Language of the Blues - Edmonton Blues Society
Language of the Blues - Edmonton Blues Society
Language of the Blues - Edmonton Blues Society
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`<br />
Songs:<br />
Mmm, where my Third Street woman gone?<br />
Believe to my soul, she will hustle everywhere but home<br />
<br />
- Bo Carter (Armenter Chatmon)<br />
- Charlie Musselwhite<br />
- <br />
ST O N ES IN PASSW A Y<br />
A passway is a path frequented by an intended hoodoo victim, such as <strong>the</strong> path to <strong>the</strong><br />
<br />
go<strong>of</strong>er dust or something similarly noxious on <strong>the</strong> passway<br />
places a curse on <strong>the</strong> person who steps in it. Laying stones down in <strong>the</strong> passway in a<br />
certain configuration is ano<strong>the</strong>r way to jinx someone. These are methods <strong>of</strong> working foot<br />
track magic.<br />
One traditional method <strong>of</strong> working foot track magic is probably similar to what Robert<br />
Johnson was referring <br />
<br />
<strong>the</strong> center. The stones need to be placed in a passway because <strong>the</strong> person has to walk over<br />
356<br />
<strong>the</strong> cross in <br />
The effects <strong>of</strong> being jinxed in this manner- sickness and possibly death- were eloquently<br />
<br />
19th, 1937:<br />
Song:<br />
I got stones in my passway and my road seems dark at night<br />
I have pains in my heart, <strong>the</strong>y have taken my appetite<br />
- Robert Johnson<br />
SW E E T B A C K PAPA<br />
According to Big Bill Broonzy, a sweetback papa was a man who avoided manual labor<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong>Blues</strong> from <strong>the</strong> Delta<br />
brough<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
and some <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>m had three<br />
166