Honeycomb
Jimmie Rodgers Lyrics


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(Honeycomb)
(Honeycomb)

Well it's a darn good life
And it's kinda funny
How the Lord made the bee
And the bee made the honey
And the honeybee lookin' for a home
And they called it honeycomb
And they roamed the world and they gathered all
Of the honeycomb into one sweet ball
And the honeycomb from a million trips
Made my baby's lips

Oh, Honeycomb, won't you be my baby
Well, Honeycomb, be my own
Got a hank o' hair and a piece o' bone
And made a walkin' talkin' Honeycomb
Well, Honeycomb, won't you be my baby
Well, Honeycomb, be my own
What a darn good life
When you got a wife like Honeycomb

(Honeycomb)
And the Lord said now that I made a bee
I'm gonna look all around for a green, green tree
And He made a little tree and I guess you heard
Oh, then well he made a little bird
And they waited all around till the end of Spring
Gettin' every note that the birdie'd sing
And they put 'em all into one sweet tome
For my Honeycomb

Oh, Honeycomb, won't you be my baby
Well, Honeycomb, be my own
Got a hank o' hair and a piece o' bone
And made a walkin' talkin' Honeycomb
Well, Honeycomb, won't you be my baby
Well, Honeycomb, be my own
What a darn good life
When you got a wife like Honeycomb

(Honeycomb)
And the Lord says now that I made a bird
I'm gonna look all round for a little ol' word
That sounds about sweet like "turtledove"
And I guess I'm gonna call it "love"
And He roamed the world lookin' everywhere
Gettin' love from here, love from there
And He put it all in a little ol' part
Of my baby's heart

Oh, Honeycomb, won't you be my baby
Well, Honeycomb, be my own
Got a hank o' hair and a piece o' bone
And made a walkin' talkin' Honeycomb
Well, Honeycomb, won't you be my baby
Well, Honeycomb, be my own
What a darn good life
When you got a wife like Honeycomb

(Honeycomb)

Overall Meaning

The song "Honeycomb" by Jimmie Rodgers is a cheerful, upbeat tune that explores the wonders of love through nature. The song opens with a reflection on the beauty of life, expressing how peculiar it is that the bee makes honey and how bees, honey, and honeycomb coexist in our world. The singer compares this to the sweetness of his lover's lips, which he attributes to the many trips the honeycomb has taken to create such a perfect sweetness.


The second verse delves deeper into the creation of life, with Rogers singing about how God created trees and birds, searching for that perfect word that compared to their sweetness. Here, he finds the word "love" and uses it to describe the love he has for his partner. The song concludes with more comparisons to love and the honeycomb, with Rogers expressing how much he adores his partner and how lucky he feels to have her as his wife.


Overall, "Honeycomb" is a charming, lighthearted song that celebrates the beauty of life and the wonders of love through nature.


Line by Line Meaning

Well it's a darn good life
Life is really good


And it's kinda funny
It's sort of amusing


How the Lord made the bee
It's interesting how God created bees


And the bee made the honey
Bees produce honey


And the honeybee lookin' for a home
Honeybees search for a place to live


And they called it honeycomb
The bees named their home honeycomb


And they roamed the world and they gathered all
The bees traveled everywhere and collected all of the honeycomb


Of the honeycomb into one sweet ball
They merged the honeycomb into a singular sweet object


And the honeycomb from a million trips
The bees collected the honeycomb from a million journeys


Made my baby's lips
The honey from the honeycomb made my lover's lips sweet


Oh, Honeycomb, won't you be my baby
I want Honeycomb to be my partner


Well, Honeycomb, be my own
Please be mine


Got a hank o' hair and a piece o' bone
I have curly hair and a nice physique


And made a walkin' talkin' Honeycomb
All those parts combined make me a charming Honeycomb


What a darn good life
Life is pretty amazing


When you got a wife like Honeycomb
Having a partner like Honeycomb makes life even better


And the Lord said now that I made a bee
God says that after creating bees


I'm gonna look all around for a green, green tree
God looks for a green tree


And He made a little tree and I guess you heard
God created a little tree, maybe you've heard of it


Oh, then well he made a little bird
Then, he made a little bird


And they waited all around till the end of Spring
The bird and the tree waited until the end of Spring


Gettin' every note that the birdie'd sing
They listened to every song the birdie sang


And they put 'em all into one sweet tome
They combined them into one sweet book


For my Honeycomb
For my beloved partner


And the Lord says now that I made a bird
God says after making a bird


I'm gonna look all round for a little ol' word
He searches for a small sweet word


That sounds about sweet like "turtledove"
Something with similar sweetness to the word "turtledove"


And I guess I'm gonna call it "love"
He decides to call it "love"


And He roamed the world lookin' everywhere
God searches the entire world


Gettin' love from here, love from there
He finds love in various places


And He put it all in a little ol' part
He puts all the love in a small part


Of my baby's heart
In my lover's heart




Lyrics ยฉ MUSIC & MEDIA INT'L, INC., Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: BOB MERRILL

