Prince's Band plays Handy's "Beale Street Blues" on Columbia A2327<br /><br />May 24, 1917.<br /><br />I've seen the lights of gay Broadway, <br />Old Market Street down by the Frisco Bay, <br />I've strolled the Prado, I've gambled on the Bourse; <br />The seven wonders of the world I've seen, <br />And many are the places I have been, <br />Take my advice, folks, and see Beale Street first!<br /><br />You'll see pretty browns in beautiful gowns, <br />You'll see tailor-mades and hand-me-downs, <br />You'll meet honest men, and pick-pockets skilled, <br />You'll find that business never ceases 'til somebody gets killed!<br /><br />If Beale Street could talk, if Beale Street could talk, <br />Married men would have to take their beds and walk, <br />Except one or two who never drink booze, <br />And the blind man on the corner singing "Beale Street Blues!"<br /><br />I'd rather be there than any place I know, <br />I'd rather be there than any place I know, <br />It's gonna take a sergeant for to make me go!<br /><br />I'm goin' to the river, maybe by and by, <br />Yes, I'm goin' to the river, maybe by and by, <br />Because the river's wet, and Beale Street's done gone dry!<br /><br />The great composer W. C. Handy lived from 1873 to 1958.
