Formed in 1963 in Birmingham after the Welsh guitarist Spencer Davis encountered vocalist and organist Steve Winwood (then aged 14 and still at school), and his bass playing brother Muff Winwood performing at a pub, the Golden Eagle, as the Muff Woody Jazz Band. He recruited them and Pete York on drums to form the Rhythm and Blues Quartette, which performed regularly in the city. In 1964, they signed their first recording contract after Chris Blackwell of Island Records saw them at an appearance in a local club; Blackwell also became their producer.
The group's first professional recording was a cover version of Dimples, but they came to success at the end of 1965 with Keep on Running, the group's first number one single. In 1966 they followed this with Somebody Help Me and When I Come Home. For the German market the group released "Det war in Schöneberg, im Monat Mai" and "Mädel ruck ruck ruck an meine grüne Seite" (the first is from a 1913 Berlin operetta, the second is a Swabian traditional) as a tribute single for that audience, Spencer Davis having studied in West Berlin in the early 1960s.
By the end of 1966 and the beginning of 1967, the group released two more hits, Gimme Some Lovin' (which was re-released in a live, nine-minute version by Steve Winwood's Traffic in 1971) and I'm A Man. These tracks proved to be their two best-known successes, especially in the U.S.
In 1967, Winwood left to form Traffic; his brother Muff moved into the music industry as A&R man at Island Records. In a so-called joint venture, the soundtrack to the film Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush featured both the Spencer Davis Group and Traffic.
Despite the Winwoods' departure, the Spencer Davis Group continued performing and released more singles, though not repeating earlier successes. These included Time Seller in July 1967; the b-side, Don't Want You No More, also received radio airplay.
This was followed by "Mr. Second-Class" in late 1967, which was heavily played on Radio Caroline (at that time one of the two remaining pirate radio ships off the British coast) and the group's last minor hit, "After Tea", in 1968. The latter song was released at the same time by the German band The Rattles, providing competition that led finally to a temporary stop to all activities of the band. Davis continued working, however, producing some jazz-oriented albums in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Although short-lived, The Spencer Davis Group - particularly its incarnation with Steve Winwood - was influential, with many of the band's songs covered by other artists over the years. Notable among these are Chicago's 1969 version of "I'm a Man," The Allman Brothers Band's 1969 take of "Don't Want You No More," Three Dog Night's 1970 recording of "Can't Get Enough of It," and The Blues Brothers' 1980 recording of "Gimme Some Lovin'."
Mean Woman Blues
The Spencer Davis Group Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Yeah I got a woman mean as she can be
Sometimes I think she's almost as mean as me, oh oh
A black cat up died of fright
'cos she crossed my path last night
Pretty baby, I got a woman mean as she can be
Sometimes I think she's almost as mean as me, yeah yeah
(mean mean woman blues, mean mean woman blues) yeah
(mean mean woman blues, mean mean woman blues) hey hey I know
(mean mean woman blues, mean mean woman blues)
Well a black cat up died of fright
'cos she crossed my path last night
Well I got a, got a woman mean as she can be
Sometimes I think she's almost as mean as me
Hey hey (mean mean woman blues)
Just a little bit softer (mean mean woman blues)
I wanna hear it (mean mean woman blues)
Yeah (mean mean woman blues)
Sometimes (mean mean woman blues)
Hey I got to move on (mean mean woman blues)
Hey hey (mean mean woman blues)
Oh oo oh oo (mean mean woman blues)
Oo oo oo (mean mean woman blues)
What'd I say (mean mean woman blues)
Sometimes (mean mean woman blues)
Just just just (mean mean woman blues)
Just a little bit softer (mean mean woman blues)
I wanna hear it (mean mean woman blues)
Hum mean (mean mean woman blues)
Mean (mean mean woman blues)
I've got it right now (mean mean woman blues)
Just a little bit louder (mean mean woman blues)
Hey hey hey (mean mean woman blues)
Hey hey hey (mean mean woman blues)
Hey hey yeah (mean mean woman blues)
Yeah yeah yeah yeah (mean mean woman blues)
What'd I say (mean mean woman blues)
Oh yeah (mean mean woman blues)
She's so mean to me (mean mean woman blues)
Every night and day (mean mean woman blues)
Sometimes (mean mean woman blues)
Sometimes (mean mean woman blues)
Sometimes I got to move right on (mean mean woman blues)
I got to move her on (mean mean woman blues)
Hey hey I got to move her on (mean mean woman blues)
Sometimes I think she's almost as mean as me !
