Got The Blues, Can't Be Satisfied

Got The Blues, Can't Be Satisfied
words and music by Mississippi John Hurt
key of G, cross harp, C
relaxed

-4 5 -5 -4 5-5 -5 5 -4
Got the blues, can't be satisfied.

5 6 6 -7 6 -3' -3 -2
Got the blues, can't be sat -is -fied.

-6 -6 -6 6 -7 6 -6 -6 6
Keep the blues, I'll catch the train and ride.

Yes, whiskey straight will drive the blues away.
Yes, whixkey straight will drive the blues away.
That be the case, I wants a quart today.

I bought my baby a great big diamond ring.
I bought my baby a great big diamond ring,
Come right back home and caught her shaking that thing.

I said, "Babe, what makes you do me this a-way?"
I said, "Babe, what makes you do me this a-way?"
Well, that I bought, now you give away.

I took my gun and broke the barrel down.
I took my gun and broke the barrel down.
I put that joker six feet in the ground.

You got the blues, and I still can't be satisfied.
You got the blues, and I still can't be satisfied.
Well, some old day, gonna catch that train and ride.

Get Your Yas Yas Out

Get Your Yas Yas Out
words and music by Blind Boy Fuller
key of C, cross harp-F
moderately

6 6 6 6 6 5 6 5 6 5 6 5 6 5 6 5 -4 -3 -2
Now you got to leave my house this morning,
don't I'll throw your yas yas out o'door,

6 6 6 6 6 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 -3 -3 5 5 5 5 -4
Now you got to leave my house this morning,
don't I'll throw your yas yas out o'door.

6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 5 5 -3' -2 -2
Here you come raising hell,
know what you been doin' by the way you smell.

-3 -3 -3 -3 -4 -5 5 5 6 5 5 6 5 -4 -3 -2
Now you got to leave my house this morning,
throw your yas out o' door,

6 5 6 5 -4 -3 -2
I mean, yas yas out o' door. Yeah!

Now you have to leave my house this morning,
don't I'll throw your yas yas out o'door.
Here you come raising sand,
Know what you been doin' by the way you stand.
Now you got to leave my house this morning,
don't I'll throw your yas yas out o' door.
I mean yas yas out o'door.
Now you got to leave my house this morning,
yas yas out o' door.
Now you got to leave my house this morning,
don't I'll throw your yas yas out o' door.
Look at you drinkin, went right through your head.
Had to drink a belt before you went to bed,
Now you got to leave my house this morning,
don't I'll throw your yas yas out o' door
I mean yas yas out o' door.
Now you got to leave my house this morning,
don't I'll throw your yas yas out o' door.
Now you got to leave my house this mornin',
don't I'll throw your yas yas out o' door,
Oh, zee zah, be dum bum,
Batta, batta, batta, dado zam,
Now you got to leave my house this mornin',
throw your yas yas out o'door.

Good Liquor Gonna Carry Me Down

Good Liquor Gonna Carry Me Down
words and music by Big Bill Broonzy
key of C, third position-Bb
moderatly

-4 -4 -4 -4-4-4 -5 -3 -4-4 -4 -4 -3"
Lord I know a little girl 'bout sixteen years old

-3 -4 -4 -4 -4 -5 -4 -3 -4-3 -4 -4 -4
She says Bill stop drinkin I will sat is fy your soul

(chorus)

-3 -4 -3 -4 -4-3 2" -1
But I just keep on a-drinkin',

-4 -3 -4 -3 -3' -2'
Yeah, I keep on drinkin'

-3' -3 -3" 4 4 4 -3-3"
Yeah, I just keep on a drinkin'

-3 -4 -3-3" -2" -2" -1
Till good liquor carry me down.

Now my woman told me about fifteen years ago
Bill you gonna drink one of these mornings
and you'll never drink no more.
(chorus)
Yes I went to the doctor with my head in my hands
The doctor said Big Bill I think I'll have to
give you monkey glands.
(chorus)
Lord my woman told me to stop drinkin' and come on home,
Say If you don't Big Bill some other man
gonna carry your business home.
(chorus)

Quick Blues Harp Tip

Get in the habit of frequently rapping the harmonica (mouthpiece side down) against your leg or palm to knock out the excess saliva and condensation from your breath. Do this before and after you put the harmonica into your mouth. If the reeds are stuck together with saliva, they can't vibrate and make sound.

