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.
Feast of the Mau Mau
Screamin' Jay Hawkins Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
WOAH! HOAHH
WOAWOAH!!
Cut the fat off the back of a baboon
Boil it down to a pound in a spoon
Scoop the eyes from a fly flying backwards
Take the jaws and the paws off a 'coon
Take your time, ain't life for good cookin'
Take the fleas from the knees of a demon
Tell your pals and gals and come screamin'
To the feast with the beast of the Mau Maus
They make wine from the spine of a bulldog
It's a test for the best for who stays
And the feast with the beast of the Mau Maus
Brush your teeth with a piece of a goose toenail
After death still a breath from a drunk in jail
Pull the skin off your friend with a razor blade
And tonight change tomorrow bring back yesterday
Shake your hip, bite your lip, shoot your mother-in-law
Put on your gorilla suit, drink some elbow soup and have a ball
Get it straight, don't be late, it's time for mad fun
Feast of the Mau Maus has begun - HAW!
At the feast with the beast of the Mau Maus
They make wine from the spine of their bulldogs
It's a test for the best for who stays
And a feast with the beast of the Mau Mau
And a feast with the beast of the Mau Mau
How they talk, man? They go like this
WADEE? HUMDEE MWLADEE
And how do the women talk?
OU UH! DEWAH! OU UH CACKLE
What you want when you wanta tell 'em
You want some more to eat, man?
Well how 'bout gimme some more of that meat there
And pass me some of the inside of that thigh
In between the toes, yeah, sock it to me there, ooh
Sure tastes good, man
Gimme some more of that inside soul, yeah
That, what you mean you ain't got no more soul?
You won't eat that, WAH
Feast of the Mau Mau
They make wine from the spine of their bulldogs
They stick their thumb in their eyeballs
And make [...] olives
Yeah, that's what's happenin'
Reach into his chest and pull out his ribs, man
Let me bite on that cat's bone
Sock it to me one time
Evil, fellow
EVIIIL!
Inside [...], please
Can I have a fried ear?
The lyrics of Screamin' Jay Hawkins's song Feast of the Mau Mau shock and thrill the listeners with their graphic descriptions of cannibalistic rituals. He talks about cutting off the fat from the baboon, boiling it down to a pound in a spoon, and taking the jaws and paws off a raccoon. He suggests taking fleas from the knees of a demon and scooping the eyes from a fly flying backward. He asks listeners to brush their teeth with a piece of a goose toenail and to pull the skin off their friends with a razor blade. Hawkins's lyrics aim to evoke fear, disgust, and fascination with the wild and the unknown. The title "Feast of the Mau Mau" evokes the Mau Mau Uprising, a militant Kenya nationalist movement in the 1950s, and the song associates African tradition and ritual with savagery, turning them into a spectacle for the listener's entertainment.
The grotesque and macabre images in the song are meant to be taken humorously and tongue-in-cheek. Hawkins was known for his outrageous live performances and his ability to shock and entertain his audience. Feast of the Mau Mau reflects Hawkins's flair for the dramatic and the absurd. Along with his other songs, I Put a Spell on You and Constipation Blues, Hawkins carved out a unique niche in the rock and roll scene of the 1950s and 60s.
Line by Line Meaning
OUH OUHH
Expressing excitement and enthusiasm
WOAH! HOAHH
A cry of surprise and excitement
WOAWOAH!!
