The song has been re-issued on multiple vinyl and compact disc editions, including Bessie Smith: The Greatest Blues Singer (1970),[3] The Complete Recordings, Vol.
"[10] The song has been covered by many performers, including Christina Aguilera,[11][12] Thelma Houston,[13] Hadda Brooks,[14] Gaye Adegbalola,[15] Helen Schneider,[16] Rory Block,[17] Sandra Reaves,[18] and Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers.
[21] The song is often remembered for its sexually suggestive lyrics, in which Smith pleads with her "hard papa", saying that she needs "a little sugar, in my bowl, doggone it".
Continuing the double entendre, the song also expresses the need for "a little hot dog between my rolls" and concludes, "Stop your foolin' and drop somethin' in my bowl.
"[22] In an article published in the journal American Music, ethnomusicologist Henrietta Yurchenco praised the song as an early example of a female performer speaking "in clear, plain language about the joys of sex.