Screamin' Jay Hawkins (Jalacy Hawkins, July 18, 1929 – February 12, 2000) … Read Full Bio ↴Screamin' Jay Hawkins (Jalacy Hawkins, July 18, 1929 – February 12, 2000) was an American musician, singer, and actor, famed for his powerful, operatic vocal delivery and wildly theatrical performances of songs such as "I Put a Spell on You" and "Frenzy".

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.

I Am the Cool
Screamin' Jay Hawkins Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

I'm the one your mama warned you about
When you see me, I will leave you no doubt
I'm the coolest man that ever walked this earth
I've been the coolest since the day of my birth
I am the cool

I drive a little red sports car, as you plainly can see
Them young girls, I can't keep 'em away from me

You know Madonna? Well I saw her yesterday
Had too many women so I pushed her away
Walked into the Paramount Hotel in New York City
There were 72 women waiting there just for me
Just one problem with all these women so fine:
So many of them, so little time
I am the cool

I wear the coolest clothes that ever could be
I look so good even Calvin Klein stares at me
Red bands on my hat, a glass of chavvers in my hand
One look at me and the little girls understand
Someone come up with a gun to steal the rolex off my wrist
Two seconds later he was down with one blow of my fist
I dragged his sorry ass to the town in the middle of the day
I hung him up on a flagpole with a sign, "Don't mess with Screamin' Jay"
I am the cool

The finest restaurants, well they all know me by my name
They gave me the best table and send everyone else away
Pheasant under glass, lobster and steak tartar
Finished it off with a fine cuban cigar
Headed on back home to my penthouse suite
With a fine young lady who's good enough to eat
She feeds me grapes and cheese and opens a Dom Perignon
And we made love until the night time's gone
I am the cool

Frozen
Cold
Icicles on the toes
I am the cool

I'm winter
I'm a blizzard

Overall Meaning

The song "I Am the Cool" by Screamin' Jay Hawkins is a self-aggrandizing song where the singer proclaims himself as the coolest man on earth. Right from the first line, Hawkins claims that he is the man who was warned by the 'mama' and others to stay away from. He asserts to further prove his point that no one can doubt his status once they see him. Hawkins goes on to list examples of why he believes he is the coolest ever, such as owning a little red sports car, being chased by young girls and dismissing Madonna when he had too many women.

Hawkins also goes on to explain his cool demeanor in various situations such as how he wears the coolest clothes that would make 'Calvin Klein' stare at him, and how he handles threats to himself, such as an attempt to steal his Rolex watch. He beats up his attacker with one punch and then hangs him with the message, "Don't mess with Screamin' Jay." Hawkins also claims he is a man of fine taste, noting how the finest restaurants know him by his name and give him the best table. He eats exotic foods, finishes off with a Cuban cigar, and goes back to his penthouse suite with a lady good enough to eat.

The last few lines of the song suggest that he is the personification of winter, the coolest season that can create blizzards and icicles, emphasizing his overall coolness.

Line by Line Meaning

I'm the one your mama warned you about
I'm the bad boy your mother told you to stay away from

When you see me, I will leave you no doubt
When you meet me, you'll know immediately who I am

I'm the coolest man that ever walked this earth
I'm the epitome of coolness that's ever existed

I've been the coolest since the day of my birth
I've had coolness in my DNA, right from the beginning

I am the cool
I am the embodiment of coolness

I drive a little red sports car, as you plainly can see
I own a flashy red sports car that catches everyone's attention

Them young girls, I can't keep 'em away from me
I attract a lot of young girls, who can't resist me

You know Madonna? Well I saw her yesterday
I'm so cool that I even know celebrities like Madonna

Had too many women so I pushed her away
I had so many women around me that I didn't have time for Madonna

Walked into the Paramount Hotel in New York City
I entered a premier hotel in New York City

There were 72 women waiting there just for me
I was so popular with women that 72 of them came to see me

Just one problem with all these women so fine:
The only issue with having so many beautiful women around me is:

So many of them, so little time
I don't have enough time to spend with all of them

I wear the coolest clothes that ever could be
I have the most fashionable clothing, that no one else can match

I look so good even Calvin Klein stares at me
Calvin Klein, the fashion icon, admires my style

Red bands on my hat, a glass of chavvers in my hand
I wear a hat with red bands and carry a glass of chavvers in my hand

One look at me and the little girls understand
A single glance from me is enough to impress the young girls

Someone come up with a gun to steal the rolex off my wrist
An armed robber tried to steal the rolex watch from my wrist

Two seconds later he was down with one blow of my fist
I knocked him out with just one hit of my fist

I dragged his sorry ass to the town in the middle of the day
I took him to the town in broad daylight

I hung him up on a flagpole with a sign, "Don't mess with Screamin' Jay"
I hung him up on a flagpole with a warning sign that read, 'Don't mess with Screamin' Jay'

The finest restaurants, well they all know me by my name
The top-notch restaurants recognize me by my name

They gave me the best table and send everyone else away
They reserved the best table exclusively for me and turned everyone else away

Pheasant under glass, lobster and steak tartar
I ordered fancy dishes like pheasant under glass, lobster, and steak tartar

Finished it off with a fine cuban cigar
I enjoyed a high-quality Cuban cigar to finish my meal

Headed on back home to my penthouse suite
I returned to my lavish penthouse suite

With a fine young lady who's good enough to eat
I was accompanied by a beautiful woman, who looked delicious

She feeds me grapes and cheese and opens a Dom Perignon
She served me grapes, cheese, and a bottle of expensive champagne, Dom Perignon

And we made love until the night time's gone
We made passionate love to each other until the night ended

I am the cool
I am the embodiment of coolness

Frozen
Very cold

Cold
Extremely chilly

Icicles on the toes
Toes covered with ice, due to being very cold