The Allstars' first release, Shake Hands With Shorty, was nominated for a Grammy Award for "Best Contemporary Blues Album". Since then, 51 Phantom and Electric Blue Watermelon have received nominations in that same category. The group also won a Blues Music Award for "Best New Artist Debut" in 2001.
The band has been the backing band for John Hiatt, including appearing on the album "Master of Disaster".
All the members of the Allstars have also teamed up with Robert Randolph and John Medeski to form The Word.
In November 2007, Luther Dickinson joined The Black Crowes as lead guitarist, and has appeared on their albums Warpaint (2008), Before the Frost...Until the Freeze (2009) and Croweology (2010). Luther Dickinson currently devotes his time to both the Black Crowes and the North Mississippi Allstars. Cody Dickinson has also started a side project, Hill Country Revue, featuring Daniel Coburn, Kirk Smithhart, Doc Samba and Ed Cleveland. They are sometimes joined by Luther Dickinson and members of the Burnside family. They have released two albums, Make A Move (2009) and Zebra Ranch (2010),
The mid-90s were a special time for modern Mississippi country blues. RL Burnside, Jr. Kimbrough, Otha Turner and their musical families were at their peak; touring the world, making classic records and doing the all-night boogie at Jr's Juke Joint and Otha's BBQ Goat picnics -- the music and the culture rich as the black Mississippi dirt. Brothers Luther and Cody Dickinson soaked up the music of their father, Jim Dickinson, and absorbed the North Mississippi Blues legacy while playing and shaking it down at the juke joints with their blues ancestors. Luther (guitar and vocals) and Cody (drums and vocals) joined up with bassist Chris Chew to form the core of their own band, The North Mississippi Allstars. Through the filter of generations of Mississippi Blues men, the Allstars pioneered their own blues-infused rock and roll and continue to do so.
The band hit the road with the release of their first record, Shake Hands With Shorty, Grammy-nominated for “Best Contemporary Blues Album.” Bringing their hill country blues-infused rock & roll to stages all over the country and the world (including multiple tours in Europe and Asia), the Allstars quickly gained a loyal fan base, and to date have released six full-length albums. The bands’s third record, Phantom Record also received a Grammy nod.
Electric Blue Watermelon, their third album to receive a Grammy nomination, embodies the Allstars’ own sound. It reflects the band’s old times and lives growing up in their musical community in North Mississippi. “The record holds to the folk tradition of oral history,” as Luther Dickinson puts it. “Electric Blue Watermelon celebrates the lives and legends of men who are folk heroes in my community. If the traditions are passed down and kept alive, they can’t help but mutate and change.” Electric Blue Watermelon is certainly a departure from the blues tradition, but it is a record that reaches in the future and back into the past. It’s loud psychedelic southern folk rock blues.
Deep Blue Sea
North Mississippi Allstars Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Deep blue sea baby deep blue sea
Deep blue sea baby deep blue sea
It was willie what got drowned in the deep blue sea
Dig his grave with a silver spade
Dig his grave with a silver spade
Dig his grave with a silver spade
Deep blue sea baby deep blue sea
Deep blue sea baby deep blue sea
Deep blue sea baby deep blue sea
It was willie what got drowned in the deep blue sea
Lower him down with a golden chain
Lower him down with a golden chain
Lower him down with a golden chain
It was willie what got drowned in the deep blue sea
Deep blue sea baby deep blue sea
Deep blue sea baby deep blue sea
Deep blue sea baby deep blue sea
It was willie what got drowned in the deep blue sea
The lyrics of North Mississippi Allstars' song Deep Blue Sea are steeped in blues tradition and contain a somber, mournful tone. The repetition of the phrase "Deep blue sea baby deep blue sea" throughout the song represents the vastness and depths of the ocean, which serves as a metaphorical grave for the singer Willie. The repetition of this phrase further emphasizes the weight of his drowning and the impossibility of his return. Additionally, the phrase's melodic, repetitive structure creates an almost hypnotic effect, drawing the listener into a deep reflection on the lyrics' meanings.
The lyrics contain a series of directives that serve as funeral rites for the lost Willie. The line "Dig his grave with a silver spade" instructs those who are left to bury Willie to honor him with a high degree of respect and care. The repetition of the line throughout the song serves to reinforce the symbolic power of the silver spade as a symbol of reverence. The line "Lower him down with a golden chain" instructs those lowering Willie's casket into his grave to also perform this act with a notable degree of respect and formality. These lines provide insight into the singer's worldview and the importance of departing loved ones with dignity and ensuring their memory receives honor and respect.
Overall, Deep Blue Sea employs symbolism, funeral rites, and repetitions to convey the profound sense of loss and mourning caused by Willie's drowning. It delivers a powerful message even with its simple lyrics.
Line by Line Meaning
Deep blue sea baby deep blue sea
The vast ocean has taken someone's life
Deep blue sea baby deep blue sea
The tragedy of this person's death is palpable
Deep blue sea baby deep blue sea
The ocean can be relentless and unforgiving
It was willie what got drowned in the deep blue sea
Willie is the unfortunate soul who lost his life in the ocean
Dig his grave with a silver spade
The mourning process begins with preparing the grave
Dig his grave with a silver spade
The silver spade is symbolic of the deceased's worth
Dig his grave with a silver spade
Even in death, honor is given to the departed
Deep blue sea baby deep blue sea
The pain of losing someone to the ocean is reiterated
Deep blue sea baby deep blue sea
The sense of loss is overwhelming
Deep blue sea baby deep blue sea
The ocean claims another victim, leaving loved ones in despair
Lower him down with a golden chain
The final farewell is marked by lowering the casket into the earth
Lower him down with a golden chain
The golden chain represents the unbreakable bond between those who remain and those who have passed
Lower him down with a golden chain
The hope is that the deceased can find peace and happiness in the afterlife
It was willie what got drowned in the deep blue sea
The sadness of the situation is once again acknowledged
Contributed by Lucas B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.