"Empty Bed Blues" is a 1928 "
dirty blues
Dirty blues (also known as bawdy blues) is a form of blues music that deals with socially taboo and obscene subjects, often referring to sexual acts and drug use. Because of the sometimes graphic subject matter, such music was often banned from rad ...
" song written by
J. C. Johnson and first recorded by
Bessie Smith
Bessie Smith (April 15, 1892 – September 26, 1937) was an African-American blues singer widely renowned during the Jazz Age. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Empress of the Blues" and formerly Queen of the Blues, she was t ...
.
Bessie Smith recorded the song in New York on March 20, 1928. The accompanying musicians were
Porter Grainger
Porter Grainger ( Granger; October 22, 1891 − October 30, 1948) was an African American pianist, songwriter, playwright, and music publisher.
Early life
When Grainger was born in Bowling Green, Kentucky, the Granger family name did not include ...
(piano) and
Charlie Green (trombone). The recording was issued by
. In 1983, Smith's recording was inducted to the
Grammy Hall of Fame
The Grammy Hall of Fame is a hall of fame to honor musical recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance. Inductees are selected annually by a special member committee of eminent and knowledgeable professionals from all branches of ...
.
The song was "the most notorious recording of
mith'scareer".
[ The lyrics are "full of sexual innuendos",][Marybeth Hamilton, “Sexuality, Authenticity and the Making of the Blues Tradition.” ''Past & Present'', no. 169, 2000, pp. 132–60.]
Retrieved 9 November 2022 and contain numerous oblique references to penetrative sex, in its references to "grinding" coffee, as well as to "bacon" and "cabbage"; and to cunnilingus
Cunnilingus is an oral sex act consisting of the stimulation of a vulva by using the tongue and lips. The clitoris is the most sexually sensitive part of the vulva, and its stimulation may result in a woman becoming sexually aroused or achievi ...
("He's a deep-sea diver, with a stroke that can't go wrong/ He can touch the bottom, and his wind holds out so long").
The song was later recorded by artists including Della Reese
Della Reese (born Delloreese Patricia Early; July 6, 1931 – November 19, 2017) was an American singer, actress, television personality, author and ordained minister. As a singer, she recorded blues, gospel, jazz and pop. Several of her singl ...
(1959), Judy Henske
Judith Anne Henske (December 20, 1936 – April 27, 2022) was an American singer and songwriter, dubbed "the Queen of the Beatniks" by producer Jack Nitzsche. Initially performing in folk clubs in the early 1960s, her performances and recording ...
(1963), Bette Midler
Bette Midler ( ;''Inside the Actors Studio'', 2004 born December 1, 1945) is an American actress, comedian, singer, and author. Throughout her five-decade career Midler has received List of awards and nominations received by Bette Midler, numero ...
(1977), and Maria Muldaur
Maria Muldaur (born Maria Grazia Rosa Domenica D'Amato; September 12, 1942) is an American folk and blues singer who was part of the American folk music revival in the early 1960s. She recorded the 1973 hit song " Midnight at the Oasis" and h ...
(2007).
The original lyrics and music of the song entered the public domain
The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work to which no Exclusive exclusive intellectual property rights apply. Those rights may have expired, been forfeited, expressly Waiver, waived, or may be inapplicable. Because no one holds ...
in the United States in 2024.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Empty Bed Blues
1928 songs
Blues songs
Bessie Smith songs