April 9 movie: Louis Jordan: Films and Soundies. This was a fun collection of performances by Louis Jordan. They seemed to be collected from three movies, none of which we had heard of. The first part of the DVD was all screwed up -- the image kept pausing for a few seconds and then jumping ahead -- and we were worried that the whole thing would be like that. Thankfully, it cleared up early on in "Beware" (my favorite Louis Jordan song!) and was fine after that.
The big surprise of this disc was a follow-up to "Beware"! "Beware" is a cautionary tale to men, warning them not to let women get the upper hand in a relationship. "If she calls you on the phone, and asks 'darling, are you all alone?' Tell her no! You got three girls with you!"
The follow-up song, which I had never heard of before, was called "Look Out!" It had the exact same melody as "Beware," but the lyrics were addressed to women instead of men. Instead of repeating "Beware, brother, beware," he sings "Look out, sister, look out!" I'd love to find a copy of this song on CD.
Another great song on the DVD was called "Reet, Petite, and Gone." It was a complimentary description of a woman. Georg said that "reet" meant hep or cool, though I don't know what he meant by "gone."
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Looking around online, it is suggested that "gone" meant someone who down with the scene. As in "he's a real gone cat." I'm not sure if that works for the Jordan song though.
I think I watched a Louis Jordan movie in that "50 Musicals" cheap DVD collection I had started on, many months ago. Those low-budget black musicals are an interesting genre, sometimes telling a story, and sometimes just putting on whatever acts they had. One of them self destructs with continual references by characters to the movie they're in.
oh my gosh, that sounds like so much fun!
i'd like to find a copy of those songs, too... if you locate them, let me know...
Does anyone know the Louis Jordan lyrics to Junco Partner?
curiosity got the better of me, so i googled a bit and found the following thread, which discusses the song "junco partner" and some of the many folks who have recorded it. some of the lyrics are included.
http://www.mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=72812