Tampa Red is best known as an accomplished and influential blues guitarist who had a unique single-string bottleneck style. His songwriting and his silky, polished slide technique influenced other leading Chicago blues guitarists, such as Big Bill Broonzy and Robert Nighthawk, as well as Muddy Waters, Elmore James, Mose Allison and many others. In a career spanning over 30 years he also recorded pop, R&B and hokum records.
He was born Hudson Woodbridge in Smithville, Georgia. His parents died when he was a child, and he moved to Tampa, Florida, where he was raised by his aunt and grandmother and adopted their surname, Whittaker. He emulated his older brother, Eddie, who played guitar, and he was especially inspired by an old street musician called Piccolo Pete, who first taught him to play blues licks on a guitar.
In the 1920s, having already perfected his slide technique, he moved to Chicago, Illinois, and began his career as a musician, adopting the name "Tampa Red" from his childhood home and red hair. His big break was being hired to accompany Ma Rainey and he began recording in 1928 with "It's Tight Like That", in a bawdy and humorous style that became known as "hokum". Early recordings were mostly collaborations with Thomas A. Dorsey, known at the time as Georgia Tom. Tampa Red and Georgia Tom recorded almost 90 sides, sometimes as "The Hokum Boys" or, with Frankie Jaxon, as "Tampa Red's Hokum Jug Band".
In 1928, Tampa Red became the first black musician to play a National steel-bodied resonator guitar, the loudest and showiest guitar available before amplification, acquiring one in the first year they were available. This allowed him to develop his trademark bottleneck style, playing single string runs, not block chords, which was a precursor to later blues and rock guitar soloing. The National guitar he used was a gold-plated tricone, which was found in Illinois in the 1990s and later sold to the "Experience Music Project" in Seattle. Tampa Red was known as "The Man With The Gold Guitar", and, into the 1930s, he was billed as "The Guitar Wizard".
His partnership with Dorsey ended in 1932, but he remained much in demand as a session musician, working with John Lee "Sonny Boy" Williamson, Memphis Minnie, and many others. In 1934 he signed for Victor Records. He formed the Chicago Five, a group of session musicians who created what became known as the Bluebird sound, a precursor of the small group style of later jump blues and rock and roll bands. He was a close friend and associate of Big Bill Broonzy and Big Maceo Merriweather. He enjoyed commercial success and reasonable prosperity, and his home became a centre for the blues community, informally providing rehearsal space, bookings, and lodgings for the flow of musicians who arrived in Chicago from the Mississippi Delta as the commercial potential of blues music grew and agricultural employment in the south diminished.
By the 1940s he was playing electric guitar. In 1942 "Let Me Play With Your Poodle" was a # 4 hit on Billboard Magazine's new "Harlem Hit Parade", forerunner of the R&B chart, and his 1949 recording "When Things Go Wrong with You (It Hurts Me Too)", another R&B hit, was covered by Elmore James. He was "rediscovered" in the late 1950s, like many other surviving early recorded blues artists such as Son House and Skip James, as part of the blues revival. His final, undistinguished, recordings were in 1960.
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You Can't Get That Stuff No More
Tampa Red Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I know, I know, I figured ""Fuck it""
Dinner at the hotel, champagne bottle
Steak and potatoes, a feather in a bucketTell me what is it we're pretendin'?
Not to know and who needs proof?
I don't need so much to remember, no no
That's how it is when you tell the truth
Woo!
'Til patience runs her course?
Keep that in mind, when we say goodbye
'Cause you can't get this stuff no moreThat's the thing about self-improvement
Don't get me wrong, I plan on gettin' some soon
Outside the wire somethin's movin'
The barn burnt down, now I can see the moon
A slice at a time, like a pizza pie
You serve up the truth, don't want it anymore
Keep that in mind, when we say goodbye
'Cause you can't get this stuff no more Woo!
How many times does somebody lie
'Fore patience runs her course?
