{"id":11354,"date":"2022-10-08T09:30:41","date_gmt":"2022-10-08T13:30:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/millheiser.com\/hokeyblog\/?p=11354"},"modified":"2022-10-27T16:30:00","modified_gmt":"2022-10-27T20:30:00","slug":"buttkickin-halloween-songs-the-ghost-of-smokey-joe-cab-calloway-1939","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/millheiser.com\/hokeyblog\/2022\/10\/08\/buttkickin-halloween-songs-the-ghost-of-smokey-joe-cab-calloway-1939\/","title":{"rendered":"Buttkickin’ Halloween Songs: “The Ghost of Smokey Joe” — Cab Calloway (1939)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"You didn’t see me climb through the window
\nNobody had to open that door
\nI just climb right through the wall and I want you one and all
\nTo stand aside and let me have the floor<\/em><\/p>\n

Take a look, I’m not such a stranger<\/em>
\nHere’s a face you cokies all ought to know<\/em>
\nYou can tell me I’m not wanted, but the joint will still be haunted<\/em>
\n‘Cause I’m the ghost of Smokey Joe…<\/em><\/p>\n

Ah here we are, a chance meeting with a legendary figure of purely American imagination, of jazz and blues and Cotton Club folklore.<\/p>\n

The inimitable Smokey Joe.<\/p>\n

As popularized by Cab Calloway in a host of classic big-band jazz numbers, Smokey Joe was a player, smoother than silk and (allegedly) richer than Midas… but he was also a coke-addled hustler who introduced the legendary Minnie The Moocher to Chinatown’s opium dens, leading to her eventual mental downfall.<\/p>\n

Death spares no man, not even good old Smokey Joe, and I’m sure his exit was anything but<\/em> peaceful, but here he is, back for more scat fun with The Ghost of Smokey Joe<\/strong>, and Cab Calloway is there to bring us along for the ride.<\/p>\n

This is 30s big band jazz at its most iconic; we are talking Cab Calloway, after all. And he’s having the time of his life regaling us with a tale of Smokey Joe, still a Harlem King even in the afterlife. Joe returns as a spirit, floating through walls to spook the hell out of his fellow “cokies” (who seem understandably shocked to see him), starts in with a bit of self-aggrandizing because even his coffin<\/em> oozed money and style, and then expresses surprise to learn that Minnie kicked the opium habit.<\/p>\n

Oh well. With a shrug and a laugh, it’s time for Joe to take his leave. He’s due back in Hell, you see, where even there<\/em> he’s got a sweet ride, a cool mansion, and a hot date waiting for him.<\/p>\n

And that, my friends, is the tale and the legend of The Ghost of Smokey Joe<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Yes, I remember Minnie
\nShe’s that frail I never found
\nYou mean to say that Minnie
\nQuit kickin’ the gong around?<\/em><\/p>\n

I got a date on my estate down in Hades<\/em>
\nCall my chariot so I can go<\/em>
\nAnd should The Moocher walk in<\/em>
\nJust tell her you’ve been talkin’<\/em>
\nTo the ghost of Smokey Joe…<\/em><\/p>\n