Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, Hawkins studied classical piano as a child and learned guitar in his twenties. His initial goal was to become an opera singer (Hawkins has cited Paul Robeson as his musical idol in interviews), but when his initial ambitions failed he began his career as a conventional blues singer and pianist.
Hawkins was an avid and formidable boxer. In 1949, he was the middleweight boxing champion of Alaska.
In 1951, Hawkins joined guitarist Tiny Grimes's band, and was subsequently featured on some of Grimes's recordings. When Hawkins became a solo performer, he often performed in a stylish wardrobe of leopard skins, red leather and wild hats.
His most successful recording, "I Put a Spell on You" (1956), was selected as one of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll. According to the AllMusic Guide to the Blues, "Hawkins originally envisioned the tune as a refined ballad." The entire band was intoxicated during a recording session where "Hawkins screamed, grunted, and gurgled his way through the tune with utter drunken abandon." The resulting performance was no ballad but instead a "raw, guttural track" that became his greatest commercial success and reportedly surpassed a million copies in sales, although it failed to make the Billboard pop or R&B charts.
The performance was mesmerizing, although Hawkins himself blacked out and was unable to remember the session. Afterward he had to relearn the song from the recorded version. Meanwhile the record label released a second version of the single, removing most of the grunts that had embellished the original performance; this was in response to complaints about the recording's overt sexuality. Nonetheless it was banned from radio in some areas.
Soon after the release of "I Put a Spell on You", radio disc jockey Alan Freed offered Hawkins $300 to emerge from a coffin onstage. Hawkins accepted and soon created an outlandish stage persona in which performances began with the coffin and included "gold and leopard skin costumes and notable voodoo stage props, such as his smoking skull on a stick – named Henry – and rubber snakes." These props were suggestive of voodoo, but also presented with comic overtones that invited comparison to "a black Vincent Price."
He continued to tour and record through the 1960s and 1970s, particularly in Europe, where he was very popular. He appeared in performance (as himself) in the Alan Freed bio-pic American Hot Wax in 1978. Subsequently, filmmaker Jim Jarmusch featured "I Put a Spell on You" on the soundtrack – and deep in the plot – of his film Stranger Than Paradise (1983) and then Hawkins himself as a hotel night clerk in his Mystery Train and in roles in Álex de la Iglesia's Perdita Durango and Bill Duke's adaptation of Chester Himes' A Rage in Harlem.
His 1957 single "Frenzy" (found on the early 1980s compilation of the same name) was included in the compilation CD, Songs in the Key of X: Music from and Inspired by the X-Files, in 1996. This song was featured in the show's Season 2 episode "Humbug". It was also covered by the band Batmobile. "I Put a Spell on You" was featured during the show and over the credits of Episode 303 of The Simpsons.
In 1983, Hawkins relocated to the New York area. In 1984 and 1985, Hawkins collaborated with garage rockers The Fuzztones, resulting in "Screamin' Jay Hawkins and The Fuzztones Live" album recorded at Irving Plaza in December 1984. They perform in the 1986 movie Joey.
In July 1991, Hawkins released his album Black Music for White People. The record features covers of two Tom Waits compositions: "Heart Attack and Vine" (which, later that year, was used in a European Levi's advertisement without Waits' permission, resulting in a lawsuit), and "Ice Cream Man" (which, contrary to popular belief, is a Waits original, and not a cover of the John Brim classic). Hawkins also covered the Waits song, "Whistlin' Past the Graveyard", for his album Somethin' Funny Goin' On. In 1993, his version of "Heart Attack and Vine" became his only UK hit, reaching #42 on the UK singles chart.
When Dread Zeppelin recorded their "disco" album, It's Not Unusual in 1992, producer Jah Paul Jo asked Hawkins to guest. He performed the songs "Jungle Boogie" and "Disco Inferno".
Hawkins also toured with The Clash and Nick Cave during this period, and not only became a fixture of blues festivals, but appeared at many film festivals as well, including the Telluride Film Festival premier of Mystery Train.
Hawkins died on February 12, 2000 after surgery to treat an aneurysm. He left behind many children by many women; an estimated 55 at the time of his death, and upon investigation, that number "soon became perhaps 75 offspring".