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Most interesting comment from YouTube:

@biff9999

A lot of people these days are unaware of a bizarre incident that happened in 1967 in which Jimmie Rodgers was stopped on the San Diego Freeway by an off-duty LAPD officer at night, and was beaten so severely that he couldn't perform at all for a year afterward. He suffered a traumatic brain injury, among other injuries. The LAPD officer in question claimed that he had pulled Rodgers over that night because he was driving erratically, and that Rogers had fallen down and sustained his injuries that way, and then, suddenly, it was disclosed that two other LAPD were also on the scene, and after Rogers "fell", they put him back in his car, and just left. A friend of Rodgers, concerned that Rodgers was not yet home, went looking for him along the freeway, and found him in his car, very bloody and slumped across the front seat. Rodgers was not inebriated, according to tests administered at the hospital. Unfortunately, he was beaten badly enough so that he could not remember anything after he was pulled over. This was all huge news at the time.

He sued the LAPD, they countersued for slander (a $13 million suit), and finally, in 1973, Rodgers took a $200,000 settlement in the case, with the settlement stipulating that the LAPD accepted no responsibility for his injuries. Rodgers prevailed legally, but his injuries and long physical rehabilitation really put quite a dent in his career for a few years. To this day, it's never been determined what actually happened.

Much, much later, Tommy James, of Tommy James and the Shondells, who had his own problems with the mob, wrote in his 2010 biography "Me, the Mob, and the Music", that Morris Levy, the Mafia-connected head of Roulette Records, had arranged the attack in response to Rodgers' repeated demands for unpaid royalties he was due by the label. All of Rodgers' most successful singles had been released by Roulette in the Fifties, and Roulette was notorious for not paying their artists for their record sales. As a side note, Levy also frequently added his name to the songwriter credits for songs produced on his label, so that he would receive some of the royalties from those songs. This happened with most of the artists on the label, and, as has been documented, most often with the black artists on his label, as he figured he could more easily get away with it. Rodgers himself had moved to the Dot label in 1962, and then to A&M in 1966, but never let up on Levy for the money he was rightfully owed for his hits.

Justice regarding Levy came late, when he was finally convicted of extortion in 1988 as a result of an FBI investigation into organized crime's presence in the music industry. Levy was in ill health by then, his lawyers claimed that prison would kill him, they appealed, lost the appeal, and two months before his 10-year sentence was to start in 1990, he died of cancer.

Crazy story, huh?



All comments from YouTube:

@Powerfulchange712

He looks sooo happy! I have too show this to my son because of the way the guitar is played...very interesting and kind of unique!

@TomElvisSmith

For a couple of years in the late '50's, Jimmie was one of the most popular singers in the country and appeared on many variety shows. He had some great hits and this was his first and biggest; a #1 charter from 1957. This was Jimmie's second appearance on the Sullivan show. He also sang "Kisses Sweeter than Wine" on this episode which was his second hit. On another show a couple of months earlier, Jimmie had sung "Honeycomb" as well. Coincidentally, both episodes also featured Paul Anka's first two appearances on the show singing "Diana" on both. This second show also featured Sam Cooke's first appearance, singing part of "You Send Me" (I believe they ran out of time so he only sang an excerpt). Sam returned a month later to sing the entire song.

@mrob75

very sadly, Jimmie, for many years had been extremely ill and could hardly sing anymore..."spasmodic dysphonia" ...He appeared in ill health on a few oldies circuit show...His fans still loved him even then ...And still do today. May Jimmie be resting in Christ's peace. Thanks Tom for the added notes on this thread.

@TomElvisSmith

@@mrob75 Yes, Jimmie led a tragic life, as someone else documented in another comment. One of the saddest stories in the music business. It's good to remember him in happier times, such as on the Sullivan show, when he always seemed so happy and vibrant both in his singing and appearance.

@biff9999

Good information - thanks for that.

@TomElvisSmith

@@biff9999 You're welcome!

@diegos.loayza3706

@@TomElvisSmith man i find you in many ed sullivan show videos with intersting info and facts of 50s artists. I also like the 50s. we need a discord or reddit just to write about 50s music and stories. do you like the idea?

5 More Replies...

@richardryan5826

There is another Jimmie Rodgers, who became popular in the late 1920s, and is often regarded as the father of country music; he tended to yodel during his songs. Confusion occurred when I was a child and told a teacher that I liked Jimmie Rodgers' music. I was referring to the "Honeycomb" singer, but my instructor thought I was talking about the Singing Brakeman. Additionally, there was a blues singer named Jimmy Rogers.

@jonjim1952

All these Jimmy/Jimmie Rodgers confused me for years.

@jeffanddebbiebaxter3143

Hear hear๐Ÿคฉ๐Ÿคฉ

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