Bessie Smith

Featuring: Louis Armstrong

Songwriter: W. C. Handy

[Bessie Smith]
I hate to see that evening sun go down
Yes, I hate to see that evening sun go down
'Cause it makes me feel like I'm on my last go-round
If I'm feelin' tomorrow like I feel today
Yes, feelin' tomorrow like I feel today
I'm gonna pack my trunk and make my getaway

Say a St. Louis woman wears her diamond rings
She pulls her man around by her apron strings
If it wasn't for the powder and the store-bought hair
Say, that man I love wouldn't of gone nowhere, nowhere!
Say I love my man, like a school boy love his fire
Like Louis Armstrong blows so nice and high
But I love that man, until the day I die

[Louis Armstrong]
Yes I've been to the gypsy to get my fortune told
Yes, I've been to the gypsy to get my fortune told
Because the gypsy knows, crazy 'bout my cherry rose, yes yes
And when I went to the gypsy she had fortunes all over the place
I'm telling you, yes the gypsy had fortunes all over the place!
But when she looked in my hand, she slapped me right in the face!

[Bessie Smith]
Say I ain't good looking, baby, I ain't feel so fine
(Who said that?)
Say I ain't good looking, baby, I ain't feel so fine
(I'm wondering what's on your mind)
But all the boys like me, 'cause I take my time!
(That's the trouble now)

[Louis Armstrong]
I'm gonna grab me a picket off somebody's fence
(Wait a minute now wait don't go berzerk now, wait a minute!)
Well well ah! A little picket off somebody's fence
I'm gonna whip ya all over your big head and tell you "Learn some sense!"

Bessie Smith is regarded as “The Empress of Blues,” and considered one of the most influential vocalists of the 1900s. She was born in 1894 Chattanooga, Tennessee. Her recording contract in 1922 with Columbia Records was a landmark for Black musicians, and she became one of the highest-paid Black performers during that time.

Throughout her life, she sang many blues songs. Her vocal style strongly influenced later jazz musicians. Known for her hugely-expressive growl, Smith continues to gain relevancy in current times. She was widely rumored to be bisexual, although no hard evidence exists. Later singers Billie Holiday, Aretha Franklin, and Janis Joplin considered her to to be a primary influential to their music. Smith died following complications in a car accident in 1937. Since then, many accounts of her life have been included in film, TV, and books.

Bessie Smith popular songs

Saint Louis BluesBessie Smith

Bessie Smith