“Worried Life Blues”
Song by Ray Charles
Ray Charles recorded Big Maceo Merriweather’s “Worried Life Blues” twice in the early years of his career: once in a solo session for Atlantic Records in 1953 (unreleased until 1961), and again for his second ABC Records single in 1960.
“Worried Life Blues” vs. “Someday Baby Blues”
Big Maceo first recorded “Worried Life Blues” in 1941, playing piano and singing on the song that took its main recurring line – “someday, baby, I ain’t gonna worry my life anymore” – from Sleepy John Estes’ acoustic guitar/harmonica “Someday Baby Blues” of 1935. (There, the line was “someday, baby, you ain’t gonna worry my mind anymore.”) The rest of the lyrics were unrelated to Estes’ song.
Confusingly, when Atlantic released Ray’s 1953 version on the compilation The Genius Sings The Blues in 1961 the song was titled “Some Day Baby” – and credited neither to Merriweather nor to Estes but to Ray himself. (Some recent reissues of the album correct the title and its author.)
Also confusingly, these recordings are not related to a song Ray really did write, “Someday”, which he recorded and released in 1950 as a Swing Time 78; nor to “Someday (You’ll Want Me To Want You)” from his 1962 album Modern Sounds In Country And Western Vol. 2; nor to yet another song called “Someday” from the 1969 LP I’m All Yours Baby; nor to “Worried Mind” from 1962’s Modern Sounds In Country And Western Music.
Whew.
The 1953 version of “Worried Life Blues”
On May 10, 1953, Ray Charles had a rehearsal session in the studio for his new label Atlantic. Just with his own voice and piano, he recorded a sparse and lovely version of “Worried Life Blues” for his new bosses. It follows Big Maceo’s original closely, down to the spoken mid-song aside, “No, I ain’t gonna worry my life anymore!”
Obviously, with no other instrumentalists present, the guitar solo of the original becomes a classic Ray Charles piano solo on this recording. Towards the end of the take, Ray lets his voice rise to an emotional climax and matches it with some scintillating trills high on the keyboard. While the recording is an expert but fairly unexceptional blues, it does show how Ray could effortlessly convey the emotion he wanted to just with his fingers and his voice, which combine to great effect here.
This version was plucked from the vaults when Atlantic was compiling the Genius Sings The Blues album, which was released in 1961 with the retitled and mis-credited “Some Day Baby” the penultimate song on Side 2.
The 1960 version of “Worried Life Blues”
Having moved to ABC Records, Ray’s second single for the label was “Sticks And Stones” b/w “Worried Life Blues”, this time with the correct title and author. Credited to Ray Charles and His Orchestra, the non-LP B-side features that full band which easily distinguishes it from the 1953 version.
Again Ray Charles leads the song with his piano, but this version is jarring at the outset thanks to a goofy spoken intro. A booming, distractingly vanilla voice addresses the Genius: “Say Ray, you sure look mighty sad.” Answers Ray, “Man, that’s because I got the blues.” “Well man, if you have the blues, why don’t you go ahead – and sing ’em!” suggests the unwelcome character.
A foreshadowing of the controversial “Deep In The Heart Of Texas” which would be released later in the year.
After that ignoble opening, Ray and his gang get down to business. “Worried Life Blues” tumbles out at a relaxed mid-tempo pace, and the drummer keeps it moving with his steady cymbal taps. Ray again sticks close to the original, even vocalizing that same spoken aside that he did in 1953 and that Big Maceo did in 1941.
This time, the guitar solo of the 1941 original has become an expressive saxophone. Overall, with Ray’s weary and grainy vocals and his adept delivery of each down-home broken-hearted line, it’s clear that Ray loved the song and was recording it for his own pure pleasure. He seems to have a very close psychic connection with the simple and plaintive blues from fellow Georgian Merriweather, finding comfort in it twice in a row when moving to new record labels.
Single releases
“Sticks And Stones”
b/w
“Worried Life Blues”
Listen to “Worried Life Blues”
Get your own “Worried Life Blues” on 45 or MP3 from Amazon. Or get the out-of-print complete ABC singles 5xCD box set.