tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6402985451299910936.post3652303344116330177..comments2024-03-12T20:57:55.805-07:00Comments on Just A Song: Devil Got My WomanUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6402985451299910936.post-56679338208438095202016-06-16T17:23:45.186-07:002016-06-16T17:23:45.186-07:00And Skip James recorded his second career in the 6...And Skip James recorded his second career in the 60s ... he recorded well before that ... you are right though, he did not write "Crow Jane" but he did write this version of the tune.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6402985451299910936.post-1670080034346268812016-06-16T17:22:22.044-07:002016-06-16T17:22:22.044-07:00The narrator's best friend is the devil. He s...The narrator's best friend is the devil. He stole this woman from him and he stole her back again. Robert Johnson, The Grateful Dead and many others have touched on this theme prevalent in blues and folk. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6402985451299910936.post-40968392928465375482010-09-23T07:04:04.190-07:002010-09-23T07:04:04.190-07:00Skip James dd not write "Crow Jane" -- h...Skip James dd not write "Crow Jane" -- he didn't record it until the 1960s, and many other people had recorded it long before him.<br /><br />http://richardmattesonsblog.blogspot.com/2009/02/history-of-crow-jane-blues.htmlAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6402985451299910936.post-76133611389334442612010-01-30T08:53:19.294-08:002010-01-30T08:53:19.294-08:00Hi jessesublett:
Thanks for stopping by, & fo...Hi jessesublett:<br /><br />Thanks for stopping by, & for your insights. I appreciate your taking the time to explain the sub-text of "Crow Jane," & have seen this explanation elsewhere. I guess my problem is twofold: first, & most importantly, I don't believe you can so completely separate literal & underlying meanings. Given that the songwriter has various ways of presenting his narrative, I don't see that there's any absolute necessity for presenting a story about killing "Jim Crow" in the context of a story about killing a woman named "Crow Jane" in cold blood. As I understand it, the literal colloquial meaning of "Crow Jane" is a woman whose skin is very dark. Do I believe the sub-text complicates the song in an interesting way--you bet! Do I think it erases the literal meaning of the words? No. Also, as a white performer, I wouldn't perform this song not only because for me, it's not possible to sever literal & underlying meaning, but because given my ethnicity, there wouldn't be any genuine connection to the more valid underlying meaning--the same reason I probably wouldn't perform Leadbelly's "Bourgeois Blues," which I think is a great song. I will say that I prefer "Crow Jane" to some noteworthy country songs about murdering women--for instance, "Bank of the Ohio" or Johnny Cash's "Cocaine Blues," both because it does have some cultural context & also because it doesn't"prettify" the story musically (as in "Bank of the Ohio") or make it sort of boisterous & fun, as in Cash's song.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15687192784861682991noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6402985451299910936.post-12593961553795011892010-01-28T06:47:31.608-08:002010-01-28T06:47:31.608-08:00It's always great to see posts on great gems l...It's always great to see posts on great gems like these. I know they're out there, but anyone who thinks a song like this is "misogynist," I would hate to get stranded on the tiny, suffocating desert island where they live. The 1966 Newport juke joint film of the same name ("Devil Got My Woman") is truly one of the finest cultural documents of our time. The Wolf is a force of nature, as expected, so are the other performers and to have these living legends in the same small room together is riveting to say the least. Even Son House, who is out of his mind, unfortunately, due to his deteriorated condition, turns in a spine tingling performance. I would add that if you really think Crow Jane is about killing a woman named Jane, you are missing volumes of meaning. The lyrics are actually a cleverly coded discussion of killing the white boss man. Double and triple entendre like these were common motifs in the culture, lending even more edge to the immense power of the music.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6402985451299910936.post-72006955648759770852009-10-07T12:11:15.520-07:002009-10-07T12:11:15.520-07:00Hi K: I agree with you. Also, while it's almo...Hi K: I agree with you. Also, while it's almost impossible for a Skip James' song not to have a menacing edge (at least to my ear), this doesn't involve any actual violence. It's a song I'm working on myself.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15687192784861682991noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6402985451299910936.post-61544167406254527832009-10-07T10:56:19.529-07:002009-10-07T10:56:19.529-07:00I don't hear this song as misogynist: James is...I don't hear this song as misogynist: James is singing about "that" woman, not "any" woman or "all" women. There's not much doubt that plenty of women feel the same way about an individual man, usually with good reason. And, man or woman, most of us have been involved at one time or another with someone we'd have been better off without.K.https://www.blogger.com/profile/10222703055177237209noreply@blogger.com