Perkins was born in Belzoni, Mississippi. He began his career as a guitarist, but then injured the tendons in his left arm in a fight with a chorus girl in Helena, Arkansas. Unable to play guitar, Perkins switched to the piano, and also switched from Robert Nighthawk's KFFA radio program to Sonny Boy Williamson's King Biscuit Time. He continued working with Nighthawk, however, accompanying him on 1950's "Jackson Town Gal".
In the 1950s, Perkins joined Earl Hooker and began touring. He recorded "Pinetop's Boogie Woogie" (written by Pinetop Smith) at Sam Phillips' studio in Memphis, Tennessee. ("They used to call me Pinetop," he recalled, "because I played that song.") However, Perkins was only 15 years old in 1928, when Smith originally recorded "Pinetop's Boogie Woogie".
Perkins then relocated to Illinois and left the music business until Hooker convinced him to record again in 1968. Perkins replaced Otis Spann when he left the Muddy Waters band in 1969.[3] After ten years with that organization, he formed The Legendary Blues Band with Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, recording through the late 1970s, 1980s and early 1990s.
Perkins played a brief musical cameo on the street outside Aretha's Soul Food Cafe in the 1980 movie The Blues Brothers, having an argument with John Lee Hooker over who wrote "Boom Boom." He also appeared in the 1987 movie Angel Heart as a member of guitarist Toots Sweet's band.
Although he appeared as a sideman on countless recordings, Perkins never had an album devoted solely to his artistry, until the release of After Hours on Blind Pig Records in 1988. The tour in support of the album also featured Jimmy Rogers and guitarist Hubert Sumlin. In 1998 Perkins released the album Legends featuring Sumlin.
Perkins was driving his automobile in 2004 in La Porte, Indiana when he was hit by a train. The car was wrecked but the 91-year-old driver was not seriously hurt. Until his death, Perkins lived in Austin, Texas. He usually performed a couple of nights a week at Nuno's on Sixth Street. In 2005, Perkins received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
In 2008, Perkins received a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Album for Last of the Great Mississippi Delta Bluesmen: Live In Dallas together with Henry James Townsend, Robert Lockwood, Jr. and David Honeyboy Edwards. He was also nominated in the same category for his solo album, Pinetop Perkins on the 88's: Live in Chicago.
The song "Hey Mr. Pinetop Perkins", performed by Perkins and Angela Strehli, played on the common misconception that Perkins wrote "Pinetop's Boogie Woogie":
Hey Mr. Pinetop Perkins
I got a question for you
How'd you write that first boogie woogie
The one they named after you
At the age of 97, he won a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Album for Joined at the Hip, an album he recorded with Willie "Big Eyes" Smith. Perkins thus became the oldest-ever Grammy winner, edging out comedian George Burns who had won in the spoken word category 21 years earlier (Perkins had tied with Burns, at the age of 90, in 2004).
A little more than a month later, Perkins died on 21 March 2011 at his home in Austin. At the time of his death, the musician had more than 20 performances booked for 2011. Shortly before that, while discussing his late career resurgence with an interviewer, he conceded, "I can't play piano like I used to either. I used to have bass rolling like thunder. I can't do that no more. But I ask the Lord, please forgive me for the stuff I done trying to make a nickel." Along with David "Honeyboy" Edwards, he was one of the last two original Mississippi Delta blues musicians, and also one of the last to have a personal knowledge of, and friendship with, Robert Johnson.
Selected discography
1976: Boogie Woogie King (recorded 1976, released 1992)
1977: Hard Again (Muddy Waters)
1988: After Hours
1992: Pinetop Perkins with the Blue Ice Band
1992: On Top
1993: Portrait of a Delta Bluesman
1995: Live Top (with the Blue Flames)
1996: Eye to Eye (with Ronnie Earl, Willie "Big Eyes" Smith and Calvin "Fuzz" Jones)[9]
1997: Born in the Delta
1998: Sweet Black Angel
1998: Legends (with Hubert Sumlin)
1998: Down In Mississippi
1999: Live at 85! (with George Kilby Jr)
2000: Back On Top
2003: Heritage of the Blues: The Complete Hightone Sessions
2003: All Star Blues Jam (with Bob Margolin et al.)
2003: 8 Hands on 88 Keys - Chicago Blues Piano Masters The Sirens Records
2004: Ladies Man
2007: 10 Days Out: Blues From The Backroads (with Kenny Wayne Shepherd and the Muddy Waters Band—Live)
2008: Pinetop Perkins and Friends
2010: Joined At the Hip (with Willie "Big Eyes" Smith)
2012: Heaven (with Willie "Big Eyes" Smith on one track and liner notes by Justin O'Brien)
Come Back Baby
Pinetop Perkins Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Oh mama, please don't go
Child, the way I love you
Well you'll never know, oh
Come back baby, yeah, yeah
Let's talk it over one more time
Well, I admit, baby
Don't you know, baby
Child, you've been gone too long
Come back baby, yeah, yeah
Let's talk it over one more time
I said if I could holler
Like a mountain jack
I'd go up on the mountain
People, I'd call my baby back, oh
Come back baby, yeah, yeah
Let's talk it over one more time
Now one of these days, baby
And it won't be long, yeah
You're going to look for me
Child, you know and I'll be gone
So come back baby, yeah, yeah
Let's talk it over one more time
Pinetop Perkins's song "Come Back Baby" is a bluesy ballad filled with heartbreak and longing for the return of a lost love. In the lyrics, Pinetop begs his lover to come back to him, pleading with her not to leave. He admits his mistakes and expresses his deep love for her, stating that she'll never know the extent of his feelings. He wishes he could holler like a mountain jack so that he could call her back to him. However, despite his pleas, he knows that one day she'll come looking for him and he'll already be gone.
The lyrics of "Come Back Baby" are typical of the blues genre, with its themes of heartbreak, lost love, and regret. The repetitive chorus of "Come back baby, yeah, yeah, let's talk it over one more time" emphasizes the singer's desperation and desire to reconcile with his lover. The verse that starts with "I said if I could holler like a mountain jack" is particularly memorable, as it effectively conveys the singer's sense of helplessness and worthlessness without his lover.
The song emphasizes the power of music as a means of emotional expression and coping with pain. Pinetop's use of the blues form reflects the tradition of how blues musicians have used music to express their emotions and to reach out to others. Overall, "Come Back Baby" is a poignant and soulful plea for the return of a lost love.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh, come back baby
The singer is pleading for their loved one to return to the relationship.
Oh mama, please don't go
The singer is referring to their partner as 'mama' and begging them not to leave.
Child, the way I love you
Well you'll never know, oh
The singer communicates the intensity of their love for their partner and explains that it's impossible to express in words how much they care.
Come back baby, yeah, yeah
Let's talk it over one more time
The singer is suggesting that if their loved one returns, they can have a conversation about the issues that caused them to leave.
Well, I admit, baby
That I was wrong
The singer is confessing to their partner that they made a mistake and apologizing for their actions.
Don't you know, baby
Child, you've been gone too long
The singer tells their partner that they have been away for too long, possibly as a result of the fight or disagreement they had.
I said if I could holler
Like a mountain jack
I'd go up on the mountain
People, I'd call my baby back, oh
The singer is using a metaphor to say that they would do anything to get their partner back, even if it meant shouting from the top of a mountain.
Now one of these days, baby
And it won't be long, yeah
You're going to look for me
Child, you know and I'll be gone
The singer predicts that their partner will eventually come looking for them but warns that they won't be around forever.
So come back baby, yeah, yeah
Let's talk it over one more time
The song concludes with the singer repeating their plea for their partner to come back and work things out.
Contributed by Isabella L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.