Mississippi Fred McDowell was born Fred McDowell in Rossville, Tennessee, J… Read Full Bio ↴Mississippi Fred McDowell was born Fred McDowell in Rossville, Tennessee, January 12, 1904. He died in Memphis,Tennessee on July 3, 1972. He was a blues singer and guitar player in the North Mississippi style.

His parents, who were farmers, died when McDowell was a youth. He started playing guitar at the age of 14 and played at dances around Rossville. Wanting a change from ploughing fields, he moved to Memphis in 1926 where he worked in a number of jobs and played music for tips. He settled in Como, Mississippi, about 40 miles south of Memphis, in 1940 or 1941, and worked steadily as a farmer, continuing to perform music at dances, and picnics. Initially he played slide guitar using a pocket knife and then a slide made from a beef rib bone, later switching to a glass slide for its clearer sound. He played with the slide on his ring finger.

A pure hill country blues musician, he played "just the straight, natural blues," and he "do not play no rock and roll." McDowell initially played the recognizable resonator guitar but, during tours and recordings beginning in the 1960s, he adopted the use of electric guitar and was probably the first original delta- or country blues musician to do so. McDowell's style is distinctive and recognizable; perhaps the dirtiest sounding guitarist ever and one of the most influential. The slide guitar styles of Bonnie Raitt as well as Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood of The Rolling Stones, as well as Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys are all heavily influenced by McDowell's technique.

McDowell died of cancer in 1972 and is buried at Hammond Hill M.B. Church, between Como and Senatobia. On August 6, 1993 a memorial was placed on the gravesite of Mississippi Fred McDowell at the Hammond Hill Baptist Church cemetery by the Mt. Zion Memorial Fund.

61 Highway Blues
Mississippi Fred McDowell Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

(guitar)

Lord, that 61 Highway
It's the longest road I know-whoa
Lord, that 61 Highway
It the longest road I know-oh
She run from New York City
Down the Gulf of Mexico

Lord, it's some folks said them
Greyhound buses don't run
Lord, it's some folks said them
Greyhound buses don't run
Just go to West Memphis, baby
Look down Highway 61

I said, please
Please see somebody for me
I said ple-eee-ase
Please see somebody for me
If you see my baby
Tell her she's alright with me

(guitar)

I'm gonna buy me a pony
Can pace, fox-trot and run
I'm gonna buy me a pony
Can pace, fox-trot and run
Lord, when you see me, pretty mama
I be on Highway 61

I started school one Monday mo'ning
Lord, I throwed my books away
I started school one Monday mo'ning
Lord, I throwed my books away
I wrote a note to my teacher, Lord
I gonna try 61, today

(guitar)

Lord, if I hap'n a-die, baby
'Fore you think my time have come
Lord, if I hap'n a-die, baby, Lord
'Fore you think my time have come
I want you bury my body-yeah
Out on Highway 61

Lord, if yo' man
Should have you get *boogied', baby
Lord, don't want you to have no fun
If your man should have you get boogied'
Baby, don't want you to have no fun
Just come down to my little cabin
Out on Highway 61.

(guitar to end)

~

*boogied - pronounced more like 'bo-gee'd or 'bo-gin'
Refers to mean and/or cheap boyfriend, man or husband.
As in old blues lyrics 'My Man Is Boogan Me'
Lucille Bogan. (few lines below)
..'He won't buy me no shoes, he won't buy me no clothes

And he's got so lowdown, he wants to put me outdoors,
You know that's boogin' me'.

Overall Meaning

In Mississippi Fred McDowell's "61 Highway Blues," the singer discusses his experiences on the long, winding highway. He begins by noting that it is the longest road he knows, running all the way from New York City down to the Gulf of Mexico, making it a prime route for traveling musicians like himself. The singer acknowledges that some people have claimed the Greyhound buses do not run along this route, but recommends anyone in search of music take a trip to West Memphis and look down Highway 61.

The chorus serves as a plea to anyone who might come across the singer's love interest. The singer asks that they relay a message of love to his baby and reassure her that all is well between them. He then shifts focus to his future plans, stating that he intends to buy a horse that can "pace, fox-trot and run," dreaming of when he can travel freely along Highway 61 in style. In one telling verse, the singer admits abandoning school on a Monday morning, throwing his books away and penning a note to his teacher, proclaiming that he was heading down Highway 61.

Among the several interpretations of the song, some find it to be a story of the road, while others see it as a tribute to the highway's association with blues music and black culture. In any case, "61 Highway Blues" is undoubtedly an ode to the road, painting a picture of the sense of freedom and possibility that traveling it provides.

Line by Line Meaning

Lord, that 61 Highway It's the longest road I know-whoa Lord, that 61 Highway It the longest road I know-oh She run from New York City Down the Gulf of Mexico
The Highway 61 is extremely long and starts from New York City and goes up to the Gulf of Mexico.

Lord, it's some folks said them Greyhound buses don't run Lord, it's some folks said them Greyhound buses don't run Just go to West Memphis, baby Look down Highway 61
The Greyhound buses do not run down Highway 61, so one should visit West Memphis and have a look at Highway 61.

I said, please Please see somebody for me I said ple-eee-ase Please see somebody for me If you see my baby Tell her she's alright with me
If anyone meets his baby, they should tell her that he is doing fine.

I'm gonna buy me a pony Can pace, fox-trot and run I'm gonna buy me a pony Can pace, fox-trot and run Lord, when you see me, pretty mama I be on Highway 61
He is going to buy a pony which can move fast, and he will be riding it on Highway 61 when people see him.

I started school one Monday mo'ning Lord, I throwed my books away I started school one Monday mo'ning Lord, I throwed my books away I wrote a note to my teacher, Lord I gonna try 61, today
He threw away his books one morning when starting school and wrote a note to his teacher about trying the Highway 61 that day.

Lord, if I hap'n a-die, baby 'Fore you think my time have come Lord, if I hap'n a-die, baby, Lord 'Fore you think my time have come I want you bury my body-yeah Out on Highway 61
If he dies anytime soon, he wants his body to be buried on Highway 61.

Lord, if yo' man Should have you get *boogied', baby Lord, don't want you to have no fun If your man should have you get boogied' Baby, don't want you to have no fun Just come down to my little cabin Out on Highway 61.
If anyone's partner is being mean to them, they should visit his little cabin on Highway 61 to have some fun.

Contributed by Adalyn F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

TRACKS

No Related Genres

More Genres

No Artists Found

More Artists Load All

No Albums Found

More Albums Load All

No Tracks Found

Genre not found

Artist not found

Album not found

Search results not found

Song not found

Comments from YouTube:

randy beard

2y↑3

In my Humble Opinion, Fred McDowell was one of the Greatest Blues Pickers in History of Music--he just has a special way of picking, must be in that Steak Bone...