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.
Shake' Em On Down
North Mississippi Allstars Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Put 'em down, good Lordy
Put 'em down, good Lordy
Put 'em down, shake 'em down
Good Lordy, shake 'em down
Good Lordy, shake 'em down
Good Lordy, shake 'em down
If you, come to my house
You's gon' find
Me around, good Lordy
Stop right there, baby go in
Shake 'em on down
Lordy, must I Lo-ord
Shake 'em down, to my house
Good Lordy
To my house, good Lordy
Shake 'em down, good Lordy
To my house, good Lordy
Shake 'em down, to my house
Shake 'em down, to my house
Shake 'em down, to my house
Shake 'em down, to my house
Shake 'em down, to my house
Shake 'em down, to my house
Shake 'em down, to my house
If you see my baby, Lordy
Stand around
You know we gettin' ready, mama
We gonna shake 'em on down
Lordy, must I Lo-ho-hord
Shake 'em down, to my house
Good Lordy
To my house, good Lordy
Shake 'em down, good Lordy
To my house, good Lordy
Shake 'em down, to my house
Shake 'em down, to my house
Shake 'em down, to my house
Put yo' knees together
Babe, let yo' backbone move
Can't-a woman in town
Cain't shake 'em down like you, Lordy
Must I, Lo-ord
Shake 'em down, to my house
Good Lordy
To my house, good Lordy
Shake 'em down, good Lordy
To my house, good Lordy
Shake 'em down, to my house
Shake 'em down, to my house
Shake 'em down, to my house
Shake 'em down, to my house
Shake 'em down, to my house
Shake 'em down, to my house
Shake 'em down, to my house
Whoa, Lo-o-ord (chorus continues) 1.39
Shake 'em down, to my house
Good Lordy
To my house, good Lordy
Shake 'em down, good Lordy
To my house, good Lordy
Shake 'em down, to my house
Whoa, Lo-o-ord 1.51
Shake 'em down, to my house
Good Lordy
To my house, good Lordy
Shake 'em down, good Lordy
To my house, good Lordy
Shake 'em down, to my house
Shake 'em down, to my house
Shake 'em down, to my house
Shake 'em down, to my house
Shake 'em down, to my house
Shake 'em down, to my house
Shake 'em down, to my house
Shake 'em down, to my house
Far away up over the hill, baby
Lord, to get some ice
Befo' we got back, baby
Lord, we shook 'em down twice
Lordy, must I, Lord
Shake 'em down, to my house
Shake 'em down, to my house
Shake 'em down, to my house.
The song "Shake 'Em On Down" by North Mississippi Allstars is a cover of the blues classic originally written by Bukka White. The lyrics speak of inviting people to the singer's house to have a good time, and shaking their bodies down to the ground with the music. The opening lines repeat the phrase "put 'em down" several times, possibly referring to putting down one's worries or inhibitions and fully embracing the moment. Throughout the song, the chorus chants "shake 'em down" repeatedly, encouraging listeners to move their bodies to the rhythm of the music.
The verses contain references to the singer's lover and their plans to dance and have a good time together, often using the phrase "good Lordy" to express their excitement or disbelief. The lines "put yo' knees together, babe, let yo' backbone move" suggest a specific dance move that the singer wants their partner to perform. The final verse includes a story about going to get ice, but ending up dancing so much that they "shook 'em down twice." Overall, the song is a celebration of music and dancing, inviting listeners to join in the fun and let loose.
Line by Line Meaning
Put 'em down, put 'em down
We need to put them down.
Put 'em down, good Lordy
Let's put them down, Lord.
Put 'em down, shake 'em down
We need to put them down and shake them down.
If you, come to my house
You's gon' find
Me around, good Lordy
Stop right there, baby go in
Shake 'em on down
Lordy, must I Lo-ord
If you come to my house, you will find me there. Stop right there, and let's shake them down. Lord, do we have to do this?
Shake 'em down, to my house
Good Lordy
To my house, good Lordy
Shake 'em down, good Lordy
To my house, good Lordy
Let's shake them down and bring them to my house. Good Lord, let's do this!
If you see my baby, Lordy
Stand around
You know we gettin' ready, mama
We gonna shake 'em on down
Lordy, must I Lo-ho-hord
If you see my baby, just wait around. We're getting ready to shake them down, Mama. Lord, do we have to do this again?
Put yo' knees together
Babe, let yo' backbone move
Can't-a woman in town
Cain't shake 'em down like you, Lordy
Must I, Lo-ord
Put your knees together and let your back move. No woman in town can shake them down like you. Lord, do we really have to go through this once more?
Far away up over the hill, baby
Lord, to get some ice
Befo' we got back, baby
Lord, we shook 'em down twice
Lordy, must I, Lord
We went far away to get some ice over the hill, baby. Before we got back, we shook them down twice. Lord, do we really have to keep doing this?
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: FRED MCDOWELL, ALAN LOMAX
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@reddthedrummer
“Keep going, Caveman!”
@mikewalsh7318
Still badass 21 years later
@rockmassa4151
Holes Brought Me Here 😎
@capi1lope
Shake Hands with Shorty is such a good album. Really great for road trips.
@ahoward2kable
I was a weekend DJ for a rock station after high school and part of my show was the House of Blues Radio Hour, and I still remember when they featured these guys over 15 years later.
@donutsacrifice2588
Nashville radio brought me here!
@lumaz71
Still their best work so far.
@djbc64
Sounds like a shot of whiskey with "kick in the pants" back... What fun!
@Power_Press711
HER-NAN-DUH!!!
@prodigal71
The Hometown Heroes right there...Representing the Sipp well