Louisville Lou (That Vampin' Lady)
Encyclopedia
Milton Ager
Milton Ager was an American composer.Ager was born in Chicago, Illinois, the sixth of nine children. Leaving school with only three years of formal high-school education, he taught himself to play the piano and embarked on a career as a musician. After spending time as an accompanist to silent...
with lyrics by Jack Yellen
Jack Yellen
Jack Selig Yellen was an American lyricist and screenwriter.-Life and career:Born in Poland, Yellen emigrated with his family to the United States when he was five years old. The oldest of seven children, he was raised in Buffalo, New York and began writing songs in high school...
. Written in 1923, it is an example of the Tin Pan Alley
Tin Pan Alley
Tin Pan Alley is the name given to the collection of New York City music publishers and songwriters who dominated the popular music of the United States in the late 19th century and early 20th century...
"vamp" style of music.
Also known and listed with ASCAP under the titles of Stay Away From Louisville Lou or simply Louisville Lou, the song tells in lighthearted fashion the tale of the "scandalous vamp" Louisville Lou, “the most heart-breakin’est, shimmy shakin’est that the world ever knew.”
Song Content
The opening lines stake the author's or singer's claims for Louisville Lou's superiority as a vamp or femme fataleFemme fatale
A femme fatale is a mysterious and seductive woman whose charms ensnare her lovers in bonds of irresistible desire, often leading them into compromising, dangerous, and deadly situations. She is an archetype of literature and art...
: “History is full of love-makin’ champs / But if you want a brand new thrill, come and meet the vamp of Louisville” while enticing the listener further about Louisville Lou’s prowess - “Until you’re vamped by this brunette…you ain’t had no vampin’ yet.”
After continuing the review of her wiles and the havoc she wreaks upon innocent men (“even Deacon Jones, who is old and bent, sold his crutches just to pay her rent”), the listener is given a final warning to “stay away from Louisville Lou.”
Recorded Versions
The song was recorded no less than eight times in the first year of its release by artists including- The Original Indiana Five on April 1 in Long Island City, New York for Olympic Records ;
- Ladd’s Black Aces on April 9 in New York, New York for Gennett and Starr ;
- The Dixie Daisies again in April in New York for the Cameo label,;
- on April 24 by Arthur Gibbs and His Gang in New York for the Victor label ;
- released April 30 by Margaret YoungMargaret YoungMargaret Young was a popular singer and comedienne in the United States in the 1920s.-Recording career:...
for the Brunswick label ; - in May, also in New York, by Guyon’s Paradise Orchestra for Okeh ;
- in June by Billy Arnold’s Novelty Jazz Band, recording in ParisParisParis is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
for PathéPathéPathé or Pathé Frères is the name of various French businesses founded and originally run by the Pathé Brothers of France.-History:...
; - and also by the Georgia Jazz Band recording in New York for the New York Federal label (recording month in 1923 unknown).
The recording by Arthur Gibbs and His Gang took the song to top ten status on the pop charts. .
Other notable recordings by Pee Wee Hunt
Pee Wee Hunt
Pee Wee Hunt , born Walter Gerhardt Hunt, was a jazz trombonist, vocalist and band leader....
, Sophie Tucker
Sophie Tucker
Sophie Tucker was a Russian/Ukrainian-born American singer and actress. Known for her stentorian delivery of comical and risqué songs, she was one of the most popular entertainers in America during the first half of the 20th century...
, Johnny Mercer
Johnny Mercer
John Herndon "Johnny" Mercer was an American lyricist, songwriter and singer. He is best known as a lyricist, but he also composed music. He was also a popular singer who recorded his own songs as well as those written by others...
on the Capitol Records
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
label, Ted Heath, and Peggy Lee
Peggy Lee
Peggy Lee was an American jazz and popular music singer, songwriter, composer, and actress in a career spanning six decades. From her beginning as a vocalist on local radio to singing with Benny Goodman's big band, she forged a sophisticated persona, evolving into a multi-faceted artist and...
have kept the song in the public consciousness.
Peggy Lee
Peggy Lee
Peggy Lee was an American jazz and popular music singer, songwriter, composer, and actress in a career spanning six decades. From her beginning as a vocalist on local radio to singing with Benny Goodman's big band, she forged a sophisticated persona, evolving into a multi-faceted artist and...
became particularly associated with the song through her single, recorded in New York for Capitol Records
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
in 1952 , which was released again in 1960 on her album All Aglow Again!
All Aglow Again!
All Aglow Again! is a 1960 compilation album by Peggy Lee, arranged by Jack Marshall.-Track listing:All Aglow Again! is a 1960 compilation album by Peggy Lee, arranged by Jack Marshall....
. Lee continued to sing the song in her live appearances over the years and included it in her 1983 Broadway show Peg: A Musical Autobiography .
Cabaret artists Julie Wilson
Julie Wilson
Julie Wilson is an American singer and actress.Born in Omaha, Nebraska and first finding a musical outlet with local musical group Hank's Hepcats, Wilson headed to New York City during World War II and found work in two of Manhattan's leading nightclubs, the Latin Quarter and the Copacabana...
and Joyce Moody have included the song in their nightclub acts and have also made memorable recordings of it: Wilson in 1995 in Julie Wilson (Live From the Russian Tea Room) and Moody in 2007 in her tribute (with Earl Wentz
Earl Wentz
Earl Wentz was an American pianist, composer, and musical director most noted for his creation in 2000 of the American Composer Series, an ongoing performance series in the cabaret format.-Early years:...
) to Milton Ager, Vampin’ Lady, which takes its name from the song .