Although many blues songs, such as "Jelly Jelly" or "
St. Louis Blues" are composed in the usual fashion with lyrics focusing on a single theme and telling a story, many others, like "
Roll 'Em Pete" or "
T for Texas" combine one or two new verses with a flock of traditional ones. Traditional blues verses are most common in
twelve bar blues, with the characteristic repeated first line (indicated here by x2). Some Examples: :See that spider crawlin' up that wall (x2) :He's crawlin up there to get his ashes hauled. :I'll be your little dog till your big dog comes (x2) :And when the big dog gets here, don't tell him what the puppy done :Rebecca, Rebecca, get your big legs off of me (x2) :It may be sending you baby but it's worryin' the hell out of me. :I'm gonna buy me a pistol with a great long shiny barr'l (x2) :Gonna shoot that
rounder who stole away my gal :If you see me comin', heist your window high (x2) :If you see me goin', baby, hang your head and cry. :If your house catches fire and there ain't no water 'round (x2) :Throw your rags out the window, let the doggone shack burn down.
"Traditional lyrics" of known origin Some lyrics crop up in song after song, such as: :I got a gal, lawd she big and fat (x2) :Because it's tight, because it's tight like that From "Yo-Yo Blues No. 2" by
Barbecue Bob :I got a girl, say she long and tall (x2) :She sleeps in the kitchen with her feets in the hall From "
They're Red Hot" by
Robert Johnson :I got a gal who's ten feet tall, Little Liza Jane :With her feet in the cellar and her head in the hall, Little Liza Jane From "Little Liza Jane," American trad. ==References==