Since I know Rick knows the blues he might use the 'hidden meanings' and 'understood messages' part of the blues for an illustration or example. The blues lyric message looks simple but carries a wealth of unstated freight among it's listeners.
"Asked my Captain for the time of day(2x)
He took out his watch and he throwed it away"

"Big Boss man, don't you hear me when I call(2x)
You ain't so big, you just tall, that's all."


The railroad section workers sing within the white boss's hearing:
"When ya getta section, lemme be your straw[boss]
And when ya getta daughter, lemme be your son-in-law

(I sang that for my wife, a Mexican Section foreman's daughter. She sucked in her breath with a hiss at the insult).
There's a lot that can be done with this with the proper introduction of the material.