Although Hawkins was not a major success as a recording artist, his highly theatrical performances from "I Put a Spell On You" onward earned him a steady career as a live performer for decades afterward, and influenced subsequent acts. He opened for Fats Domino, Tiny Grimes and the Rolling Stones. This exposure in turn influenced rock groups such as The Cramps, Screaming Lord Sutch, Black Sabbath, Arthur Brown, Dread Zeppelin, The Horrors, Marilyn Manson, Tom Waits, Alice Cooper and Glenn Danzig.
Alligator Wine
Screamin' Jay Hawkins Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Take the blood out of an alligator
Take the left eye of a fish, yeah
Take the skin off of a frog, yeah
And mix it up in a dish
Add a cup of green swamp water
And then count from one to nine
And you got alligator wine
Alligator wine
You ol' porcupine
It's gonna make you mine, oh yeah
It's gonna make you mine
It'll make your head bald, baby
It'll make your toes freeze
It'll turn your blood into steam, shh
It'll make you cough and sneeze
You're gonna scream like an eagle
You're gonna roar like a mountain lion
When you get finished drinking
Good ol' alligator wine
Alligator wine
You ol' porcupine
Is gonna make you mine
Meet me at the stroke of midnight
By the swamp down in the wood
I'm gonna make you love me baby
Like you never thought you could
You gonna drink my magic potion
And your blood shut eye is gonna shine
You'd be a slave forever
To my alligator wine
Alligator wine
Oh, alligator wine
Hey, hey, is gon' make you mine
Alligator, alligator wine
The song "Alligator Wine" by Screamin' Jay Hawkins is a classic example of voodoo-inspired rock and roll. The lyrics are not meant to be taken literally but allude to the idea of a magical recipe that will make the listener fall in love with the singer. The first verse describes the ingredients needed to make this potion: blood from an alligator, the left eye of a fish, and the skin of a frog mixed with swamp water. The singer instructs the listener to spit over their left shoulder while counting to nine. This is a common practice in some African and African-American cultures believed to ward off evil spirits.
The second verse describes the effects that the alligator wine will have on the listener. It will make them scream like an eagle and roar like a mountain lion, turning their blood into steam. The singer also claims that it will make their head bald and their toes freeze, which again is not to be taken literally but represents the idea of being under the spell of the potion. The third verse is an invitation for the listener to meet the singer by the swamp at the stroke of midnight. The singer promises to make the listener fall in love with them, forever becoming a slave to the alligator wine.
Overall, the song's lyrics are bizarre and fantastical, but they capture the spirit of voodoo and conjure up images of magic and power. It's a perfect example of Screamin' Jay Hawkins' unique style and his ability to create a mood and atmosphere through music.
Line by Line Meaning
Take the blood out of an alligator
Extract the blood from an alligator, implying the use of exotic, dangerous ingredients in the potion
Take the left eye of a fish, yeah
Remove the left eye of a fish, another bizarre ingredient in the recipe
Take the skin off of a frog, yeah
Separate the skin from a frog, yet another strange ingredient used in the concoction
And mix it up in a dish
Combine the various ingredients in a dish, indicating a recipe or potion making process
Add a cup of green swamp water
Include a cup of stagnant, murky swamp water in the mixture
And then count from one to nine
Perform a seemingly arbitrary counting ritual as part of the potion making process
Spit over your left shoulder
Perform a superstitious act of spitting over the left shoulder for good luck or warding off evil
And you got alligator wine
After completing the recipe and ritual, the potion is complete and referred to as alligator wine
It'll make your head bald, baby
The effects of drinking alligator wine are described as causing hair loss or baldness
It'll make your toes freeze
The potion also causes a chilling sensation in the toes, suggesting its power over the body
It'll turn your blood into steam, shh
The most bizarre effect of alligator wine is causing the blood to turn into steam, perhaps implying that it has supernatural qualities
It'll make you cough and sneeze
Further negative effects of the potion include coughing and sneezing
You're gonna scream like an eagle
The potion is so powerful that it causes the drinker to scream like an eagle, an animal known for its loud and intense cries
You're gonna roar like a mountain lion
The potion also makes the drinker roar like a mountain lion, another powerfully vocal animal
When you get finished drinking
After the drinker finishes consuming the potion
Good ol' alligator wine
Referring to the potion as 'good ol' alligator wine' again underscores its strange and powerful nature
Meet me at the stroke of midnight
A call to action for another person to meet the artist at midnight in a specific location
By the swamp down in the wood
The meeting place is in the swampy woods, further emphasizing the potion's association with nature and the supernatural
I'm gonna make you love me baby
The singer intends to use the potion to make the other person fall in love with them, adding an element of sinister manipulation to the song
Like you never thought you could
The potion promises to make the other person love the artist in a way they never imagined possible
You gonna drink my magic potion
The artist offering the potion to the other person
And your blood shut eye is gonna shine
The potion's effects include causing the drinker's 'blood shut eye' to shine, perhaps meaning a third eye or another mystical sight
You'd be a slave forever
Although the drinker will love the singer after consuming the potion, they will in effect be enslaved to them forever
To my alligator wine
Repeating the name of the potion as a way to emphasize its importance and mysterious nature
Alligator wine
Repeating the name of the song and potion, potentially as a chorus or refrain
You ol' porcupine
A playful or endearing nickname for the other person, calling them a 'porcupine'
It's gonna make you mine, oh yeah
The potion will cause the other person to fall in love with the singer, making them theirs
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@franznarf
Alligator Wine (by Leiber & Stoller)
Ah ah ah ah!
Take the blood out of an alligator
Take the left eye of a fish, yeah
Take the skin off of a frog, yeah
And mix it up in a dish
Add a cup of grease swamp water
And then countin' one to nine
Spit over your left shoulder
And you got alligator wine
Alligator wine
Your porcupine
Is gonna make you mine
Is gonna make you mine
It'll make your head bald, babe
I say it make your toes freeze
It'll turn your blood into steam shh
It'll make you cough and sneeze
You gotta scream like an eagle
You gonna roar like a mountain lion
When you finished drinking
Good old alligator wine
Alligator wine
Your porcupine
Is gonna make you mine
Is gonna make you mine
Ah yeah wouh
Meet me at the stroke of midnight
By the swamp down in the wood
I'm gonna make you love me babe
Like you never thought you could
You gonna drink my magic potion
And your blood shut eye is gonna shine
You'd be scared forever
Oh my alligator wine
Alligator wine
Gonna make you mine
Your porcupine
Is gonna make you mine
Is gonna make you mine
Waouh Uh uh uh
@ChuckDeFuque
Ah ah ah ah!
Take the blood out of an alligator
Take the left eye of a fish, yeah
Take the skin off of a frog, yeah
And mix it up in a dish
Add a cup of grease swamp water
And then countin' one to nine
Spit over your left shoulder
And you got alligator wine
Alligator wine
Your porcupine
Is gonna make you mine
Is gonna make you mine
It'll make your head bald, babe
I say it make your toes freeze
It'll turn your blood into steam shh
It'll make you cough and sneeze
You gotta scream like an eagle
You gonna roar like a mountain lion
When you finished drinking
Good old alligator wine
Alligator wine
Your porcupine
Is gonna make you mine
Is gonna make you mine
Ah yeah wouh
Meet me at the stroke of midnight
By the swamp down in the wood
I'm gonna make you love me babe
Like you never thought you could
You gonna drink my magic potion
And your blood shut eye is gonna shine
You'd be scared forever
Oh my alligator wine
Alligator wine
Gonna make you mine
Your porcupine
Is gonna make you mine
Is gonna make you mine
Waouh Uh uh uh
@joedavis4150
... How did I ever miss out on Screamin Jay Hawkins?... I must have been too White, too Square, or too busy.
@miketkalec1572
such a great song. besides the original version, Jeff Buckley does a great cover of the this song.
@87dramarama
no he doesn't
@bristlefist
@@87dramarama HAHAHHH!
@caveguy22
@@87dramarama We thought he did.
@danielkobis147
Scremin' Jay inspired a lot of artists, such as Alice Cooper, Iggy, Marilyn Manson, and plenty of another ones.
@ForARide
Screaming Lord Sutch directly adopted his name, none the less his versions of Jack The Ripper, All Black And Hairy or She's Fallen In Love With The Monster Man are awesome.
@FaceofMatt
He is fantastic
@dchern
guess nobody else cares but this is one the first songs composed by leiber and stoller
@michaelstevenklein3696
WHAT?