[Dixielandjazz] "Rock" lyrics

[Sue Fischer]

Ken,

Have you ever heard the blues tune "My Baby Rocks Me With One Steady Roll?"
 It's from 1922, and the singer leaves no doubt about what "Rock" means!
(I suppose you could call it "comfort" of a sort.....)

Sue

> While looking into research about "Milenburg Joys",  I noticed that
> the lyrics start with "Rock My Soul".
>
> These lyrics were written in 1923 or so.  In those days what did the
> verb "rock" mean?  Slang dictionaries on line didn't give an answer.
>
> What other lyrics to jazz songs of the 20s use the term?  Anybody
> know something about this?  Is it an antecedent for the current use
> of the word to define a musical genre?
>
> Ken Gates