One of Jelly Roll Morton’s most well-known songs. He recorded this rather late in his profession although he must have played it when he was a child playing piano in the New Orleans “play houses”.
There’s much dispute about the significance of the song … I find the most plausible description in the book “Dead Guy Blues” by Phil Pastras. The proper title needs to be “Winding Young boy” as winding means “turning the hips in dancing or in sexual relations”. The refrain of the song consists of a reference to Stavin’ Chain, a blues man notorious for the sexual content of his lyrics (and a possible reference to the characteristics of his ‘devices’). Although Morton described Alan Lomax who recorded him at the Library of Congress that the song was about blending wine … ha ha
Jelly Roll taped this tune numerous times during his Library of Congress recordings (Rounder 11661-1898-2 – an essential if you have an interest in JR Morton) with really explicit lyrics.
I kept it clean and patterned my variation to the one he taped for General (Last Sessions cd on Commodore). At that time Jelly was already an ill guy suffering from astma and a weakened heart, however these last recordings reveal him as a fantastic vocalist and pianist. The variation of Winin’ Kid was just his finest recording of the tune, his singing has lots of melancholy, as if he understood his winin-days’ were a thing of the past.
I’m playing my “Arrenbie” archtop guitar, mahogany bs, moonspruce top.
I did another variation on the ukulele
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRaKg …
and a lesson
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4pKif …
open the videodescription for information on tab etc
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