Grinnin' In Your Face

Album: Father Of The Folk Blues (1965)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • The message in "Grinnin' In Your Face" is to live life the way that suits you without concern for gossipers and naysayers. Your friends may betray you, your own family, even, but you just keep on living your life as it feels right to you.

    The title and chorus suggest a subtle manner in which to judge a true friend from a false one. A person might be kind to your face, but if they've got that certain kind of grin when you're telling them something important, it probably means they're talking bad about you behind your back. Pay it no mind – keep doing your thing, but be wary of false friends. That's House's message.
  • The song has no instrumentation. It's just House clapping, tapping his foot, and singing.
  • "Grinnin' In Your Face" was recorded during bluesman Son House's musical rebirth. He'd recorded music in 1930 and 1941, but the songs didn't make much impact, so he returned to life driving tractors for farmers. House's music was rediscovered in 1964, the time of a major folk-blues revival in the United States (the same revival from which a young Bob Dylan made his fame). It was during this period in April 1965 that House recorded "Grinnin' In Your Face" for Columbia on the Father of the Folk Blues album.

    House was born in Lyon, Mississippi, in 1902, but during his "rediscovery" he was working in a New York train station. The location was fortuitous, as the American folk-blues revival was centered in New York.
  • The Pointer Sisters covered the song on That's a Plenty in 1974. Their version has full instrumentation and studio arrangement.
  • In the documentary It Might Get Loud, Jack White cites "Grinnin' In Your Face" as his favorite song and one of the central inspirations of his musical career.

    "By the time I was 18, someone played me Son House," he said. "That was it for me. It spoke to me in a thousand different ways. I didn't know that you could do that just singing and clapping, and it meant everything, it meant everything about rock and roll, it meant everything about expression and creativity and art. One man against the world, in one song. That's my favorite my song. Still is. It became my favorite song the first time I heard it, and it still is."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Benny Mardones

Benny MardonesSongwriter Interviews

His song "Into The Night" is one of the most-played of all time. For Benny, it took him to hell and back.

Narada Michael Walden - "Freeway of Love"

Narada Michael Walden - "Freeway of Love"They're Playing My Song

As a songwriter and producer, Narada had hits with Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey and Starship. But what song does he feel had the greatest impact on his career?

Grammar In Lyrics

Grammar In LyricsMusic Quiz

Lyrics don't always follow the rules of grammar. Can you spot the ones that don't?

Gary Numan

Gary NumanSongwriter Interviews

An Electronic music pioneer with Asperger's Syndrome. This could be interesting.

Dexys (Kevin Rowland and Jim Paterson)

Dexys (Kevin Rowland and Jim Paterson)Songwriter Interviews

"Come On Eileen" was a colossal '80s hit, but the band - far more appreciated in their native UK than stateside - released just three albums before their split. Now, Dexys is back.

Barney Hoskyns Explores The Forgotten History Of Woodstock, New York

Barney Hoskyns Explores The Forgotten History Of Woodstock, New YorkSong Writing

Our chat with Barney Hoskyns, who covers the wild years of Woodstock - the town, not the festival - in his book Small Town Talk.