B. Bumble and the Stingers were an instrumental ensemble from the early 196… Read Full Bio ↴B. Bumble and the Stingers were an instrumental ensemble from the early 1960s, who specialized in rocking up classical melodies.

At Rendezvous Records in Los Angeles, the house band had a hit record with a rocked-up version of "In The Mood", credited to the Ernie Fields Orchestra. Band members Earl Palmer, Rene Hall and Plas Johnson then came up with the idea of taking the same approach to a piece of classical music, and approached pianist Jack Fina who had successfully arranged a swing version of Rimsky-Korsakov's "Flight of the Bumble Bee" - as "Bumble Boogie" - in 1946. Producer Kim Fowley instructed pianist Ernie Freeman to use Fina's arrangement, but recorded him on two tracks, one using a grand piano for the rhythm part, whilst the other featured a doctored upright with thumb tacks attached to the hammers. Credited to B. Bumble and the Stingers, "Bumble Boogie" went to # 21 on the Billboard charts in 1961.

A teen band from Oklahoma, who had played no part in the recording itself, were recruited to handle promotion and public appearances. Their names were given as Fred Richard, Ron Brady, and the unlikely-sounding William "Billy" Bumble.

The follow-ups, "Boogie Woogie" and "Caravan", flopped, and the record company lost interest. Fowley then secured the copyright to an arrangement of Tchaikovsky's "March of the Wooden Soldiers", and recorded it on the Del-Rio label with H. B. Barnum, under the name Jack B. Nimble and the Quicks. Producer Rod Pierce at Rendezvous thought that they could do a better version with their own band, and recorded a new arrangement with Earl Palmer (drums), Tommy Tedesco (guitar), Red Callender (bass), and pianist Al Hazan (aka Ali Hassan) taking the place of the indisposed Freeman. Released as "Nut Rocker" in February 1962, the record went to # 23 in the US and # 1 in the U.K.

However, despite a touring band being formed to promote them, further B. Bumble and the Stingers recordings failed to match the success of "Nut Rocker", and the musicians who played on the hits continued their own careers on sessions and in touring bands.

A version of "Nut Rocker" was recorded in 1972 by Emerson, Lake and Palmer.

In The Mood
B. Bumble & The Stingers Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Yeah, I stay in the mood for you
'Cause I just can't help myself
Yeah, I stay in the mood for you
'Cause I just can't help myself

You've always fooling around
Givin' my love to somebody else
Still I stay in the mood for you

And I can see you everywhere I go

Still I stay in the mood for you
And I can see you everywhere I go
Well, if something soon don't happen
My heart is gonna break I know

Well, you said that you love me
You've sworn that you'll be true
But now you're tellin' stronger
That I'm just a fool you know

But I stay in the mood for you
'Cause I just can't help myself

Please come back to me baby
'Cause I'm tired of livin' by myself

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to B. Bumble & The Stingers' "In the Mood" are about unrequited love and the struggle to move on from a partner who is not reciprocating the same feelings. The singer expresses how they cannot help but remain in the mood for the person they love, despite them constantly fooling around and giving their love to someone else. The singer sees their love interest everywhere they go, and fears that their heart will break if something does not change soon.

The singer reminds their love interest of the promises they made to be true and love them, but now they are acting as though the singer is just a fool. Despite all of this, the singer's feelings do not change, and they still stay in the mood for this person. They plead with their love interest to come back because they are tired of living alone.

The lyrics to "In the Mood" showcase the pain of unrequited love and the difficulty in moving on. The repeated phrase "I stay in the mood for you 'cause I just can't help myself" emphasizes the singer's inability to let go of their feelings for this person.

Line by Line Meaning

Yeah, I stay in the mood for you
Despite your unfaithful behavior, I still desire you

'Cause I just can't help myself
My feelings for you are too strong to resist

You've always fooling around
You have a history of cheating on me

Givin' my love to somebody else
You have given my affection to another person

And I can see you everywhere I go
You are constantly on my mind, no matter where I am

Well, if something soon don't happen
I am running out of patience and hope for our relationship

My heart is gonna break I know
I am fearful of the emotional pain that will come from losing you

You said that you love me
You have professed your love to me before

You've sworn that you'll be true
You have promised to be faithful to our relationship

But now you're tellin' stronger
However, you are strongly suggesting the opposite now

That I'm just a fool you know
You are suggesting that I am a fool for believing in you