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Need a Little Sugar in My Bowl

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"Need a Little Sugar in My Bowl"
Song by Bessie Smith
Released1931
GenreBlues
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)Clarence Williams, J. Tim Brymn, Dally Small

"Need a Little Sugar in My Bowl" is a dirty blues song first recorded in 1931 by Bessie Smith and released by Columbia Records. It was written by Clarence Williams, J. Tim Brymn, and Dally Small. Owing to its sexually suggestive lyrics, it has been rated as one of the best double entendre songs of all time. In 1967, Nina Simone released "I Want a Little Sugar in My Bowl", which referenced lyrics from the original 1931 song.

Versions

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Original

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The song was first recorded by Bessie Smith in November 1931 in New York City. It was released by Columbia Records as disc 14634-D. It was written by Clarence Williams, J. Tim Brymn, and Dally Small. Williams also accompanied Smith on piano.[1] The song was Smith's final recording under her contract with Columbia.[2] The song initially employs innuendo and metaphor, but eventually becomes relatively overt in its sexual implications.

The song has been re-issued on multiple vinyl and compact disc editions, including Bessie Smith: The Greatest Blues Singer (1970),[3] The Complete Recordings, Vol. 5: The Final Chapter (1996),[4] The Essential Bessie Smith (1997),[5] Martin Scorsese Presents the Blues: Bessie Smith (2003),[6] Empress of the Blues, Vol, 2: 1926–1933 (2008),[7] and The Complete Columbia Recordings (2012).[8]

Covers

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Nina Simone released "I Want a Little Sugar in My Bowl" on her 1967 album, Nina Simone Sings the Blues.[9] While not a cover, it references some of the original lyrics,[9] and has been described as "a first-person representation of empowered female sexuality."[10]

The song has been covered by many performers, including Christina Aguilera,[11][12] Thelma Houston,[13] Hadda Brooks,[14] Gaye Adegbalola,[15] Helen Schneider,[16] Rory Block,[17] Sandra Reaves,[18] and Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers.[19]

In 2010, the song was also included in a "nearly show-stealing performance" by E. Faye Butler as part of a ballet interpretation of The Great Gatsby, staged at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.[20] The song was also included in the stage production, The Devil's Music: The Life and Blues of Besse Smith.[21]

Lyrics

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The song is often remembered for its sexually suggestive lyrics, in which Smith pleads with her "hard papa", saying that she needs "a little sugar, in my bowl, doggone it". Continuing the double entendre, the song also expresses the need for "a little hot dog between my rolls" and concludes, "Stop your foolin' and drop somethin' in my bowl."[22]

In an article published in the journal American Music, ethnomusicologist Henrietta Yurchenco praised the song as an early example of a female performer speaking "in clear, plain language about the joys of sex."[23]

References

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  1. ^ "Columbia matrix W151883. Need a little sugar in my bowl / Bessie Smith". Discography of American Historical Recordings. University of California, Santa Barbara. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  2. ^ John Clark (2017). Experiencing Bessie Smith: A Listener's Companion. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 112. ISBN 9781442243408.
  3. ^ "Bessie Smith Redone". The News and Observer. September 23, 1970 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "The Complete Recordings, Vol. 5: The Final Chapter". Allmusic. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  5. ^ "The Essential Bessie Smith". Allmusic. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  6. ^ "Martin Scorsese Presents the Blues: Bessie Smith". Allmusic. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  7. ^ "Empress of the Blues". Allmusic. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  8. ^ "The Complete Columbia Recordings". Allmusic. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  9. ^ a b "I Want a Little Sugar in My Bowl". Allmusic. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  10. ^ Matt Micucci (June 16, 2020). "Song of the Day: Nina Simone, "I Want a Little Sugar in My Bowl"". Jazziz.
  11. ^ Spera, Keith (May 3, 2014). "Christina Aguilera played the pop diva, for better and worse, at the New Orleans Jazz Fest". The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate. Georges Media Group. Retrieved September 26, 2023.
  12. ^ Rawls, Alex (May 3, 2014). "JazzFest wraps with many a bright, sunny note". USA Today. Gannett Co., Inc. Retrieved September 26, 2023.
  13. ^ Lynn Van Matre (October 13, 1977). "She's found her niche in disco". The Akron Beacon Journal – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "The Best Blues Album in the World Ever". Allmusic. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  15. ^ "Bitter Sweet Blues". Allmusic. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  16. ^ "A Voice and a Piano". Allmusic. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  17. ^ "A Woman's Soul: A Tribute to Bessie Smith". Allmusic. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  18. ^ "Lady sings more than the blues". The San Francisco Examiner. December 22, 1992. pp. C1, C4 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ^ "Miss Smith to You". Allmusic. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  20. ^ "Review: The Dance of Prose and the Dance of Body". The F. Scott Fitzgerald Review. 8: 238–241. 2010. JSTOR 41583167.
  21. ^ "Re-creating Bessie Smith". South Florida Sun Sentinel. February 28, 2016.
  22. ^ "Need a Little Sugar in My Bowl". Musixmatch. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  23. ^ Yurchenco, Henrietta (Winter 1995). ""Blues Fallin' Down Like Hail" Recorded Blues, 1920s–1940s". American Music. 13 (4): 458. doi:10.2307/3052403. JSTOR 3052403.
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