Keep that in mind when we say goodbye
'Cause you can't get this stuff no more
It is important to note that these lyrics are not from a Tampa Red song, but rather from the song "You Can't Get That Stuff No More" by The Black Keys. The song talks about a relationship that's falling apart, the lies being told, and the realization that things won't be the same again. The first stanza talks about a failed attempt at romance, as the singer is supposed to go on a date with a supermodel but instead ends up eating dinner alone in a hotel room instead. The metaphor of the "feather in a bucket" is representative of someone pretending to have something greater than they truly do.
The second stanza highlights the theme of communication and honesty in relationships. The line "I don't need so much to remember" implies that the singer has an awareness and understanding of the truth, and they do not need to recall memories that never happened or were exaggerated. They emphasize the importance of telling the truth in relationships, and how it can ultimately bring the relationship closer together. The chorus repeats the notion that lies can only be spread for so long until the truth comes out and has lasting consequences.
Line by Line Meaning
Got me a date with a supermodel, ha ha ha
I have a date with a very attractive person and I am excited about it
I know, I know, I figured ""Fuck it""
I have decided to take a risk and not worry about the outcome
Dinner at the hotel, champagne bottle
We will be dining at a fancy hotel and celebrating with champagne
Steak and potatoes, a feather in a bucket
Our meal will consist of a classic and hearty dish, and we will be satisfied
Tell me what is it we're pretendin'?
Let's stop pretending and be honest with each other
Not to know and who needs proof?
We both know the truth and don't require evidence
I don't need so much to remember, no no
I don't need to remember everything, just the important things
That's how it is when you tell the truth
The truth is simple and doesn't require a lot of explanation
Woo!
Expressing excitement or enthusiasm
How many times does somebody lie
How many times can someone lie before they are caught or exposed
'Til patience runs her course?
Until the person being lied to gets tired of it and stops believing
Keep that in mind, when we say goodbye
Remember this when we part ways
'Cause you can't get this stuff no more
This situation or experience cannot be replicated or repeated
That's the thing about self-improvement
Self-improvement is important but can be challenging
Don't get me wrong, I plan on gettin' some soon
I am committed to improving myself despite any difficulties
Outside the wire somethin's movin'
Something is happening outside of our immediate surroundings
The barn burnt down, now I can see the moon
Sometimes a bad situation can lead to a positive outcome
A slice at a time, like a pizza pie
Making progress slowly but steadily
You serve up the truth, don't want it anymore
When someone tells you the truth, you may not want to hear it or accept it
Woo!
Expressing excitement or enthusiasm
How many times does somebody lie
How many times can someone lie before they are caught or exposed
'Fore patience runs her course?
Until the person being lied to gets tired of it and stops believing
Keep that in mind when we say goodbye
Remember this when we part ways
'Cause you can't get this stuff no more
This situation or experience cannot be replicated or repeated
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: LEWIS JORDAN, SAM THEARD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@phyllisford2130
Incredible how this song's still relevant like 70 years later but the only difference is these days it's weed not booze.
@mathmusic1490
Early bluesman......prolific beyond belief. Hundreds of singles on vinyl. Elmore James and others took his songs and did them their way.
@ishmaeldiz2995
One of my favourite song since I was a kid when dad would play it :)
@jeanyjerome3898
You Can't Get That Stuff No More by Tampa Red and Georgia Tom was written by Sam Theard and was first recorded and released by Sam Theard in 1931.
@robertvonnahme1596
this is great, never heard of him before, i will be listening to much more, cause i can still get this stuff...
@fractuss
Did you not hear him?😃
@douglasborgstrom2023
It doesn't list the year of the recording among the information. This posting showed up after a search for the Van Halen tune. Tampa Red was unknown to me, but I gave this a listen, and I think this man was extremely gifted. This song is brilliant. ❤
@ConestogaCreek
Love this.
@SaphirSouenEstherG
Tampa Red - January 8, 1904 - March 19, 1981 - Shared on FB March 19, 2019
@oldgrannywheels
Michael Bloomfield died one month before Tampa. Mike sought Tampa out, along with so many other bluesmen, to speak with his heroes he grew up listening to but who were forgotten by most of the world. Tampa out lived Mike by about 1 month and 40 years, but they are two of the greatest interpreters of the blues ever.