The Harlem Hamfats' 1936 & 1937 Swing Jazz Records "Oh! Red", "New Oh! Red", & "It Was Red" (information, sound files, & lyrics)

History of Rock Music, Oct 12, 2017

Hit record made by a small group of jazz and blues musicians for the specific purpose of making commercially successful dance records. Viewed at the time as a novelty group, the format became very influential, and the group's recordings included many with sex and drugs references....
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Edited by Azizi Powell This pancocojams post presents information about the Harlem Hamfats, an African American swing Jazz music group with a number of hits in the mid/late 1930s.
This pancocojams post also showcases three YouTube song files of the Harlem Hamfats' about "Red". My attempts at transcriptions for these sons are included in this post. Additions and corrections are welcome. My comment and three other comments about what "Red" means in these songs are also included in this pancocojams post. The content of this post is presented for historical, cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners. Thanks to the Harlem Hamfats for their musical legacy. Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post and thanks to the publishers of these sound files on YouTube. -snip-
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2023/01/howlin-wolf-oh-red-1953-blues-rock-roll.html for a closely related pancocojams post entitled "Howlin' Wolf - "Oh Red!" (1953 Blues, Rock & Roll sound file, information, and lyrics)."
Also, click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/08/what-redbone-yellowbone-and-browning.html for a 2013 pancocojams post entitled "What "Redbone", "Yellowbone", and "Browning" Mean"
**** INFORMATION ABOUT THE HARLEM HAMFATS From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harlem_Hamfats "The Harlem Hamfats was a Chicago jazz band formed in 1936. Initially, they mainly provided backup music for jazz and blues singers, such as Johnny Temple, Rosetta Howard, and Frankie Jaxon, for Decca Records.[1]

Their first record, "Oh! Red", became a hit, securing them a Decca contract for fifty titles,[2] and they launched a successful recording career performing danceable music.

The group's inclusion in the dirty blues genre is due to such songs as "Gimme Some of that Yum Yum" and "Let's Get Drunk and Truck".[3]” […]

Their first hits were "Oh! Red", recorded in April 1936,[4] and "Let's Get Drunk and Truck" (originally recorded by Tampa Red), recorded in August of the same year. "Oh! Red" was popular enough to be covered by Count Basie, the Ink Spots, Blind Willie McTell, Blind Boy Fuller and Bull City Red, various Western swing bands, and Howlin' Wolf....

By 1939, singer Morand had returned to New Orleans, and changing fashions had made the sound of the Harlem Hamfats less commercially attractive.[4] The band was not considered the most innovative group of the time, and many of their original works dealt with sex, drugs and alcohol, which may have prevented its music from being more widely available. However, as a small group playing entertaining music primarily for dancing, they are considered an important contributor to 1930s jazz, and their early riff-based style would help pave the way for Louis Jordan's small-group sound a few years later, rhythm and blues, and later rock and roll.[8]" -snip- The Harlem Hamfats were an African American music group. The word "hamfats" probably came from the 19th century word "hamfat" that referred to amateur actors/actresses (performers). Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2022/09/the-colloquial-meanings-of-hamfatter.html for the pancocojams post entitled "What "Hamfatter" & "Ham" Mean As Colloquial References to Actors & Actresses."

**** LYRICS - OH! RED (The Harlem Hamfats, 1936)

Oh Red, wish you were dead
Oh Red, wish you were dead I’m sick and tired of rubbing my baby’s head
Oh Red, what ya gonna do
Aw Red, what ya gonna do
I’m sick and tired just as tired as you [or "just real tired of you"]
Oh Red, my baby’s in jail
Aw Red, my baby’s in jail
She ain’t got nobody to come and go her bail
Oh, Red, she’s outdoors Aw, Red, she’s outdoors
She ain’t got no where to carry her dirty clothes Oh, Red, she’s alright
Aw, Red, she’s alright
And we ain’t gonna fuss and we ain’t gonna fight
Oh, Red, it’s all over now
Aw Red, it’s all over now
She didn’t have no right to raise no hell no how
-snip-
This transcription is by Azizi Powell from the embedded YouTube sound file. The words in italics mean that I'm unsure of that transcription. Additions and corrections are welcome. My guess is that the words "I’m sick and tired of rubbing my baby’s head" means that the singer is sick and tired of comforting Red when she does something wrong. I believe the verse about Red being "outdoors" means that she is homeless. Note that the lyrics to this song, the lyrics to Harlem Hamfats' song whose title is given as "New Oh! Red" and the lyrics to Howlin' Wolf's version of "Oh! Red" are all different from each other. **** SHOWCASE #2 - NEW OH RED by the Harlem Hamfats 1936

cdbpdx, Apr 28, 2011

**** LYRICS - "NEW OH! RED" (The Harlem Hamfats, 1936)

Oh Red, Oh Red
Aw red, I wish you were dead
I'm sick and tired of seeing you turnin red