The Spencer Davis Group's "Mean Woman Blues" is a classic blues track that depicts the difficulties the singer faces with his partner, who is mean and difficult to deal with. Through repetition, the first two lines of the song, "I got a woman mean as she can be/Yeah I got a woman mean as she can be," express the challenging and vexing nature of the singer's partner. The line "Sometimes I think she's almost as mean as me" implies that the singer might not be entirely blameless in the relationship's difficulties.
In the second verse, the mention of a black cat dying of fright after crossing the singer's path emphasizes the singer's bad luck and adds to the song's mood of negativity. The chorus repeats the phrase "mean mean woman blues" many times, with slightly varying intonations, and the outcome is to portray a sense of weariness and resignation. By constantly emphasizing the word "mean," the song evokes the singer's sense of feeling trapped and frustrated in a relationship.
Overall, "Mean Woman Blues" conveys a sense of hopelessness in the face of challenging relationships. The song suggests that the most the singer can do is endure and hope for a better outcome in the future.
Line by Line Meaning
I got a woman mean as she can be
I have a woman who is extremely cruel and harsh
Sometimes I think she's almost as mean as me, oh oh
At times, I feel that she is almost as malicious as I am
A black cat up died of fright
A black cat died of terror
'cos she crossed my path last night
It was because the woman I have was crossing my path last night
Pretty baby, I got a woman mean as she can be
My dear, I have a woman who is incredibly cruel
Hey hey (mean mean woman blues)
Hey hey (blues about a cruel woman)
Just a little bit softer (mean mean woman blues)
Please reduce the volume a little bit (blues about a cruel woman)
Yeah (mean mean woman blues)
Yes (blues about a cruel woman)
Hey I got to move on (mean mean woman blues)
Hey, I have to move on (blues about a cruel woman)
Oh oo oh oo (mean mean woman blues)
Oh oo oh oo (blues about a cruel woman)
I've got it right now (mean mean woman blues)
I have it now (blues about a cruel woman)
Just a little bit louder (mean mean woman blues)
Please raise the volume a little bit (blues about a cruel woman)
Hey hey hey (mean mean woman blues)
Hey hey hey (blues about a cruel woman)
Hey hey yeah (mean mean woman blues)
Hey hey yeah (blues about a cruel woman)
Yeah yeah yeah yeah (mean mean woman blues)
Yeah yeah yeah yeah (blues about a cruel woman)
What'd I say (mean mean woman blues)
What did I say (blues about a cruel woman)
Oh yeah (mean mean woman blues)
Oh yeah (blues about a cruel woman)
She's so mean to me (mean mean woman blues)
She treats me so cruelly (blues about a cruel woman)
Every night and day (mean mean woman blues)
Every night and day (blues about a cruel woman)
Sometimes I think she's almost as mean as me !
At times, I believe that she is just as cruel as I am!
Contributed by Isaac Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
flimbambo
Wow- didn't know Stevie could play lead as well as that!
Pablo Pérez
Even better!
tellarjj
Spencer Davis was my favorite band !
SurfinUSA
A 15 year old white boy who sounded just like Ray Charles. I had seen Ray several times in concert then saw Steve with Eric Clapton. Steve played "Georgia On My Mind" on solo with his organ. I closed my eyes and couldn't tell the difference between the voices of Ray and him.
Check out Steve's "on fire" rendtiion of "Dear Mr. Fantasy" at the 2007 Crossroads Guitar Festival. https://youtu.be/fmoL-qXAr5o
Pedro Pablo Seco Fernandez
Fabulosa banda y excelente tema
Marco Del Pero
Thank's a lot for this. Greetings!
jean-françois louvrier
Fabuleux Steve WINWOOD
Julie Raymond
After this,he probably did not have a girlfriend for some time.
Julie Raymond
Wonder if anybody asked him.if he actually had a mean woman? Probably not.
Julie Raymond
Should be happy,if she is nearly as mean as he is,what is the problem?