Good Morning, School Girl
Encyclopedia
"Good Morning, School Girl" or "Good Morning Little Schoolgirl" is a blues standard
that has been "covered countless times across the decades". First recorded by John Lee "Sonny Boy" Williamson
, later it was a R&B chart success for Smokey Hogg
and has been recorded by a variety of artists.
. The song, an uptempo blues with an irregular number of bars, featured Williamson (vocal and harmonica) with Big Joe Williams
and Robert Lee McCoy (also known as Robert Nighthawk) (guitars).
, Lightnin' Hopkins
, Mississippi Fred McDowell
, Muddy Waters
and Doctor Ross
. In 1965, Junior Wells
with Buddy Guy
recorded it as a Chicago blues, with a distinctive guitar and bass line, for their influential Hoodoo Man Blues
album.
, a Chess
subsidiary. Although it uses the phrase "good morning little schoolgirl", the song has different chord changes and lyrics, including references to popular dance styles of the time. The Yardbirds
with Eric Clapton
later covered this version of "Good Morning, Little Schoolgirl" for their second UK single in 1964. The song reached #49 in the UK and although the single was not released in the U.S., it was included on the Yardbirds' first American album, For Your Love. A live version of the song was included on Five Live Yardbirds
, which featured "Eric [Eric Clapton] and Sam
[Paul Samwell-Smith] singing together and" lead singer Keith Relf
"not singing". The Yardbirds versions were credited to "H.G. Demarais", although some later reissues are credited to Sonny Boy Williamson; the performing rights organization BMI
lists the Don & Bob version writers as Level and Love.
Hall of Fame in the "Classics of Blues Recordings – Single or Album Track" category.
Blues standard
A blues standard is a blues song that is widely known, performed, and recorded by blues artists. The following list identifies blues standards and some of the blues artists that have recorded them...
that has been "covered countless times across the decades". First recorded by John Lee "Sonny Boy" Williamson
Sonny Boy Williamson I
Sonny Boy Williamson was an American blues harmonica player and singer, and the first to use the name Sonny Boy Williamson.-Biography and career:...
, later it was a R&B chart success for Smokey Hogg
Smokey Hogg
Andrew 'Smokey' Hogg was an American post-war Texas and country blues musician.-Life and career:Hogg was born near Westconnie, Texas, United States and grew up on the farm and was taught to play guitar by his father Frank Hogg. While still in his teens he teamed up with a the slide guitarist and...
and has been recorded by a variety of artists.
Original song
Sonny Boy Williamson I recorded "Good Morning, School Girl" in 1937 during his first recording session for Bluebird RecordsBluebird Records
Bluebird Records is a sub-label of RCA Victor Records originally created in 1932 to counter the American Record Company in the "3 records for a dollar" market. Along with ARC's Perfect Records, Melotone Records and Romeo Records, and the independent US Decca label, Bluebird became one of the best...
. The song, an uptempo blues with an irregular number of bars, featured Williamson (vocal and harmonica) with Big Joe Williams
Big Joe Williams
Joseph Lee Williams , billed throughout his career as Big Joe Williams, was an American Delta blues guitarist, singer and songwriter, notable for the distinctive sound of his nine-string guitar...
and Robert Lee McCoy (also known as Robert Nighthawk) (guitars).
Blues versions
Texas bluesman Smokey Hogg recorded his version, calling it "Little School Girl". In 1950, the song reached #5 in the Billboard R&B chart. In the late 1950s and early 1960s, several versions of "Good Morning Little Schoolgirl" were recorded as acoustic country-style blues, including versions by John Lee HookerJohn Lee Hooker
John Lee Hooker was an American blues singer-songwriter and guitarist.Hooker began his life as the son of a sharecropper, William Hooker, and rose to prominence performing his own unique style of what was originally closest to Delta blues. He developed a 'talking blues' style that was his trademark...
, Lightnin' Hopkins
Lightnin' Hopkins
Sam John Hopkins better known as Lightnin’ Hopkins, was an American country blues singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional pianist, from Houston, Texas...
, Mississippi Fred McDowell
Mississippi Fred McDowell
Fred McDowell known by his stage name; Mississippi Fred McDowell, was an American Hill country blues singer and guitar player.-Career:...
, Muddy Waters
Muddy Waters
McKinley Morganfield , known as Muddy Waters, was an American blues musician, generally considered the "father of modern Chicago blues"...
and Doctor Ross
Doctor Ross
Doctor Ross , aka Doctor Ross, the harmonica boss, was an American blues singer, guitarist, harmonica player and drummer — a one-man band— who was born Charles Isaiah Ross, in Tunica, Mississippi....
