little children
Billy J. Kramer The Dakotas Lyrics
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I'm tellin' you
Little children, you better not tell what you see
And if you're good
I'll give you candy and a quarter
If you're quiet like you oughta be
And keep a secret with me
Little children, now why aren't you playin' outside
I'm askin' you
You can't fool me, 'cause I'm gonna know if you hide
And try to peek
I'm gonna treat you to a movie
Stop your gigglin', children, do be nice
Like little sugars and spice
You saw me kissin' your sister
You saw me holdin' her hand
But if you snitch to your mother
Your father won't understand
I wish they would take a nap
Little children, now why don't you go bye-bye
Go anywhere at all
Little children, I know would go if you tried
Go up the stairs
Me and your sister, we're goin' steady
How can I kiss her when I'm ready to
With little children like you around
I wonder what can I do around
Little children like you
The lyrics to Billy J. Kramer's song Little Children suggest that the singer is engaging in some kind of behavior that would not be approved of by the younger children in the household. The singer appears to be attempting to bribe the children into silence by offering them candy and a quarter, which suggests the behavior in question is something that could be seen as taboo or inappropriate. The singer seems to be worried about the children telling on him and urges them to keep quiet and not say anything about what they have seen.
The lyrics also suggest a sense of frustration with the children, as the singer wishes they would go away or take a nap so that he can engage in the behavior without worrying about being caught. This is further emphasized by the line "how can I kiss her when I'm ready to, with little children like you around?" which suggests that the singer is romantically involved with the sister of the children in question.
Line by Line Meaning
Little children, you better not tell on me
I'm warning you not to tell anyone about what I'm doing
I'm tellin' you
I'm serious and want you to listen to me
Little children, you better not tell what you see
I don't want you to tell anyone about what you witness
And if you're good
I will reward you if you obey me
I'll give you candy and a quarter
I will give you candy and some money if you keep my secret
If you're quiet like you oughta be
if you stay quiet and don't speak about what you see
And keep a secret with me
you must keep the secret with me and don't tell anyone
I wish they would go away
I want the children to leave me alone
Little children, now why aren't you playin' outside
why aren't you playing outside like normal children would?
You can't fool me, 'cause I'm gonna know if you hide
I can tell when you're hiding so don't try to trick me
And try to peek
nor should you try to sneak a look at me
I'm gonna treat you to a movie
I will reward you by taking you to see a movie
Stop your gigglin', children, do be nice
stop laughing and behave properly
Like little sugars and spice
you need to behave like good children
You saw me kissin' your sister
I know that you saw me kissing your sister
You saw me holdin' her hand
I know that you saw me holding her hand
But if you snitch to your mother
if you tattle on me to your mother
Your father won't understand
your father won't comprehend the situation
I wish they would take a nap
I want the children to go sleep for a while
Little children, now why don't you go bye-bye
why don't you go to bed?
Go anywhere at all
just please leave me alone
Little children, I know would go if you tried
I know you will leave if you try
Go up the stairs
go upstairs and leave me alone
Me and your sister, we're goin' steady
I am dating your sister exclusively
How can I kiss her when I'm ready to
I cannot kiss her when you are around
With little children like you around
having children around makes things difficult for me
I wonder what can I do around
I'm not sure how to handle the situation
Little children like you
these young children
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: J. L. McFarland, Mort Shuman
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind