. The woman is offering to do things for the man, but he repeatedly turns her down, asserting his own agency and independence. At the same time, he seems to enjoy the attention and flattery, as he encourages her to keep asking. The song can also be seen as a feminist statement, as the woman is asserting her own sexuality and actively trying to please herself and her partner.
Line by Line Meaning
I want to do something to you, I want to do something to you
I want to take action towards you, I want to perform a certain activity that involves you
Do anything in this world I can, I want to do something to you
I am willing to do anything in this world just so I can involve you
Hear me saying, I want to do something to you
Listen to me because I am consistent and firm in wanting to act on you
Naw, you can't do nothing to me, naw, you can't do nothing to me
No, you are unable to act on me in any way
I don't care what in the world you do, you can't do nothing for me
I have no interest in anything you can offer or provide, so you cannot benefit me in any way
Hear me saying, you can't do nothing for me
Pay attention to what I am stating because you truly cannot do anything for me
Buy you a watch and chain, buy you a watch and chain
I am willing to purchase a watch and chain for you
Buy you a watch and chain, I want to do something to you
Purchasing a watch and chain for you is the activity I want to perform on you
I don't want no watch and chain, I don't want no watch and chain
I have no desire for a watch and chain or any material things you can provide
I don't want nothing in the world you got, and you can't do nothing for me
I am not interested in anything you possess or can offer and you cannot perform any action that would benefit me
Buy you a house and home, buy you a house and home
I am willing to buy you a place to live
Buy you a house and home, I want to do something to you
Purchasing a house and home for you is the activity I want to perform on you
I don't want no house and home, I don't want no house and home
I have no interest in a house and home or anything else you can provide
Buy you a strip of land, buy you a strip of land
I am willing to purchase land for you
Buy you a strip of land, I want to do something to you
Purchasing a strip of land for you is the activity I want to perform on you
I don't want no strip of land, I don't want no strip of land
I am not interested in a strip of land or any other possessions you can offer
Buy you a diamond ring, buy you a diamond ring
I am willing to purchase a diamond ring for you
Buy you a diamond ring, I want to do something to you
Buying you a diamond ring is the activity I want to perform on you
I don't want no diamond ring, I don't want no diamond ring
A diamond ring or any other material things you can offer do not interest me
Can I do it to you, can I do it to you?
Can I perform a certain activity on you?
Do anything in this world I can, I want to do it to you
I am willing to do anything in this world so I can perform the specific activity on you
Hear me saying, I want to do do it to you
Listen carefully because I am certain and firm about wanting to perform the activity on you
No you can't do it to me, no you can't do it to me
You are not able to perform the activity on me
I don't care what in the world you do, but you can't do it to me
Regardless of your actions, you cannot perform the activity on me
Hear me saying, you can't do it to me
Listen to me because I am certain and firm that you cannot perform the activity on me
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: LAWLERS, MINNIE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@tommytramp
A lot Like Mamma let me lay it on you by Blind Boy Fuller , AWSOME!!
@albertangeloro5832
covered by Jim Kweskin and Maria Muldaur.....great thanks
@sherrard5492
Chevrolet!
@albertangeloro5832
@Brenda Carter hi its on the Chevrolet Album...it ends with: "i can use a super-ball and you can do something for me, oh yeah you can do something for me."
@sherrard5492
@albert angeloro I had the Kweskin cover on vinyl back in the day. (That’s how old I am.) Jim Kweskin & Jug Band’s See Reverse Side for Title. (I still remember the album cover, but had to look up the title just now. That’s how old I am!!)
@albertangeloro5832
@Brenda Carter hello Brenda an honor and pleasure to meet you. i saw the band a few times in The Village at the Gaslight and Gerdes Folk City. i played flamenco guitar at the Cafe Flamenco on Bleecker St. that's how old i am...
@sherrard5492
@albert angeloro Ah, back in Southern California, I was only dreaming of ever getting to the Gaslight, etc.
But here we are, older and wise enough to still be tempted down the same musical path . . .
@fenandocastanonmanrriquez591
Precioso
Tono músical No aiy mas precioso ke un azul precioso músical
@staryjanek
💕
@JAZZHOBO
in 1990 Jim Kweskin and Another Jug Band member had a Shop in Portland, Oregon= Antiques, Books, and I had no idea how wonderful he was, I had a 1928 Kay Kraft Style C 2-Point Archtop Guitar bought at POrtland Music downtown, he told me a story about him hitch hiking with the same guitar some years before, and it was stolen wheile he was asleep by onother Tramp who cunningly Switched guitars from each other's cases, while Jim had it Tied to his Belt they still craftly stole it. He than thought again and said, I hope I din't jinks your guitar, Boxcar, you seem to be in love with it. Well, mine was stolen by Bushwackers in Seattle while I was in Jail, my Road Dog, a hobo called Danial Boone was keeping it foe me, and Bushwackers were Mome Guards who Beat Down tramps and stole our shit for Dope, got my guitar he visit me in Jail with Broken Arm and Big Cast on his Foot. I was transported to San Quentin by CDC and was in Prison another ...until 1996, when I was release I got a Gibson L1 1920's Guitar at RealGuitars in San Francisco-Ca.