Help Me (song)
Encyclopedia
"Help Me" is a blues standard
first recorded by Sonny Boy Williamson II
in 1963. The song, a mid-tempo twelve-bar blues, is credited to Williamson, Willie Dixon
, and Ralph Bass
and is based on the 1962 instrumental hit "Green Onions
" by Booker T. and the MGs. "Help Me" became a hit in 1963 and reached #24 in the Billboard R&B chart. The song was later included on the 1966 Williamson compilation More Folk Blues (Chess
1509). In 1987, "Help Me" was inducted into the Blues Foundation Hall of Fame
in the "Classics of Blues Recordings" category. The song is featured on many Sonny Boy Williamson greatest hits
albums including His Best
.
.
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...
first recorded by Sonny Boy Williamson II
Sonny Boy Williamson II
Willie "Sonny Boy" Williamson was an American blues harmonica player, singer and songwriter, from Mississippi. He is acknowledged as one of the most charismatic and influential blues musicians, with considerable prowess on the harmonica and highly creative songwriting skills...
in 1963. The song, a mid-tempo twelve-bar blues, is credited to Williamson, Willie Dixon
Willie Dixon
William James "Willie" Dixon was an American blues musician, vocalist, songwriter, arranger and record producer. A Grammy Award winner who was proficient on both the Upright bass and the guitar, as well as his own singing voice, Dixon is arguably best known as one of the most prolific songwriters...
, and Ralph Bass
Ralph Bass
Ralph Bass , born in The Bronx, New York of an Italian-American-Catholic father, and a German-American-Jewish mother, was an influential rhythm and blues record producer and talent scout for several independent labels and was responsible for many hit records. He was a pioneer in bringing black...
and is based on the 1962 instrumental hit "Green Onions
Green Onions
Green Onions is the debut album by Booker T. & the M.G.'s, released on Stax Records in October of 1962. It reached number 33 on the Pop Albums chart in the month of its release...
" by Booker T. and the MGs. "Help Me" became a hit in 1963 and reached #24 in the Billboard R&B chart. The song was later included on the 1966 Williamson compilation More Folk Blues (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....
1509). In 1987, "Help Me" was inducted into the Blues Foundation Hall of Fame
Blues Hall of Fame
The Blues Hall of Fame is a listing of people who have significantly contributed to blues music. Started in 1980 by the Blues Foundation, it honors those who have performed, recorded, or documented blues.-1980:*Big Bill Broonzy*Willie Dixon*John Lee Hooker...
in the "Classics of Blues Recordings" category. The song is featured on many Sonny Boy Williamson greatest hits
Greatest hits
A greatest hits album is a music compilation album of successful, previously released songs by a particular artist or band...
albums including His Best
His Best (Sonny Boy Williamson II album)
His Best is a 1997 greatest hits compilation album by Sonny Boy Williamson II released by Chess and MCA Records in May as a part of The Chess 50th Anniversary Collection which released many albums titled His Best for artist such as Bo Diddley, Little Walter, and others.-Songs:The album features...
.
Other versions
- Junior WellsJunior WellsJunior Wells , born Amos Wells Blakemore Jr., was an American Chicago blues vocalist, harmonica player, and recording artist...
- John Mayall's Bluesbreakers
- Van MorrisonVan MorrisonVan Morrison, OBE is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and musician. His live performances at their best are regarded as transcendental and inspired; while some of his recordings, such as the studio albums Astral Weeks and Moondance, and the live album It's Too Late to Stop Now, are widely...
on his live albums It's Too Late to Stop NowIt's Too Late to Stop NowIt's Too Late to Stop Now is a live album by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison, released in 1974 . Frequently named as one of the best live albums ever recorded, It's Too Late to Stop Now was recorded during what has often been said to be Morrison's greatest phase as a live...
and A Night in San FranciscoA Night in San FranciscoA Night in San Francisco is a live album by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison, released in 1994. Guest artists were John Lee Hooker, Junior Wells and Jimmy Witherspoon as well as Morrison's daughter, Shana Morrison...
. He has also performed the song over 700 times in concert, since its first appearance on Morrison's 1973 Hard Nose the HighwayHard Nose the HighwayAccording to Ritchie Yorke, who published his biography, Into the Music in 1975, the album enjoyed rave reviews at the time of release. He cited one dissenting critic Charlie Gillett, who wrote in Let It Rock: "The trouble with Hard Nose the Highway is that although the music is quite often...
tour. - 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...
on their debut album Ten Years AfterTen Years After (Ten Years After album)Ten Years After is the debut album by the English rock/blues band Ten Years After. It features Spoonful, a cover that the more famous British blues rock group Cream also covered... - Canned HeatCanned HeatCanned Heat is a blues-rock/boogie rock band that formed in Los Angeles, California in 1965. The group has been noted for its own interpretations of blues material as well as for efforts to promote the interest in this type of music and its original artists...
on their debut album Canned HeatCanned Heat (album)Canned Heat is the 1967 debut album by Canned Heat. It was released shortly after their appearance at the Monterey Pop Festival, and features performances of several blues covers.... - Th' Legendary Shack ShakersTh' Legendary Shack ShakersThe Legendary Shack Shakers are an American punk blues band. They are inspired by punk, Delta blues, rockabilly, Texas polka, gothic rock, and other traditional Southern music genres, formed in Paducah, Kentucky in the mid-1990s...
on the album BelieveBelieve (Th' Legendary Shack Shakers album)Believe is an LP released by Th' Legendary Shack Shakers on October 4, 2004.- Reviews :'Believe' was favourably reviewed by Zeth Lundy of popmatters.com who concluded "The next time you take the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack from the stereo, pining for some oomph to your Americana, reach...
' - Joan OsborneJoan OsborneJoan Elizabeth Osborne is an American singer-songwriter. She is best known for her song "One of Us". She has toured with Motown sidemen the Funk Brothers and was featured in the documentary film about them, Standing in the Shadows of Motown.-Biography:Originally from Anchorage, Kentucky, a suburb...
on her 1995 major label debut, RelishRelish (album)Relish is the second album by Joan Osborne, released on September 8, 1995. It is her first studio album. It was nominated for Album of the Year at the 38th Grammys.-Background:... - Chantel McGregor on her 2011 debut album, Like No Other.
- George Thorogood and the Destroyers on their 2011 album 2120 South Michigan Ave.2120 South Michigan Ave.2120 South Michigan Ave. is a studio album by George Thorogood and the Destroyers. It was released on June 14, 2011 on the Capitol Records label. The album peaked at #2 on the Billboard Top Blues Albums chart. The title refers to the address of the offices and recording studios of Chess Records...
In the media
Sonny Boy Williamson's "Help Me" was featured in the movie Secondhand LionsSecondhand Lions
Secondhand Lions is a 2003 American dramedy film written and directed by Tim McCanlies. It tells the story of an introverted young boy who is sent to live with his eccentric uncles on a farm in the U.S...
.