Chick Webb represented the triumph of the human spirit in jazz and life. Hunchbacked, small in stature, almost a dwarf with a large face and broad shoulders, Webb fought off congenital tuberculosis of the spine in order to become one of the most competitive drummers and band leaders of the big band era. Perched high upon a platform, he used custom-made pedals, goose-neck cymbal holders, a 28-inch bass drum and a wide variety of other percussion instruments to create thundering solos of a complexity and energy that paved the way for Buddy Rich (who studied Webb intensely) and Louie Bellson.
William Henry Webb bought his first set of drums with his earnings as a newsboy, and he began playing in bands on pleasure boats. After moving to New York in 1925, he led bands in various clubs before settling in for long regular runs at the Savoy beginning in 1931. Although Benny Carter and Johnny Hodges played with the band early on, the Webb band was oddly short on major soloists during its heyday from the mid-'30s onward; the young alto sax player Louis Jordan made the biggest impression after leaving the band. But the band made up for it with a crisp ensemble sound, Webb's disciplined, ferociously driving drum pyrotechnics, trumpeter Taft Jordan's impressions of Louis Armstrong, and most of all, a series of strong compositions and charts by Edgar Sampson ("Blue Lou" and "Stomping at the Savoy" among them). In 1935, Webb hired the teenaged Ella Fitzgerald after she won a talent contest at the Apollo Theatre, became her legal guardian, and rebuilt his show around the singer, who provided him with his biggest hit record, "A Tisket-A-Tasket," in 1938. The band's fame continued to grow, fueled by its reputation as a giant-killer in the Savoy battles and a continuous string of Decca 78s that featured such irresistible numbers as "T'aint What You Do (It's the Way That You Do It)" and the B-side of "Tasket," "Liza." But Webb's precarious health began to give way, and after a major operation in Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, he died (his last words reportedly were, "I'm sorry, I've got to go."). After Webb's death, Fitzgerald fronted the the band until it finally broke up in 1942.
The Dipsy Doodle
Chick Webb Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The Dipsy Doodle will get in your hair
And if it gets you, it couldn't be worse
The things you say will come out in reverse
Like "You love I and me love you"
That's the way the Dipsy Doodle works
The Dipsy Doodle's easy to find
You never know it until it's too late
And then you're in such a terrible state
Like "The moon jumped over the cow, hey diddle"
That's the way the Dipsy Doodle works
Whenever you think you're crazy
You're just a victim of the Dipsy Doodle
Ah, but it's not your mind that's hazy
It's your tongue that's at fault, not your noodle
You better listen and try to be good
And try to do all the things that you should
The Dipsy Doodle will get you some day
You'll think you're crazy, the things that you'll say
Like "Rhythm got I and hot am I"
That's the way the Dipsy Doodle works
If it gets you, you'll be singin' it
And we'll bet you, you'll be swingin' it
The Dipsy Doodle's the thing to beware
The Dipsy Doodle will get in your hair
And if it gets you, it couldn't be worse
Everything you say will come out in reverse
"You love I and me love you"
That is just the way the Dipsy Doodle works
Whenever you think you're crazy
You're the victim of the Dipsy Doodle
But it's not your mind that's hazy
It's your tongue that's at fault, not your noodle
You better listen and try to be good
And try to do all the things that you should
The Dipsy Doodle will get you some day
And you'll think you're crazy, the things you'll say
"Violets are red, roses are blue"
Roses, roses, roses, all around you
You'll never know it until too late
And then you're in such a terrible state
If you wanna do the Doodle, do the Dipsy Doodle
Doo, doo, doo, do the Dipsy Doodle
Doo, doo, doo, do the Dipsy Doodle
Doo, doo, doo, do the Dipsy Doodle
Do the Dipsy Doodle now
The Dipsy Doodle is a warning against the effects of drinking and getting intoxicated. Chick Webb delivers this cautionary tale in a playful and bouncy melody. The song describes the experience of a person who has taken one too many drinks and the unfortunate consequences that come with it. The chorus hints at the confusion and disorientation that one may feel when intoxicated, where even the simplest of sentences are misconstructed, and words come out in reverse. The song reflects on how the human body and tongue behave when drunk, and how one's ability to communicate coherently is compromised. The song offers some advice on how to avoid this situation by encouraging listeners to behave responsibly, and warning them that they too may fall victim to the Dipsy Doodle if they do not.
