[Dixielandjazz] Lyrics to "Gimme a pigfoot and a bottle of beer"

[John Shillito]

*Bessie Smith - Gimme a pigfoot and a bottle of beer *

Songwriter is recorded as Wesley Wilson.* These are the lyrics - (as I
heard and learned them many years ago...)*

Spoken intro:

“Twenty-five cents? Ha! No, no, I wouldn't pay twenty-five cents to go in
nowhere.   'Cause listen here…”

Up in Harlem every Saturday night, when the high browns get together it's
just too tight

They all congregate at an all night strut - and what they do is tut, tut,
tut...

Old Hannah Brown from ‘cross the town gets full of corn and starts breaking
'em down
And at the break of day, you can hear old Hannah say....

Gimme a pigfoot and a bottle of beer! Send me, Gate*, I don't care!

I feel just like I wanna clown. Give the piano player a drink because he's
bringing me down

He's gotta rhythm, yeah, when he stomps his feet, he sends me right off to
sleep,
Check all your razors and your guns, we gonna be arrested when the wagon
comes

I wanna pigfoot and a bottle of beer! Send me 'cause I don't care,

Play me 'cause I don't care

Trumpet solo....... (Frankie Newton?)

Gimme a pigfoot and a bottle of beer! Send me, Gate*, I don't care,

I feel just like I wanna clown. Give the piano player a drink because he's
bringing me down

He's got rhythm, yeah, when he stomps his feet he sends me right off to
sleep.

Check all your razors and your guns. Do the shim-sham shimmy 'til the
rising sun

Give me a reeefer and a gang of gin. Play me 'cause I'm in my sin.

Play me 'cause I'm full of gin.



*“Send me, Gate” sounds like a reference to Louis Armstrong, who
accompanied Bessie on some earlier sessions, although I believe the
trumpeter on the recording from which I’ve transcribed the lyric was, I
believe, Frankie Newton.

Best regards, cheers and good wishes, John Shillito
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