Cocaine Blues is a song written by

T. J. "Red" Arnall, a reworking of the

traditional song "Little Sadie". This song was
originally recorded by W. A. Nichol's Western Aces (vocal
by "Red" Arnall) on the S & G label, probably in 1947, and
by Roy Hogsed and the Rainbow Riders, on May 25, 1947,
at Universal Recorders in Hollywood, California.
The song is the tale of a man, Willy Lee,
who murders a woman while under the
influence of whiskey and cocaine. Willy is
caught and sentenced to "ninety-nine years in
the San Quentin Pen".
COCAINE & BLUES
The use of cocaine by workers along
the Mississippi River leads to its
inclusion in Delta culture and in its music.

Cocaine first began to enter American

history and culture in the second half of
the 19th Century. It was used as a pain
killer by doctors, and as a treatment for
morphine addiction. It was even an
ingredient in the original recipe for CocaCola.
Cocaine caught on as a stimulant in
the Mississippi Delta among river
laborers. A significant area for cocaine
users in history was Beale Street in
Memphis, Tennessee, where it was sold in
local drugstores in various forms. Beale
Street would soon achieve fame as one
of the centers of Blues music, often
referred to as the birthplace of the
blues.
As Cocaine found its way into the
local workers and juke joints 1, it also
found its way into the local music. Drug
use and addiction became mirrored in the
music.

1 Juke joint also called barrelhouse is a term for an informal

establishment featuring music, dancing, gambling, and drinking,
primarily operated by African American people in the southeastern
United States.

In

both
Little
Sadie,

and Cocaine Blues, the protagonist shoots his woman.

He tries to escape but is caught by the police. The rest of
the tale is of his trial and imprisonment. The major
difference between Little Sadie and Cocaine Blues
lyrically is the including of cocaine in the latter.

Cocaine Blues has been covered by many musicians

in the Folk, Country, and Blues genres, including:
Johnny Cash
George Thorogood
Keith Richards
Merle Travis
Hank Williams III
References
Barlow, William. "Looking Up At Down": The Emergence of
Blues Culture.
Cocaine World Encyclopedia | 2005
Teaford, Jon C. Memphis Dictionary of American History |
2003 |
"Cocaine Blues"
Early one morning while making the rounds
I ________ a shot of cocaine and I ________my woman
down
I ________right home and I ________to bed
I ________that loving 44 beneath my head
________up next mornin' and I grabbed that gun
________a shot of cocaine and away I run

________a good run but I run too slow

They overtook2 me down in Juarez, Mexico
Late in the hot joints takin' the pills
In ________the sheriff from Jericho Hill
He ________Willy Lee your name is not Jack Brown
You're the dirty heck that ________your woman down
________yes, oh yes my name is Willy Lee
If you've got a warrant3 just a-read it to me
Shot her down because she made me slow
I ________I was her daddy but she ________five more
When I ________arrested I was dressed in black
They ________me on a train and they took me back
Had no friend for to go my bail
They slapped my dried up carcass in that county jail
Early next mornin' bout a half past nine
I _______ the sheriff coming down the line
Up then he _______as he cleared his throat
He said, "Come on you dirty heck into that district court4"
Into the courtroom my trial began
Where I was handled by twelve honest men
Just before the jury started out
I saw that little judge commence to look about
In about five minutes in walked the man
Holding the verdict in his right hand
The verdict read in the first degree
I hollered, "Lawdy Lawdy, have mercy on me"
2 Overtake surpreender.
3 Warrant: mandado de prisao.
4 District court: tribunl distrital. So divises geogrficas da justia

federal Americana. Os EUA tm 94 cortes distritais (89 distribudas

pelos 50 estados, sendo ao menos uma por estado, alm de uma em
Washington DC, e outras quatro em territrios ultramarinhos
americanos: Porto Rico, Guam, Ilhas Virgens Americanas e Ilhas
Marianas), que so o equivalente primeira instncia da justia federal
no Brasil.

The judge he smiled as he picked up his pen

99 years in the Folsom pen
99 years underneath that ground
I can't forget the day I shot that bad bitch down
Come on you've gotta listen unto me
Lay off that whiskey and let that cocaine be
"Cocaine Blues"
Early one morning while making the rounds
I took a shot of cocaine and I shot my woman down
I went right home and I went to bed
I stuck that loving 44 beneath my head
Got up next mornin' and I grabbed that gun
Took a shot of cocaine and away I run
Made a good run but I run too slow
They overtook me down in Juarez, Mexico
Late in the hot joints takin' the pills
In walked the sheriff from Jericho Hill
He said Willy Lee your name is not Jack Brown
You're the dirty heck that shot your woman down
Said yes, oh yes my name is Willy Lee
If you've got a warrant just a-read it to me
Shot her down because she made me slow
I thought I was her daddy but she had five more
When I was arrested I was dressed in black
They put me on a train and they took me back
Had no friend for to go my bail
They slapped my dried up carcass in that county jail
Early next mornin' bout a half past nine
I spied the sheriff coming down the line
Up then he coughed as he cleared his throat
He said, "Come on you dirty heck into that district court"
Into the courtroom my trial began
Where I was handled by twelve honest men
Just before the jury started out

I saw that little judge commence to look about

In about five minutes in walked the man
Holding the verdict in his right hand
The verdict read in the first degree
I hollered, "Lawdy Lawdy, have mercy on me"
The judge he smiled as he picked up his pen
99 years in the Folsom pen
99 years underneath that ground
I can't forget the day I shot that bad bitch down
Come on you've gotta listen unto me
Lay off that whiskey and let that cocaine be