Career:
James Edward Pryor was born in Lambert, Mississippi and developed a Delta blues style influenced by both Sonny Boy Williamson I and Sonny Boy Williamson II. He moved to Chicago around 1940.
While serving in the U.S. Army he would blow bugle calls through the powerful PA system, which led him to experiment with playing the harmonica that way. Upon discharge from the Army in 1945, he obtained his own amplifier, and began playing harmonica at the outdoor Maxwell Street market, becoming a regular in the Chicago blues scene.
Pryor recorded some of the first postwar Chicago blues records in 1948, including "Telephone Blues" and "Snooky & Moody's Boogie" with guitarist Moody Jones, and "Stockyard Blues" and "Keep What You Got" with singer/guitarist Floyd Jones. "Snooky & Moody's Boogie" is of considerable historical significance: Pryor claimed that harmonica ace Little Walter directly copied the signature riff of Pryor's song into the opening eight bars of his own blues harmonica instrumental, "Juke," an R&B hit in 1952. In 1967, Pryor moved south to Ullin, Illinois. He quit music for carpentry in the late 1960s but was persuaded to make a comeback.[4] After he dropped out of sight, Pryor was later re-discovered and resumed periodic recording until his death in nearby Cape Girardeau, Missouri at the age of 85.
In January 1973 he appeared with the American Blues Legends tour which played throughout Europe, alongside Homesick James. Whilst on this tour they recorded an album in London, Homesick James & Snooky Pryor, on Jim Simpson's label Big Bear Records.
Some of his better known songs include "Judgement Day" (1956), and "Crazy 'Bout My Baby" from Snooky (1989), "How'd You Learn to Shake It Like That" from Tenth Anniversary Anthology (1989) and "Shake My Hand" (1999).
Discography:
This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.
Singles"Boogie" (A-side) "Telephone Blues" (B-side) (1948) Planet
"Someone to Love Me" (a) "Judgement Day" (b) (1956) Vee Jay Records
AlbumsHomesick James & Snooky Pryor (1973) Virgin Records, London
"Do It If You Want To" (1973) ABC Records, Los Angeles, New York
Snooky (1989) Blind Pig Records
Snooky Pryor (1991) Paula Records
Johnny Shines and Snooky Pryor: Back To The Country (1991) Blind Pig Records
Snooky Pryor: Too Cool To Move (1992) Antones
In This Mess Up to My Chest (1994) Antones
Mind Your Own Business (1996) Antones
Snooky Pryor: Shake My Hand (1999) Blind Pig Records
Super Harps II mit Carey Bell, Lazy Lester, Rafuel Neal (2001) Telarc
Snooky Pryor and his Mississippi Wrecking Crew (2002) Electro-Fi
Mojo Ramble (2003) Electro-Fi
Double Shot Snooky Pryor and Mel Brown (2005) Electro-Fi
Judgement Day
Snooky Pryor Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The time's run out now, you can't stay
Screaming and crying, you got to go
Turn and say, "Peter won't you open the door?"
Yes, I'm coming
Yes, I'm coming
Yes, I'm coming
Yes, I'm coming
Just like my time alone
When I die you can't bury me
... Women at my head and feet
You fold my arms across my chest
You tell me friends that I'm gone to rest
Yes, I'm coming
Yes, I'm coming
Yes, I'm coming
Yes, I'm coming
Yes, I'm coming
Just like my time alone
When I'm dead right there in my grave
You're gonna be sorry
That you treat me like a slave
There ain't no one can take my place
You're gonna cry your blues away
Yes, I'm coming
Yes, I'm coming
Yes, I'm coming
Just like my time alone
In Snooky Pryor's "Judgement Day," the lyrics seem to be addressing the idea that everyone will have to face judgement eventually. The first stanza mentions the inevitability of time running out and the imperative to leave. The singer asks, "What you gonna do on judgement day?" - a rhetorical question that suggests a fear of facing divine judgement without adequate preparation. The singer then pleads with Peter to open the door, possibly referencing the biblical story of Peter as the gatekeeper to heaven.
The second stanza details the singer's funeral arrangements, specifically requesting that he be buried with women at his head and feet. This could be interpreted as a final act of rebellion against societal norms or a reference to the idea of reincarnation in some spiritual traditions. The singer then warns that the living will regret mistreating him, emphasizing that there is no one who can replace him.
Overall, the song seems to be a warning and a plea for preparation for the inevitable judgement that will come. The repetition of "yes, I'm coming" suggests a determination to face that judgement with acceptance and readiness.
Line by Line Meaning
What you gonna do on judgement day
What actions will you take when you are faced with divine judgement?
The time's run out now, you can't stay
Your time on earth is over, you cannot remain.
Screaming and crying, you got to go
You will be forcibly removed, crying and screaming.
Turn and say, "Peter won't you open the door?"
As you are being removed, you plead with Saint Peter to grant you entry to heaven.
Yes, I'm coming
The singer is expressing that they will face judgement day when it comes.
Just like my time alone
The singer is indicating that they will face judgement alone, just as they spend time alone.
When I die you can't bury me
The singer does not want to be buried when they die.
... Women at my head and feet
In the event of the singer's death, they want women to be positioned at their head and feet.
You fold my arms across my chest
The singer wants their arms crossed over their chest when they are buried.
You tell me friends that I'm gone to rest
The singer wants their friends to be informed that they have passed away.
When I'm dead right there in my grave
After the singer has died, they want to be placed directly in their grave.
You're gonna be sorry
The singer predicts that those who mistreated them will regret their actions.
That you treat me like a slave
The singer feels that they were unfairly enslaved or mistreated in life.
There ain't no one can take my place
No one else can replace the singer or their role in life.
You're gonna cry your blues away
Those who mistreated the singer will experience regret and sadness.
Writer(s): JAMES PRYOR
Contributed by Bailey D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@saxonwax
bill...you put me on to so much good music. you made my life so much better in the process. cant thank you enough. happy new year to you.
@alain59200
thank bill nice blues
@07Towncar
To my ear this sounds like a young Jimmy Reed, the melody is familiar and the guitar/harmonica have tempo of "BOOGIE IN THE DARk" and the same VEEJay label as Reed. This could have been one of the "takes" but the phrasing and beat and time of release are about the same...John Lee Hooker recorded under a half-dozen names until he got real traction...And record anthologies of singers are priced cheap since one of the discarded takes was used. The Classic Rock track by the Steve Miller Band - The Airplane Song - a "must play on every tour the Public Release has an extended Intro that cuts the long 1st cut and makes a much longer Guitar beat Intro...Same as When the Levee Breaks by Led Z...I have the LONG intro on a cassette that was not on the Album.
I guess I will just have to self-convince that Snooky & Reed were different persons but so similar sounding... and they just sound like they could be brothers.
@giuliagiudice6816
What you gonna do on judgement day
The time's run out now, you can't stay
Screaming and crying, you got to go
Turn and say, "Peter won't you open the door?"
Yes, I'm coming
(Yes, I'm coming)
Yes, I'm coming
(Yes, I'm coming)
Yes, I'm coming
Just like my time alone
When I die you can't bury me
Tombstone women at my head and feet
You fold my arms across my chest
You tell me friends that I'm gone to rest
Yes, I'm coming
(Yes, I'm coming)
Yes, I'm coming
(Yes, I'm coming)
Yes, I'm coming
Just like my time alone
When I'm dead right there in my grave
You're gonna be sorry
That you treat me like a slave
There ain't no one can take my place
You're gonna cry your blues away
Yes, I'm coming
Yes, I'm coming
Yes, I'm coming
Just like my time alone
@littlewalter44
Not turn and say……Saint Peter