– The Boston Globe
Annie and the Beekeepers is a folk and country inspired trio that met at Berklee College of Music in December 2006. The members of Annie and the Beekeepers came to Berklee from across the country with different musical backgrounds – Annie Lynch is a self-taught guitarist and the Beekeepers’ principal singer and songwriter from Cape Cod; Ken Woodward is from Charlottesville and plays acoustic bass and sometimes stomps on a snare at the same time for fun; and Alexandra Spalding, who lends her beautiful voice to create the Beekeepers’ signature harmonies, grew up playing cello in orchestras in Northern California. Annie met Ken through various attempts to learn bluegrass and saw Alex playing in a Berklee Joni Mitchell ensemble. One brief rehearsal later, the group gathered in Ken's frigid basement apartment with producer and peer, Frank Charlton, for two days of recording. Though the work was never titled or released, those two days in December of 2006 gave birth to a band that would go on to build a reputation for their unique instrumentation and lyrics, evocative layered harmonies, and heartwarming live performances.
In the summer of 2007, Annie and the Beekeepers joined Grammy-nominated producer, Jack Gauthier, at his lakeside studio for the recording of their self-titled debut album, Annie Lynch and the Beekeepers. Creating arrangements for songs that Lynch had written months or years prior to the December 2006 session evolved into stronger collaborations, with Woodward and Lynch co-writing “The Bee Song.” The album was released in January of 2008 and has been played frequently on WERS Emerson Radio and WUMB Boston Radio, and earned fans at The Boston Globe and many other regional publications and blogs. Annie and the Beekeepers went on to play 2008’s Boston Folk Festival, CMJ and South By Southwest in 2009.
Nearly a year after their debut’s release, Adrian Olsen, a friend and producer from Berklee, invited the band to use some studio time he had at Squid Hell in Jamaica Plain, MA. Without plans or expectations, the band laid down new songs and live favorites in what Lynch describes as "a one of the most gratifying creative moments we've shared." The songs recorded that afternoon would set the foundation for the Squid Hell Sessions EP, and in the winter of 2009, the band finished recording at Garth Stevenson’s home-studio in Brooklyn. The group produced the work with the help of Stevenson, Olsen, and Kyle Vandekerkhoff. Woodward says of the process, “The recording experience was in many ways similar to what this record is about. Squid Hell Sessions is about facing life's suffering, confronting that pain, and ultimately passing through it. The sounds on this record are dark, rich, and deeply satisfying.” Lynch concludes, “Though the EP contains a lot of sorrowful emotion, it is, in essence, a celebration of music as a positive outlet. There is something strangely comforting in the sharing of one's hardships. Though we all know that each person feels pain, having songs in our lives that reflect these common emotions help us to feel a sense of unity in the times when we need that the most.”
When the band first began playing together in living rooms and basements around Boston, the mysterious disappearance of bee colonies throughout the world was receiving a great deal of attention in the media. As the group built the foundations of their band in coffeehouses and clubs around the Northeast, the collapse of the bee colonies fascinated them and inspired their name. The Bee has long been a symbol for hard work and community, and the Beekeepers were inspired to preserve and promote those same qualities by way of music and their role in the music community. To that end, the songs on their first album, 2008’s Annie Lynch and the Beekeepers and the Squid Hell Sessions EP (May 12, 2009), are honest, collaborative efforts, drawing on the sounds of Joni Mitchell, Gillian Welch, Bob Dylan, and CSNY.
It Ain't Fair
Annie and the Beekeepers Lyrics
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If it ain't got that swing
(doo wah, doo wah, doo wah, doo wah
Doo wah, doo wah, doo wah, doo wah)
It don't mean a thing
All you got to do is sing
(doo wah, doo wah, doo wah, doo wah
Doo wah, doo wah, doo wah, doo wah)
If it's sweet or hot
Just give that rhythm
Ev'rything you got
Oh, it don't mean a thing
If it ain't got that swing
(doo wah, doo wah, doo wah, doo wah
Doo wah, doo wah, doo wah, doo wah)
The lyrics of Annie and the Beekeepers’ song “It Ain’t Fair” come from Duke Ellington’s classic jazz track “It Don’t Mean a Thing (If It Ain’t Got That Swing).” The lines “It don't mean a thing, if it ain't got that swing” encapsulate the essence of jazz music, emphasizing the importance of rhythm and groove in creating a successful sound. The repetitive “doo wah” vocals in the background of the track further highlight this idea, as they create a vocalization of the syncopated rhythm that jazz is known for.
In the context of “It Ain’t Fair,” Annie and the Beekeepers use this classic jazz tune to explore the idea of unfairness and injustice in society. The lyrics “It ain’t fair, it ain’t fair, you had to play it cool” could refer to any number of situations in which someone is disadvantaged or mistreated due to factors beyond their control. However, the use of the “swing” metaphor emphasizes the importance of resilience and perseverance in the face of adversity. By embodying the spirit of jazz, one can find the strength to overcome even the most unfair circumstances.
Line by Line Meaning
It don't mean a thing
This particular thing/issue is of no importance
If it ain't got that swing
Unless it has a certain quality or attribute (in this case, 'swing'), it's not worth pursuing
It don't mean a thing
Once again, this issue is insignificant
All you got to do is sing
The solution is simple, just make an effort or contribution
It makes no diff'rence
There are no discernible advantages or disadvantages to a situation
If it's sweet or hot
Regardless of the specific details of the situation
Just give that rhythm
Focus on the thing that's driving or motivating the situation
Ev'rything you got
Put all of your effort or dedication into it
Oh, it don't mean a thing
This concept is once again insignificant
If it ain't got that swing
Without that essential attribute, it's not important
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
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