A call to attention and excitement
Cut the fat off the back of a baboon
To take something unconventional or considered undesirable and make use out of it
Boil it down to a pound in a spoon
To prepare something in a concentrated fashion
Scoop the eyes from a fly flying backwards
To do something difficult or impossible
Take the jaws and the paws off a 'coon
To dismantle or take apart something in pieces
Take your time, ain't life for good cookin'
Don't rush or hurry, things take time to prepare
Cause the rest of this mess ain't good lookin'
Implying that the result or outcome of something is undesirable or unappealing
Take the fleas from the knees of a demon
To do something that is considered impossible or difficult
Tell your pals and gals to come screamin'
To invite someone to join in on the fun or excitement
To the feast with the beast of the Mau Maus
Joining in on an exciting and unconventional event or activity
They make wine from the spine of a bulldog
People do unconventional or strange things in this place
It's a test for the best for who stays
An activity or event in which only the best or most daring can survive
And the feast with the beast of the Mau Maus
Joining in on an exciting and unconventional event or activity
Brush your teeth with a piece of a goose toenail
To do something unconventional, strange, or unsanitary
After death still a breath from a drunk in jail
Even in death, there is still life or vitality in unconventional, difficult, or undesirable circumstances
Pull the skin off your friend with a razor blade
To do something violent or cruel to someone close or familiar
And tonight change tomorrow bring back yesterday
To do something unconventional or impossible
Shake your hip, bite your lip, shoot your mother-in-law
To do something improper, obscene, or cruel
Put on your gorilla suit, drink some elbow soup and have a ball
To participate in unconventional and strange activities
Get it straight, don't be late, it's time for mad fun
To enjoy life and participate in unconventional and exciting activities
Feast of the Mau Maus has begun - HAW!
Announcing the start of an exciting and unconventional event or activity
How they talk, man? They go like this
Explaining how people speak in this place
WADEE? HUMDEE MWLADEE
Speaking in an unfamiliar language or slang
OU UH! DEWAH! OU UH CACKLE
Speaking in an unfamiliar language or slang
What you want when you wanta tell 'em
Asking how to communicate with unfamiliar or foreign people
You want some more to eat, man?
Offering food or refreshment to someone
Well how 'bout gimme some more of that meat there
Requesting more food or refreshment
And pass me some of the inside of that thigh
To ask for something in particular
In between the toes, yeah, sock it to me there, ooh
Asking for something in an unconventional or strange way
Sure tastes good, man
Commenting on the quality of the food or refreshment
That, what you mean you ain't got no more soul?
Asking for something that is unavailable
You won't eat that, WAH
Reacting to something unexpected or unpleasant
And a feast with the beast of the Mau Maus
Joining in on an exciting and unconventional event or activity
How they talk, man? They go like this
Explaining how people speak in this place
WADEE? HUMDEE MWLADEE
Speaking in an unfamiliar language or slang
And how do the women talk?
Asking how people speak in this place
OU UH! DEWAH! OU UH CACKLE
Speaking in an unfamiliar language or slang
Feast of the Mau Mau
An exciting, unconventional event or activity
They make wine from the spine of their bulldogs
People do unconventional or strange things in this place
They stick their thumb in their eyeballs
People do unconventional or painful things in this place
And make [...] olives
To make use of something unconventional or strange
Reach into his chest and pull out his ribs, man
To do something violent or cruel to someone
Let me bite on that cat's bone
To enjoy or appreciate something unconventional or strange
Sock it to me one time
Asking for something in an enthusiastic way
Evil, fellow
A warning or caution about something unpleasant or dangerous
EVIIIL!
An exclamation or expression of danger
Inside [...], please
To ask for something that is unconventional, strange, or illegal
Can I have a fried ear?
To ask for something that is unconventional, strange, or illegal
Contributed by Sebastian R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
edith bunker
One of the most overlooked and underestimated musical artists in history. Other artists have covered his song “I put a spell on you “ and had so much more recognition than Screamin Jay himself. He’s also done so many other incredible songs that haven’t even been explored. 😊
RWL WRESTLING LEAGUE
Feel privileged to have seen Jay live during the 90s. Truly one of a kind.
freedom isn't free 20
He was completely insane, but in a very brilliant way
Savvas
No one will ever be like him..
Lisa Jackson
one time I found this cassette at the thrift store. it was "Screamin Jay Hawkins". I had to buy it with a name like that. it was "Frenzy". I have been hooked on Jay ever since....!
DonnyMoon
I was 13 years old in 1980 living with foster parents ..we (Their son and I )went out at night on april fools day to move his dads car so he would think his ca was stolen ..got the keys but found out the car was open .. so after moving his car we thought maybe other cars were open too haha ..so we found some cassetes in some cars and smal change ..not thinking of stealing the radios ..but we wanted the music .. between the tapes we found was one of em with this song on it .. .. today I found the song wahooooo hahahaha
Felix Mercado
@DonnyMoon great story. I can literally picture it.
nlg 9sh
My story exactly.
a century of black music
what an amazing original artist.
steven rice
A classic, more than one way. Love Screamin' Jay...