Dark and Dreary

Dark and Dreary
words and music by Joe Josea and Elmore James
key of C, third position-Bb
moderately

4 -4 -5 -5 -4 -4 6 -5 -4 -3 -4 -2'
I have lost my baby, almost lost my mind.

4 -4 -5 -4 -4 -6 -5 6 -5 -3 -4 -2'
I've lost my baby, almost lost my mind.

6 6 6 -6 6 6 6 -4 -4 -3 -4 -2'
Way she treat me, gonna drive a man stone blind.

Well, the road seemed dark and dreary, while I traveled down that way.
Well, the road seemed dark and dreary, while I traveled down that way.
Well, my baby left me, she just come back home today.

Oh, I love my baby, tell the world I do
Oh, I love my baby, tell the world I do.
Well, I need a little lovin', darlin', gonna make my dream come true.

Oh, I love you darlin', like a schoolboy loves his pie.
Oh, I love you darlin', like a schoolboy loves his pie.
Now ain't that the way to treat me, darlin', my hurt's so long I will die.

Blues Harp Profile: James Cotton

At his high energy 1970s peak as a bandleader, James Cotton was a bouncing, sweaty, whirling dervish of a bluesman, roaring his vocals and all but sucking the reeds right out of his defenseless little harmonicas with his prodigious lungpower. Due to throat problems, Cotton's vocals are no longer what they used to be, but he remains a masterful instrumentalist.

Cotton had some gargantuan shoes to fill when he stepped into Little Walter's slot as Muddy Waters's harp ace in 1954, but for the next dozen years, the young Mississippian filled the integral role beside Chicago's blues king with power and precision. Of course, Cotton prepared for such a career move for a long time, having learned how to wail on harp from none other than Sonny Boy Williamson himself.

Cotton was only a child when he first heard Williamson's fabled radio broadcasts for King Biscuit Time over KFFA out of Helena, AR. So sure was Cotton of his future that he ended up moving into Williamson's home at age nine, soaking up the intricacies of blues harpdom from one of its reigning masters. Six years later, Cotton was ready to unleash a sound of his own.

Gigging with area notables Joe Willie Wilkins and Willie Nix, Cotton built a sterling reputation around West Memphis, following in his mentor's footsteps by landing his own radio show in 1952 over KWEM. Sam Phillips, whose Sun label was still a fledgling operation, invited Cotton to record for him, and two singles commenced: "Straighten Up Baby" in 1953 and "Cotton Crop Blues" the next year. Legend has it Cotton played drums instead of harp on the first platter.

In 1974, Cotton signed with Buddah and released 100% Cotton, one of his most relentless LPs, with Matt "Guitar" Murphy sizzlingly backing him up. A decade later, Alligator issued another standout Cotton LP, High Compression, that was split evenly between traditional style Chicago blues and funkier, horn driven material. Harp Attack!, a 1990 summit meeting on Alligator, paired Cotton with three exalted peers: Wells, Carey Bell, and comparative newcomer Billy Branch. Antone's Records was responsible for a pair of gems: a live 1988 set reuniting the harpist with Murphy and Tucker and a stellar 1991 studio project, Mighty Long Time.
Cotton still commands a huge following, even though serious throat problems have tragically robbed him of his once ferocious roar. That malady ruined parts of his Grammy nominated album for Verve, Living the Blues; only when he stuck to playing harp was the customary Cotton energy still evident. ~ Bill Dahl
From All Music Guide to the Blues: The Experts' Guide to the Best Blues Recordings (2nd Ed)

Harp Tuning: How To Raise The Pitch

Håkan Ehn shows how to adjust a reed to raise the pitch a half step in draw hole 6. Håkan is tinkering with an A harmonica to play Canned Heat's On The Road Again.

Here's a link to where you can pick up a Lee Oskar Harmonica Tool Kit and Instruction Manualfor blues harp customization and maintenance.

Always practice on your old or cheap harmonicas first. I've messed up a whole bunch of harps along the way- better they be a $5 Jambone than a $100 Meisterklasse eh? Good luck.