Oh Red, Oh Red
Aw Red, how you ain’t dead
I'm sick and tired of tryin to hold my head

Oh Red, Oh Red
Aw Red oh fat Red
I’m sick and tired of tellin you what I said

I’m ridin Red
I’m ridin Red
I’m ridin Red
“Cause she ain’t dead
She about to go ride ? in my bed

Ride  Red Ride Red
I ride Red
That’s what I said
That’s how I ??? I?

Oh Red
Oh Red
Aw Red ?, oh Red
Imma ride you now
Till I know you dead
-snip- This transcription is by Azizi Powell from the embedded YouTube sound file.

The words that are italics indicate that I'm not sure are correct. The question marks are for words that I couldn't decipher. Additions and corrections are welcome. My guess is the singer wishes his woman who he refers to as "Red" dead because he is tired of all the wrong that she has been doing. (For instance, "Red" may have been cheating on him with other men. My guess is that the lyrics "I'm sick and tired of seeing you turnin red" means that Red turned red in  embarrassment because the singer is chastising her for what she did wrong. This version of the Harlem Hamfats' song "Oh! Red" is sexier ("nastier") than their first version. For example, "To ride someone" means to have sex with that person.

**** SHOWCASE #3 - Harlem Hamfats It Was Red (DECCA 7312) (1937)

randomandrare, Sep 9, 2015

I do not own the copyright to this recording. This video is for historical and educational purposes only.
Composed by Herb Morand
Hamfoot Ham (Joe McCoy):Vocals & Guitar
Charlie McCoy:Mandolin
Herb Morand:Trumpet
Odell Rand:Clarinet
Horace Malcolm:Piano
John Lindsay:Stand-Up Bass
Either Fred Flynn or Pearlis Williams:Drums

Recorded in Chicago, IL. Thursday, January 14, 1937
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LYRICS - IT WAS RED (The Harlem Hamfats)

It was Red that put the law on me.
It was Red that put the law on me.
She had me put in jail.
Then she came and went my bail.
It was Red that did my bail.

It was Red that bought all my clothes.
It was Red she bought all my clothes.
She kept me on my feet.
Long as she could walk the street.
It was Red that did my bail.

It was Red that cut up all my clothes.
Yes it was Red that cut up all my clothes.
She cut up all my clothes.
Then she put me out of doors.
It was Red that did my bail.

It was Red who tied me tight
Yes it was Red who tied me tight.
She said she treat me right.
If I wait her in the night.
It was Red that did my bail.
-snip- This transcription is by Azizi Powell from the embedded YouTube sound file.

The words that are italics indicate that I'm not sure are correct. Additions and corrections are welcome.
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WHO DOES "RED" REFER TO IN THE "OH! RED" & "IT WAS RED" SONGS?
(Numbers added for referencing purposes only.) 

Comments from this sound file's discussion thread: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bl7g42a-pVk

1. Sliptrail, 2013
"I wonder who is he adressing? The little red rooster or is it perhaps a bottle of wine...Could it be the pianoplayer Billy "Red" Love?"
** Reply 2. daddynap, 2013 "HI!...My Guess? a woman!...(A Redhead?)... this tune is actually based on one written by Charlie McCoy & recorded by the Harlem Hamfats around 1938?...pretty sure it's on youtube.... check it out!  :) 

** Reply 3. Maxx England, 2016 "My English understanding, from reading, is that "red" refers to a person of mixed race//ancestry." ** Reply 4. Azizi Powell, 2023 "@daddynap, I agree with you that "Red" in this song refers to a woman. However, my guess is that the woman is a "redbone".

Here's one definition of redbone from https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=redbone: "A female or male of African American descent who is light skinned with red undertones.

Beyonce, Halle Berry, Ciara, and Sanaa Lathan are redbones.

by Nancy88 December 9, 2006"

As Maxx England's comment indicates, a person who is "red" ("redbone") isn't necessarily first generation mixed raced.

A Black person in the United States calling another Black person "redbone" or "red" usually isn't considered an insult or a compliment. Instead, in African American culture, "redbone" and "red" are descriptive terms such as "light skinned" and "dark skinned". " **** Thanks for visiting pancocojams. Visiting comments are welcome.