Rosalie Hill was born in Como, Mississippi, United States. Her album, Rosa Lee Hill and Friends, was part of Fat Possum's campaign to reissue the recordings made by George Mitchell. It included Hill's niece, Jessie Mae Hemphill, as well as Jim Bunkley, Catherine Porter, Will Shade, Essie Mae Brooks, Precious Bryant, and Lottie Kate.
Hill played music that was in the tradition of north Mississippi, singing acoustic blues that made use of subtly varied repetition. The daughter of Sid Hemphill, her song "Bullyin' Well", which was recorded by Alan Lomax, has been included on a number of releases over the years.
Hill died in October 1968, aged 58, in Senatobia, Mississippi.
Rosalie Hill was a daughter of the Mississippi Hill Country's composer, multi-instrumentalist, band leader, and musical patriarch Sid Hemphill. Sid taught Rosalie to play the guitar when she was six; by the time she was ten she was playing dances with him. The only two songs she recorded, for Alan Lomax, were marked by a desolate, keening intensity, although by all accounts she was a jolly woman. Her father died in 1961, after which, as blues researcher George Mitchell noted, most of the very musical Hemphills "just didn't feel like playing no more." Rosie hung up her guitar for a time, but by the time Mitchell visited in 1967 she was playing again, and recorded for him a barely less spry version of "Rolled and Tumbled." She died a year later. (Hill's first name often appears "Rosa Lee," but she signed her contract with Lomax "Rosalie.")
Rolled and Tumbled
Rosa Lee Hill Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I rolled and I tumbled and I cried the whole night long
Got up this morning didn't know right from wrong
What you gonna do when you drive a day like mine
Gonna stand in rain, gonna wring my hands and cry
Won't live with a woman, she won't do not she said
Don't she let nobody tear her barrelhouse down
I rolled and I tumbled and I cried the whole night long
Won't live with a woman, she won't do not she said
Won't live with a woman, she won't do not she said
"Rolled and Tumbled" is a classic blues song that speaks about a heartbroken man who has had a rough night filled with tears, confusion, and pain. The lyrics suggest that the man has been betrayed by his lover, and he's struggling to find meaning and direction in his life. The line "Got up this morning didn't know right from wrong" shows how disoriented and lost he feels.
The next few lines suggest that the man's pain is so great that he doesn't know how to cope with it. He talks about standing in the rain and wringing his hands while crying. The repetition of "rolled and I tumbled and I cried the whole night long" emphasizes the depth of his pain and the intensity of his emotions.
The lyrics also touch on the theme of independence and self-reliance. The man says that he won't live with a woman who won't stand up for herself and refuses to allow anyone to tear down her "barrelhouse." This line suggests that the man values strength and resilience in a partner and won't settle for less.
Line by Line Meaning
I rolled and I tumbled and I cried the whole night long
Last night, I was restless and upset, and tears streamed down my face as I rolled and tumbled in my bed.
Got up this morning didn't know right from wrong
When I woke up this morning, I was feeling lost and confused about what the right thing to do is.
What you gonna do when you drive a day like mine
If you were in my shoes and experienced what I went through, how would you handle it?
Gonna stand in rain, gonna wring my hands and cry
I might just stand out in the rain, wring my hands, and cry my heart out at the unfairness of it all.
Won't live with a woman, she won't do not she said
I refuse to live with a woman who won't let anyone destroy her barrelhouse, as she made it clear that she won't back down or tolerate such destruction.
Don't she let nobody tear her barrelhouse down
She's strong and determined not to let anyone ruin the place where she performs, her barrelhouse.
I rolled and I tumbled and I cried the whole night long
The same thing happened again last night, and I spent hours rolling and crying in my bed.
Won't live with a woman, she won't do not she said
Once again, I remind myself that I won't tolerate any woman who isn't as determined or strong-willed as the one who won't let anyone wreck her barrelhouse.
Contributed by Makayla O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@syourke3
So grateful that Alan Lomax went down south and recorded these people. Or we would have lost something very special.
@hilmarwensorra1215
In VERY loving memory of Mrs. Rosa Lee Hill (1910 - 1968 R.I.P. Gone but NOT forgotten).
@MikeyLovesLife
Wow! So thankful for this.
@spoonful1018
This might be the best version I've heard - so haunting
@krystingrant6292
Her father should be proud 😢❤
@vincentbuccieri9305
Thank You for Preserving these Artists Performances for Music History
@TheBluesmanBlue
That's Per Mississippi Hill Country blues at its best
@abluerambler
Other gem.
Thank you forever Mr Alan Lomax. 🌹
@primitiveonpurpose
Sweetly sad happy.
@robertedwards2624
Does not get any more genuine than this !!!
I could listen to this all day.