Standing on the Corner (Blue Yodel No. 9)

"Blue Yodel #9" (also called "Standing on the Corner" from the opening line) is a blues/country song by Jimmie Rodgers which included an unbilled Louis Armstrong on trumpet. The song is set in Memphis at the corner of Beale Street and Main Street, a block from the current location of B.B. King's Blues Club.

First recorded on July 16, 1930, it was the ninth of his "Blue Yodels". It tells a tale warning all the "rounders" in Memphis of the arrival a "Tennessee hustler". As he tells a policeman who demands his name:

I said, you'll find my name on the back of my shirt
I'm a Tennessee hustler and I don't have to work

The song was selected as one of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll. Armstrong recreated his performance in an appearance with Johnny Cash on his television show in the early 1970s.

See also