. In 1965, Junior Wells
Junior Wells
Junior Wells , born Amos Wells Blakemore Jr., was an American Chicago blues vocalist, harmonica player, and recording artist...
with Buddy Guy
Buddy Guy
George "Buddy" Guy is an American blues and jazz guitarist and singer. He is a critically acclaimed artist who has established himself as a pioneer of the Chicago blues sound, and has served as an influence to some of the most notable musicians of his generation...
recorded it as a Chicago blues, with a distinctive guitar and bass line, for their influential Hoodoo Man Blues
Hoodoo Man Blues
Hoodoo Man Blues is the 1965 debut album of blues vocalist and harmonica player Junior Wells, performing with the Junior Wells' Chicago Blues Band, an early collaboration with Grammy Award-winning artist Buddy Guy...
album.
Don & Bob/Yardbirds version
In 1961, Don Level and Bob Love, as the R&B duo "Don & Bob", recorded a different version of "Good Morning Little Schoolgirl" for Argo RecordsArgo Records
Argo Records was started in December of 1955 to accommodate some of the rapidly growing recording activity at Chess Records. Originally the label was called Marterry, but bandleader Ralph Marterie objected, and within a couple of months the imprint was renamed Argo.Initially, Argo offered a...
, a Chess
Chess Records
Chess Records was an American record label based in Chicago, Illinois. It specialized in blues, R&B, soul, gospel music, early rock and roll, and occasional jazz releases....
subsidiary. Although it uses the phrase "good morning little schoolgirl", the song has different chord changes and lyrics, including references to popular dance styles of the time. The Yardbirds
The Yardbirds
- Current :* Chris Dreja - rhythm guitar, backing vocals * Jim McCarty - drums, backing vocals * Ben King - lead guitar * David Smale - bass, backing vocals...
with Eric Clapton
Eric Clapton
Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE, is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and...
later covered this version of "Good Morning, Little Schoolgirl" for their second UK single in 1964. The song reached #49 in the UK and although the single was not released in the U.S., it was included on the Yardbirds' first American album, For Your Love. A live version of the song was included on Five Live Yardbirds
Five Live Yardbirds
Five Live Yardbirds is the live debut album by English blues rock band The Yardbirds, released in the United Kingdom in December 1964 by Columbia Records...
, which featured "Eric [Eric Clapton] and Sam
Paul Samwell-Smith
Paul Samwell-Smith is best known as a founding member and bassist of the 1960s English band, The Yardbirds, a group that spawned such noteworthy musicians as Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton, and Jimmy Page...
[Paul Samwell-Smith] singing together and" lead singer Keith Relf
Keith Relf
Keith William Relf , was a musician best known as the lead singer and harmonica player of The Yardbirds. After the Yardbirds broke up Relf formed the acoustic duo Together, with fellow Yardbird Jim McCarty, followed by Renaissance, which also featured his sister, singer Jane Relf, then hard rock...
"not singing". The Yardbirds versions were credited to "H.G. Demarais", although some later reissues are credited to Sonny Boy Williamson; the performing rights organization BMI
Broadcast Music Incorporated
Broadcast Music, Inc. is one of three United States performing rights organizations, along with ASCAP and SESAC. It collects license fees on behalf of songwriters, composers, and music publishers and distributes them as royalties to those members whose works have been performed...
lists the Don & Bob version writers as Level and Love.
Other versions
Many blues and other artists have recorded Sonny Boy Williamson's "Good Morning Little Schoolgirl", including:- Rod StewartRod StewartRoderick David "Rod" Stewart, CBE is a British singer-songwriter and musician, born and raised in North London, England and currently residing in Epping. He is of Scottish and English ancestry....
from Storyteller – The Complete Anthology: 1964–1990 (1964) - Chuck BerryChuck BerryCharles Edward Anderson "Chuck" Berry is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter, and one of the pioneers of rock and roll music. With songs such as "Maybellene" , "Roll Over Beethoven" , "Rock and Roll Music" and "Johnny B...
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(1969) - Ten Years AfterTen Years AfterTen Years After is an English blues-rock band, most popular in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Between 1968 and 1973, Ten Years After scored eight Top 40 albums on the UK Albums Chart...
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recorded a second version for I'm ReadyI'm Ready (Muddy Waters album)I'm Ready is a 1978 album by Chicago blues veteran Muddy Waters. The second of Waters' Johnny Winter-produced albums for the Blue Sky Records label, I'm Ready was issued one year after he found renewed commercial and critical success with Hard Again. The album earned Waters a Grammy Award in 1978...
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(1994) - Jonny LangJonny LangJonny Lang is a Grammy award-winning American blues, gospel, and rock singer, songwriter and recording artist. Lang's music is notable for both his unusual voice, which has been compared to that of a forty-year-old blues veteran, and for his guitar solos...
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(2001)
Accolades
In 1990, Sonny Boy Williamson I's "Good Morning, School Girl" was inducted into the Blues FoundationBlues Foundation
The Blues Foundation is an American nonprofit corporation, headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, that is affiliated with more than 175 Blues organizations from various parts of the world....
Hall of Fame in the "Classics of Blues Recordings – Single or Album Track" category.