Line by Line Meaning
The Dipsy Doodle's the thing to beware
You must be careful of the Dipsy Doodle
The Dipsy Doodle will get in your hair
It will bother and confuse you
And if it gets you, it couldn't be worse
If it confuses you, it will be terrible
The things you say will come out in reverse
You will say things backwards
Like "You love I and me love you"
You might say "Me love you and you love me" instead
That's the way the Dipsy Doodle works
That's how the Dipsy Doodle affects you
The Dipsy Doodle's easy to find
You can't always tell when it's affecting you
You know it's always in back of your mind
It's always lurking in your thoughts
You never know it until it's too late
You won't know until you've said something strange out loud
And then you're in such a terrible state
You'll feel embarrassed and confused
Like "The moon jumped over the cow, hey diddle"
You might say something odd like that
Whenever you think you're crazy
Whenever you feel confused
You're just a victim of the Dipsy Doodle
The Dipsy Doodle is causing your confusion
Ah, but it's not your mind that's hazy
You're not actually crazy
It's your tongue that's at fault, not your noodle
It's just the way you're speaking that's the problem
You better listen and try to be good
Pay attention and try to speak correctly
And try to do all the things that you should
Act in a reasonable and responsible manner
The Dipsy Doodle will get you some day
You will be affected by the Dipsy Doodle eventually
You'll think you're crazy, the things that you'll say
You'll say strange things and think you're losing your mind
Like "Rhythm got I and hot am I"
You might say something like "I'm hot and I've got rhythm"
If it gets you, you'll be singin' it
You'll keep saying the strange things without realizing it
And we'll bet you, you'll be swingin' it
You'll find yourself moving to the Dipsy Doodle rhythm
That is just the way the Dipsy Doodle works
That's how the Dipsy Doodle affects you
If you wanna do the Doodle, do the Dipsy Doodle
If you want to experience the Dipsy Doodle, go ahead and try it
Doo, doo, doo, do the Dipsy Doodle
Enjoy the rhythm of the Dipsy Doodle
Do the Dipsy Doodle now
Start dancing to the Dipsy Doodle right away
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Larry Clinton
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
CARDUELIS999
It's just astonishing that Chick Webb, a man with enormous physical disabiltiies, isn't widely known today. Why doesn't a charity devoted to the disabled make this great man their examplar? With an ad campaign saying "Chick Webb had a twisted spine that caused him enormous pain. And he told his condition to go to hell. So he made music."
David LoganSr
Great idea!
Bubba Sheen
Good Music, real. I love this generation!!
NewHampshireBoy
Real Music! Chick Webb was amazing-TB of the spine but he had this great band!
bob boscarato
The hottest bands of the time, either black or white were fierce competitors and produced the best popular music of that time. Cudos.
funmachine
when I hear this kinda stuff, I think of my grandma's old console radio...so imagine it's 1940, and the big ol' radio is the center of the world, and around 9 or 10 pm this amazing shit is coming over the air from some hotel or nightclub back East like the Savoy, and you're cool and you're drinking at the house and there is NO fucking TV so you dance and and sing along and make your own fun. Whole different world.
Fernando Allen Sr
Chick Webb, a native of Baltimore! I often played at the rec. center named in his honor. His funeral was held at Waters AME Church.
Sergiu Neghina
you should also tag ELLA FITZGERALD on this video !! cuz' it's one of her best cheers
Dogbite Williams
I wholeheartedly agree.
Karl Piepenburg
So much better than other versions