Beat Me Daddy
Asleep at the Wheel Lyrics

In a little honky-tonky village in Texas
There's a small, rustic town in Texas with a vibrant music scene that has a particular pianist who stands out.

There's a guy who plays the best piano by far
This town's pianist is the premiere player in the area, being of greater skill and talent than any other musicians.

He can play piano any way that you like it
Though he can perform whatever genre or style that one requests or fancies, he notably prefers the method of playing eight beats per bar.

But the way he likes to play is eight to the bar
The preferred style of the pianist is to play a musical composition with eight beats per bar.

When he plays, it's a ball
Whenever this pianist performs, it's highly enjoyable and entertaining.

He's the daddy of them all
He's the best musician around, admired and looked up to by other musicians and fans alike.

The people gather around when he gets on the stand
People in town always come over to witness his performance the moment he gets on stage.

Then when he plays, he gets a hand
Whenever he starts playing, the audience will applaud and cheer.

The rhythm he beats puts the cats in a trance
The rhythm he creates is so engaging and captivating that it puts the listeners in a trance-like state.

Nobody there bothers to dance
Despite the music being rhythmic and lively, people don't feel the urge to dance because they are so engulfed in listening to his playing.

But when he plays with the bass and guitar
However, when he performs accompanied by the bass and guitar, listeners will yell out for more and request him to perform using his preferred method of eight beats per bar.

They holler out, "Beat me Daddy, eight to the bar"
The crowd will yell out "Beat me Daddy, eight to the bar" to express their enthusiasm and admiration for his playing style.

A-plink, a-plank, a-plink plank, plink plank
The sound of him playing the keys on the piano, with the sound having an onomatopoeic effect.

A-plunkin' on the keys
The onomatopoeic sound effect made while he's playing the piano keys, producing a sound of high tempo.

A-riff, a-raff, a-riff raff, riff raff
The sound effect created with a rapid playing pattern of his piano, again producing an onomatopoeic effect.

A-riffin' out with ease
The sound effect created by his fluid fingers during the performance.

He plays a boogie, he plays eight to the bar
He favors playing a style of music commonly known as "boogie woogie," which emphasizes a lively piano rhythm of eight beats per measure.

That is the way he likes to play on his piano
He is highly comfortable and fond of playing the style of music called "boogie woogie" with a high tempo piano rhythm of eight beats per measure.

And we all know
Everyone in the town is aware of his preferred style of playing, which is highly admired.

That when he plays he puts them all in a trance
When he's playing his music, he's widely beloved and admired for being highly captivating and engaging.

The cats all holler "Hooray"
The term "Cats" refer to highly committed fans who express their admiration and enthusiasm for his playing by cheering loudly.

You'll hear them say, "Beat me Daddy, eight to the bar"
People can hear the cheer-filled chants of his appreciative fans yelling out his preferred style of music, "Beat me Daddy, eight to the bar."

In a little honky-tonky village in Texas
An additional reminder that all of this take place within a small, rustic Texas town.

There's a guy who plays the best piano by far
An additional reminder of the talent and skill of the pianist, to enhance the centrality of this cultural figure.

They holler, "Beat me up Daddy, beat me Daddy, eight to the bar"
A more cohesive and detailed reminder of the crowd's fixation on his preferred style of music (eight beats per measure).