"Corrine, Corrina" is a 12-barcountry blues song in the AAB form. "Corrine, Corrina" was first recorded by Bo Carter. However, it was not copyrighted until 1932 by Armenter "Bo Carter" Chatmon and his publishers, Mitchell Parish and J. Mayo Williams. The song is familiar for its opening verse: The Mississippi Sheiks, as the Jackson Blue Boys with Papa Charlie McCoy on vocals, recorded the same song in 1930; this time as "Sweet Alberta", substituting the words Sweet Alberta for Corrine, Corrina. "Corrine, Corrina" has been recorded in a number of musical styles, including blues, jazz, rock and roll, Cajun, and Western swing. The title of the song varies from recording to recording, most often with the variant "Corrina, Corrina".
History
"Corrine, Corrina" may have traditional roots, however, earlier songs are different musically and lyrically. One of the earliest is the commercial sheet music song "Has Anybody Seen My Corrine?" published by Roger Graham in 1918. Vernon Dalhart recorded a vocal version in 1918, and Wilbur Sweatman's Original Jazz Band, an instrumental version the same year. Graham's song contains sentiments similar to "Corrine, Corrina": Blind Lemon Jefferson recorded a version of "C.C. Rider" in April 1926 entitled "Corrina Blues" which contains a verse in a similar vein: The Mississippi Sheiks also recorded "Sweet Maggie" in the 1930s:
Several recordings were made for the country market by artists including Clayton McMichen and the Cajun musician Leo Soileau.
Western swing recordings
In 1934, Milton Brown and his Musical Brownies recorded the song under the title "Where Have You Been So Long, Corrinne," as a Western swing dance song. Shortly thereafter, Bob Wills adapted it again as "Corrine, Corrina," also in the Western swing style. Following his recording with the Texas Playboys on April 15, 1940, the song entered the standard repertoire of all Western swing bands, influencing the adoption of "Corrine, Corrina" by Cajun bands and later by individual country artists. "Corrine, Corrina" is also an important song related to Western swing's pioneering use of electrically amplified stringed instruments. It was one of the songs recorded during a session in Dallas on September 28, 1935, by Roy Newman and His Boys. Their guitarist, Jim Boyd, played what is the first use of an electrically amplified guitar found on a recording. Cliff Bruner's Texas Wanderers also recorded an early version of Chatmon's song on February 5, 1937.
Folk music revival
"Corrina, Corrina" entered the folk-like acoustical tradition during the American folk music revival of the 1960s when Bob Dylan began playing a version he titled "Corrina, Corrina". Although his blues-based version contains lyrics and song structure from "Corrine Corrina", his melody is lifted from "Stones in My Passway" recorded by Robert Johnson in 1937. Dylan's version, found on his second album, The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, also borrows lyrics taken from Johnson's song: The Rising Sons, featuring Taj Mahal and Ry Cooder, recorded the song as "Corinna, Corinna" before breaking up in 1966. Taj Mahal then recorded another version in 1968 titled "Corinna". Joni Mitchell covered the song in 1988 on her album Chalk Mark in a Rain Storm, with the title "A Bird That Whistles ", and adding a flight-evoking Wayne Shorter sax solo. Other artists who have recorded the song include Eric Clapton, who sings it as "Alberta, Alberta", Willie Nelson, Steve Gillette, Leo Kottke, and Conor Oberst. The English roots band Show of Hands also performed the song on their live album As You Were, released in 2005 under the duo's own label Hands on Music. The Band used the Dylan/Johnson version of the song.
Rock music
recorded a rendition of the song for Atlantic Records in 1956. Ray Peterson's 1960 version, produced by Phil Spector, reached number nine on the Billboard chart. Jerry Lee Lewis included a version on his 1965 album, The Return of Rock. Bill Haley & His Comets released a rock n' roll version on Decca Records on their album Bill Haley's Chicks in 1959. Steppenwolf recorded it as "Corina, Corina" for Steppenwolf Live, released in April 1970. Rod Stewart recorded a rendition between 2011 and 2013, and it is featured as a bonus track on his Time album. Boz Scaggs included it on his 2013 album Memphis.
