OoooOOOohh Rag, Rag, Said do that Rag.
Sunday, October 11, 2009 at 12:46 PM In Blind Boy Fuller’s “Rag, Mama, Rag,” we can see a few interesting themes we have been talking about in class. It is obviously a narrative of either Fuller’s experiences, but most likely those of another individual or a group of events that Fuller knows happens around him. There are 4 main verses that all have very different focuses.
The first verse tells of a man going to town looking for a woman, but expressing how hard that is to do since most have a man already. Looking for a woman is a common topic used by many musicians, not just in early blues, but I think this verse serves as a beginning to the rest of the song. The second verse now tells about a man who’s “gal” has cheated on him, a very common theme we have seen across most of the genres we have studied thus far in class. It is a very interesting song in the sense that right after the above verse stating, “Says I wouldn’t have thought my gal would treatin’ me so,” it goes into a verse about giving advice saying that you should have 2 girls. I can’t seem to understand what exactly he is meaning. I thought at first that he was just talking about having a mistress, maybe for just some variety, but I think it relates back to the second verse in that you need 2 gals because it is certain one of them is going to cheat on you, hence, “Now if you’ll get you one woman better get you two, one for your buddy other one for you.” Now the last verse holds a dark theme seen in a lot of the songs in this section. You could deduce that now the man is going to let her “reap what she has sown,” expressed earlier in the song. We don’t really know what he does to her, but she does scream “murder,” and he confesses that he has a pistol in his pocket and a black jack in his hand. I don’t see why it would be necessary to let the audience know he had a pistol unless he intended to use it. So it could be a story about one man and his girl problems, or different instances by different individuals.
Also, it should be noted that the narrater expresses no change in intensity or feeling in his voice even while singing about his woman cheating on him, or when he takes her under the willow tree where he is at least going to beat her. This is yet again another theme we have studied, although we have seen it used in folk. I think this song is considered blues, but we can see that there is a folk influence. So it could be a story about one man and his girl problems, or different instances by different individuals.
I’ve also made some conclusions to what the refrain could mean. At first I thought he could be using “rag” as reference to ragtime music. He sings, “rag, baby” and “do that rag,” which I thought alluded to dancing which would be a common thing to do while listening to a ragtime tune. Now I think that he is actually referring to her as a “rag,” which is a common insult to woman. I’m still not sure so any insight from you guys would be cool.
I chose this song because it was a challenge. The form of the song is a little different from anything we have covered in class. It looks like the verse’s all differ in little ways. All the lines within them are very similar, but have small variations. I don’t think there is a definite pattern it follows. It looks like the first verse is A, A’, A’. A’, while the next verse has a A, B, C, B format. If you take a look at the refrain too, he also uses variation almost every time he sings it. Very interesting song and I hope we can dissect it in class because it seems different from anything we have listened to in class.
Reader Comments (2)
Hi, Joseph,
Well, you certainly wrote a lot! In response to your question about the form of the song, I offer the following analysis (sorry about the lyrics):
First verse:
Said I'm goin' uptown, had my hand, A
Lookin' for a woman ain't got no man, A'
Just like lookin' for a needle in the sand, A'
Lookin' for a woman ain't got no man, B
Second verse:
Said I wouldn't a thought my gal would treat me so, A'
[something something] backdoor, A'
[something something] what ya saw, A'
You got to read there what ya saw, B
What do you think? Keep in mind that this type of analysis is not necessarily a science -- subjectivity can play a role. Even though all the notes aren't exactly the same, the A' lines all provide similar function. I mean, I think. I'd like to know what you think of my analysis.
--Andrew
Hello, students,
As per Ben's instructions, I've divided the posts in this topic into groups. The divisions aren't perfect, but it seems like you would be interesting in discussing the emotional content of these songs.
What is it that makes a song emotional? How can you tell if a song is sad or happy? Can "nonchalant" singing reflect a particular emotion? How does the instrumentation, melody, and tempo affect the feel of a song? Surely it can't just be slow/fast or high/low notes -- there are happy and sad songs that fit all those categories. Try to pin it down with your classmates, and don't be afraid to argue. Just do it respectfully.
The posts I think you should all look at are here:
Otto thinks "Salty Dog" sounds silly, despite the serious lyrical content:
http://benleedscarson.com/charlie-patton-blind-willie/2009/10/11/mississippi-john-hurts-salty-dog.html
Kathryn thinks "Statesboro Blues" is light-hearted, but I hear a lot of pain:
http://benleedscarson.com/charlie-patton-blind-willie/statesboro-blues.html
--Andrew