By Duke London

 

“I don’t intend to ever stop smoking it, not as long as it grows. And there is no one on this earth that can ever stop it all from growing. No one but Jesus–and he wouldn’t dare. Because he feels the same way that I do about it.”

– Louis Armstrong

Marijuana and music have had a long and fulfilling relationship, though, like most relationships, nobody can really pinpoint what exactly makes them so cohesive. A recent study into the effects of psychedelics like LSD on the music listener’s mind gave us an idea of what one may be experiencing when they listen to music stoned, but weed is only a mild psychedelic, so it’s still not an exact comparison. Because of the longstanding prohibition on marijuana in our country, it’s proven difficult to conduct research on the matter, especially given the difficulty scientists have faced while conducting research on marijuana for far more significant public health studies.

Marijuana and music both have deep-rooted histories in human culture, likely going back further than any recorded history of each. Unfortunately, the development of a commercial music industry in the United States coincided with the prohibition of marijuana. This created a state of limbo where musicians were clearly using and spreading the gospel of marijuana to masses who couldn’t legally smoke it, infuriating the propagandists working against them.

To take a deeper look at marijuana in music, it’s best to go back to the beginning, or at least the earliest recordings. In this series, we’ll be working our way towards the present, giving you samples of the best weed music from each era along the way. From Louis Armstrong to Wiz Khalifa, marijuana has played a huge part in the history of music making, and it doesn’t seem to be slowing down anytime soon.

“La Cucaracha” (≈1910)
A popular Spanish folk song that spread during the Mexican Revolution between 1910 and 1920, “La Cucaracha” tells the tale of a cockroach who’s lost a hind leg and can’t walk anymore. In one of the verses, the lyrics give a hint that marijuana may have been used medicinally, as you can see in the translation below.

Spanish	English
La cucaracha, la cucaracha,	The cockroach, the cockroach,
ya no puede caminar	can’t walk anymore
porque no tiene, porque le falta	because it doesn’t have, because it’s lacking
marihuana que fumar.	marijuana to smoke.

 

Louis Armstrong – “Muggles” (1928)
As the twenties roared on, music and marijuana were both spreading like wildfire. While the jazz scene was exploding, artists started experimenting with weed and incorporating it into their music. Within the jazz community, marijuana smokers were referred to as “vipers” and cannabis was called “gage” or “muggles.” Louis Armstrong, one of marijuana’s first true advocates in music, famously released a song called “Muggles” in 1928 that is considered some of his best work, laying the groundwork for an entire movement of marijuana-infused jazz.

 

Cab Calloway – “Reefer Man” (1931)
By 1931, 29 states had banned marijuana, but the federal government had yet to swing the prohibitionist hammer. Around this time, Cab Calloway was acting well within his federal rights on songs like “Reefer Man” and “The Viper’s Drag.” Famous for his zoot suits, big smile, and the “HI DE HI DE HI DE HO” line from his song “Minnie the Moocher,” Cab was a star’s star and a real trailblazer in the marijuana community.

 

Stuff Smith – “You’se a Viper” (1936)
First composed and performed by Stuff Smith and his Onyx Club Boys band back in 1936, “You’se a Viper” was later covered by Fats Waller and renamed “The Reefer Song” in 1943. Waller’s version was a pointed shot at Henry Anslinger, the racially discriminatory head of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics, who was demonizing jazz musicians of the time to gain the public’s backing of his prohibitionist agenda. The term “viper” referred to the slight hissing sound that emitted when a smoker hit their joint.

 

Buck Washington – “Save the Roach for Me”  (1944)
A beloved singer and pianist, Buck Washington worked with the likes of Louis Armstrong and other Jazz greats throughout the 30s, 40s, and 50s. Armstrong may have had an influence on Washington, as marijuana was a running theme in his music. Take a listen to “Save the Roach for Me” where he tells passersby to let him get in on the end of that “jive.”

Cee Pee Johnson – “The G Man Got the T Man” (1945)
Towards the end of the 1940s, the government was starting to get their way as musicians became more subtle with their marijuana usage and its inclusion in their music. The sad turn of events is detailed on Cee Pee Johnson’s 1945 song “The T Man Got the T Man.” Muggle-lovers everywhere were feeling the crushing weight of prohibition, and Johnson’s ode to the tea resonated. Between this time and the early 1960s, marijuana references in music became scarce, existing only in double entendres and code.