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{{short description|1926 song performed by Blind Lemon Jefferson}}
{{Infobox
|
| Artist = [[Blind Lemon Jefferson]]▼
| alt =
| Genre = [[Country blues]]▼
| type = single
| B-side = "Stocking Feet Blues"<br/>"[[Matchbox Blues]]" (re-release)▼
| Length = 3:04▼
| album =
| Label = {{flatlist |▼
| studio =
| venue =
*[[Paramount Records|Paramount]]
*[[Okeh Records|Okeh]]
}}
▲| Recorded = 1926
▲| Released = October 1926<br/>March 1927 (re-release)
| prev_title = Bad Luck Blues
▲| Writer = Blind Lemon Jefferson
| prev_year = 1926
▲| Producer = [[J. Mayo Williams]]
|
| next_year = 1926
▲| This single = "'''That Black Snake Moan'''"<br/>(1926)
}}
"'''That Black Snake Moan'''" is a song written and recorded by American [[country blues]] musician [[Blind Lemon Jefferson]].<ref name="Devil">{{cite book|title=The Devil's Music|author=Giles Oakley|publisher=[[Da Capo Press]]|page=[https://archive.org/details/devilsmusichisto00oakl_0/page/118 118]|isbn=978-0-306-80743-5|date=1997|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/devilsmusichisto00oakl_0/page/118}}</ref> Inspired by singer [[Victoria Spivey]]'s "Black Snake Blues", the song was released on [[Paramount Records]] in 1926, and has since become recognized as a signature composition which exemplifies Jefferson's unconventional melodic style and utilization of [[double entendres]]
==Background==
During the 1920s, [[Paramount Records]]
In his third session for Paramount, Jefferson recorded "That Black Snake Moan", along with "Black Horse Blues", "Corina Blues", and "[[Jack of Diamonds (song)|Jack O' Diamond Blues]]".<ref name=document/> Riddled with sexual nuances, lyrically "That Black Snake Moan" was explicit with its intentions, with lines such as "Mmm, black snake crawlin' in my room / And some pretty mama had better come and get this black snake soon".<ref>{{cite
▲During the 1920s, [[Paramount Records]] customers were in-demand for genuine [[country blues]] recordings. Blind Lemon Jefferson had been performing across [[Texas]] and the [[Mississippi Delta]] since 1912 and garnered a considerable following.<ref name=loc>{{cite web|url=https://www.loc.gov/programs/static/national-recording-preservation-board/documents/Blind-Lemon-Jefferson.pdf|title=Black Snake Moan / Matchbox Blues|website=loc.gov|author=Obrecht, Jas|accessdate=May 10, 2016}}</ref> Jefferson was signed to Paramount in 1925 as a result of one of two proposed scenarios: [[pianist]] [[Sammy Price]] recommended him to the label or Parmount music director Arthur C. Laibly discovered Jefferson performing on Dallas streets.<ref name=loc/><ref name=document>{{cite web|title=''Blind Lemon Jefferson – Complete Recorded Works In Chronological Order: Volume 1 (1925-1926)'' (CD booklet)|author=Groom, Bob|publisher=Document Records|year=1991}}</ref> Regardless, a talent scout recorded demos with Jefferson and the singer traveled to Chicago to record his first official sides: a pair of [[gospel]] tunes under the pseudonym Deacon L. J. Bates. Sales were strong, prompting further sessions with Jefferson in 1926.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/blind-lemon-jefferson-mn0000050205|title=Blind Lemon Jefferson - Biography|website=allmusic.com|author=Lane, Josalyn|accessdate=May 10, 2016}}</ref>
▲In his third session for Paramount, Jefferson recorded "That Black Snake Moan", along with "Black Horse Blues", "Corina Blues", and "[[Jack of Diamonds (song)|Jack O' Diamond Blues]]".<ref name=document/> Riddled with sexual nuances, lyrically "That Black Snake Moan" was explicit with its intentions, with lines such as "Mmm, black snake crawlin' in my room / And some pretty mama had better come and get this black snake soon".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LGWgS-aHc9UC&pg=PA59&dq=blind+lemon+jefferson+that+black+snake+moan&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjEk5_cwYDMAhXszoMKHeBwAEwQ6AEITjAJ#v=onepage&q=blind%20lemon%20jefferson%20that%20black%20snake%20moan&f=false|title=''The Triumph of Vulgarity: Rock Music in the Mirror of Romanticism''|author=Pattison, Robert|year=1987|publisher=Oxford University|page=59}}</ref> [[Record producer]] [[J. Mayo Williams]] recalled Jefferson was "just as cool and collected as any artist I've ever seen" as they carried out the session.<ref name=loc/> Indeed, Jefferson's calm and collected persona coupled with high-pitched howls added to the song's sexual innuendo.<ref name=document/> Jefferson was inspired to compose the song after singer [[Victoria Spivey]] enjoyed success with "Black Snake Blues", a tune that Spivey insists was not intended to have the same sexual innuendo as Jefferson's "That Black Snake Moan".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VWDoBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA189&dq=victoria+spivey+black+snake+blues&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjshoS1tJnMAhWKOj4KHWJOBdEQ6AEINDAE#v=onepage&q=victoria%20spivey%20black%20snake%20blues&f=false|title=''On Highway 61: Music, Race, and the Evolution of Cultural Freedom''|author=McNally, Dennis|page=108|publisher=Publisher a Group West|year=2014}}</ref>
"That Black Snake Moan" was first released on Paramount in October 1926.<ref name=disc>{{cite web|url=http://www.honkingduck.com/discography/artist/blind_lemon_jefferson|title=Recordings by Blind Lemon Jefferson|website=honkingduck.com|accessdate=May 10, 2016}}</ref> Jefferson re-recorded another version of the song for [[Okeh Records]], which was closely related to the original rendition, but also had superior sound quality.<ref name=loc/> This version, titled simply "Black Snake Moan", was released in March 1927 along with another well-known Jefferson tune "[[Matchbox Blues]]".<ref name=disc/> The composition has remained relatively accessible throughout the years, appearing on Jefferson [[compilation album]]s such as ''The Immortal Blind Lemon'', ''Black Snake Moan'', and ''King of the Blues''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.discogs.com/artist/307195-Blind-Lemon-Jefferson?subtype=Compilations&filter_anv=0&type=Releases&page=1|title=Blind Lemon Jefferson: Discography|website=discogs.com|accessdate=May 10, 2016}}</ref>
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==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:1926 songs]]
[[Category:Hokum blues songs]]
[[Category:United States National Recording Registry recordings]]
[[Category:Paramount Records singles]]
[[Category:Okeh Records singles]]
[[Category:Blues songs]]
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