Most recently, Dessa published a book under the Doomtree banner. Spiral Bound, her collection of essays and poetry, was dubbed a “dazzling literary debut” by the City Pages and “witty and desperately honest” by Alive Magazine.
A Badly Broken Code, her solo full-length record was released in January 2010 to an eagerly waiting number of listeners and music-writers alike. It earned 4 stars from Urb Magazine, a mention in Spin, and rave reviews from publications across the country.
The Beekeeper
Dessa Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
With her pitcher full of smoke
She'll put us all to sleep
I hope it's dreamless and it's deep
Sweet Prometheus, come home
They took away our fire
And all that this scarcity promotes
Is desperate men and tyrants
What fine design
What hands
What minds
The envy of Eden
Our tools and our reason
It's clear in the animals eyes
We stand
Upright
Build fires
At night
Made on the sixth day
To rest on the seventh
And now we just try to survive
The surgeon and farmer meet
And each greets the other with a bow
They're kindred instruments, you know
The scalpel and the plow
In the shadow of the mountain
We work when work abounds
And we wear out all our prayers
When the work runs out
What fine design
What hands
What minds
The envy of Eden
Our tools and our reason
It's clear in the animals eyes
We stand
Upright
Build fires
At night
Made on the sixth day
To rest on the seventh
And now we just try to survive
The song Beekeeper by Dessa is a contemplative and thought-provoking piece that delves into humankind's relationship with nature and the consequences of our constant need to obtain more. In the opening lines, the "beekeeper" symbolizes human beings who have the power to control and manipulate the natural world. The act of putting "us all to sleep" with smoke can be interpreted as a metaphor for our ability to numb our surroundings into submission. The reference to Prometheus alludes to the Greek myth about the theft of fire from the gods, which allowed humans to progress and evolve. However, in the absence of scarcity, humans have become desperate and tyrannical, highlighting our tendency to exploit the world around us. The lyrics suggest that our very survival is hinged on our ability to maintain a balance and coexist with nature.
The second verse further reinforces this idea of the human mind's ingenuity and creativity. Our tools and reason have enabled us to stand upright and build fires, a feat that is enviable even to the animals. The mention of the sixth day and the seventh day of rest refers to the creation story in the Bible, where humanity is bestowed with the responsibility of taking care of the earth. However, the irony is not lost as we have become the destroyers of the very world we are supposed to protect. The "surgeon and farmer" signifies the various roles humans play in sustaining society and how these roles are interconnected. We work hard when there is work, and we rest and pray when there is none. Ultimately, despite our technological advancements, we are still trying to survive and coexist with nature.
Overall, Dessa's Beekeeper is a beautifully written and introspective song that invites listeners to question our relationship with the natural world. It highlights the importance of respecting and acknowledging our impact on the environment and the delicate balance required to maintain our existence.
Line by Line Meaning
Here comes the beekeeper
The beekeeper is arriving
With her pitcher full of smoke
The beekeeper is carrying smoke with her
She'll put us all to sleep
The beekeeper will use the smoke to make the bees sleep
I hope it's dreamless and it's deep
The singer hopes that the sleep the bees will enter is deep and dreamless
Sweet Prometheus, come home
The singer is calling on the mythological figure Prometheus
They took away our fire
Someone took away the fire from the people
And all that this scarcity promotes
The scarcity of fire leads to certain negative outcomes
Is desperate men and tyrants
The scarcity of fire leads to desperate men and tyrants
What fine design
The design is very good
What hands
The people who made this creation had skilled hands
What minds
The people who made this creation had sharp minds
The envy of Eden
This creation is something that would be envied even in the Garden of Eden
Our tools and our reason
We have tools and are capable of reasoning
It's clear in the animals eyes
The animals can see this capability in us
We stand
We stand upright
Upright
We stand on two legs
Build fires
We are capable of creating fire
At night
We make fires during the night
Made on the sixth day
We were made on the sixth day according to the bible
To rest on the seventh
We were made on the sixth day for the purpose of resting on the seventh day
And now we just try to survive
Nowadays, we are just trying to survive
The surgeon and farmer meet
The surgeon and farmer come together
And each greets the other with a bow
They greet each other with a bow
They're kindred instruments, you know
The surgeon and farmer are similar
The scalpel and the plow
The scalpel and the plow are both instruments used by the surgeon and the farmer
In the shadow of the mountain
The people work in the shadow of a mountain
We work when work abounds
People work when there is work to be done
And we wear out all our prayers
People pray a lot while they work
When the work runs out
When there is no more work to be done, people stop praying
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Dessa Margret Wander, Jessy Greene, Joey Van Phillips
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@ivesphillips
I had only gotten to listen to the Live version from the Sound the Bells album, so of course, I had to look this up. Wow! Oh, gosh, there is such a rush in this melody, a zipping around like bees at work, or a narrator who is desperate to share humanity's story, our achievements and history, to help us recall our unity and creations before it's too late.
@Skeloric
Our choir sang this at our church.
@NevTheDeranged
This song came up on my spotify this morning and it hit me really hard.
@bridgetc9210
Beautiful :o
@maydays685
Lyrics:
Here comes the beekeeper
With her pitcher full of smoke
She'll put us all to sleep
I hope it's dreamless and it's deep
Sweet Prometheus, come home
They took away our fire
And all that this scarcity promotes
Is desperate men and tyrants
What fine design
What hands
What minds
The envy of Eden
Our tools and our reason
It's clear in the animals eyes
We stand
Upright
Build fires
At night
Made on the sixth day
To rest on the seventh
And now we just try to survive
The surgeon and farmer meet
And each greets the other with a bow
They're kindred instruments, you know
The scalpel and the plow
In the shadow of the mountain
We work when work abounds
And we wear out all our prayers
When the work runs out
What fine design
What hands
What minds
The envy of Eden
Our tools and our reason
It's clear in the animals eyes
We stand
Upright
Build fires
At night
Made on the sixth day
To rest on the seventh
And now we just try to survive