Kirby Stone founded the group and enrollled Eddie Hall, Mike Gardner and Larry Forsterand to complete the quartet.
The group began playing clubs in the New York area. They won slots on local television, including The Ed Sullivan Show, and soon after signed to Columbia Records. Several LPs followed, including Baubles, Bangles and Beads; their version of the song Baubles, Bangles and Beads became a hit in the U.S. in 1958.
Among the backing musicians that played on Kirby Stone Four albums were Jimmy Carroll's orchestra, the Kai Winding Quartet, Alvino Rey, Shelly Manne, and Al Klink. Their style, which melded swing jazz, vocalese, and early rock & roll was referred to as "The Go Sound."
Hambone
The Kirby Stone Four Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Hambone, hambone
Where you been?
Round the world and I'm going again
What you gonna do when you come back?
Take a little walk by the railroad track
Hambone
Hambone, hambone
Have you heard?
Papa's gonna buy me a mocking bird
And if that mocking bird don't sing
Papa's gonna buy me a diamond ring
And if that diamond ring don't shine
Papa's gonna take it to the five and dime
Hambone
Hambone, hambone
Where you been?
Round the world and I'm going again
I just skinned an alley cat
To make my wife a Sunday hat
Took the hide right off a goat
To make my wife a Sunday coat
Hambone, hambone
Where's your wife
Out to the kitchen, cooking beans and rice
Hambone
Hambone
Hambone, hambone
Trying to eat
Ketchup on his elbow, pickle on his feet
Bread in the basket
Chicken in the stew
Supper on the fire for me and you
Look at him holler, look at him moan
That hambone just can't hambone
Hambone
Hambone
The Kirby Stone Four's song 'Hambone' is a traditional African American folk song that dates back to the mid-1800s. The song invites the listener into the world of the African American Hambone tradition. Hambone is a percussive dance that was performed using rhythmic movements to create sounds. The lyrics of the song reflect the wide use of Hambone and the cultural significance of the tradition.
The song starts with the singer asking Hambone, "Where you been?" to which Hambone replies, "Round the world and I'm going again." These lines embody the essence of the Hambone tradition and reflect how the dance had spread and become a part of different cultures. The following lines are about Hambone's plans to take "a little walk by the railroad track" when he comes back.
In the next verse, Hambone is asked if he has heard that his "papa's gonna buy [him] a mockingbird." The mockingbird symbolizes a freedom that African Americans aspired to achieve during the times of slavery. The lines that follow represent the bargaining process that Hambone's father goes through to please him. The subsequent verses narrate Hambone's deeds of skinning an alley cat to make his wife a Sunday hat and taking the hide right off a goat to make her a Sunday coat.
Overall, the song Hambone reflects the cultural significance and historical legacy of the African American folk dance. The song allows the listeners to be a part of the Hambone tradition and be a recipient of its cultural values.
Line by Line Meaning
Hambone! Hambone!
Let's do the Hambone dance!
Hambone, hambone
Where you been?
Round the world and I'm going again
What you gonna do when you come back?
Take a little walk by the railroad track
Hambone
I have traveled around the world, am coming back, and planning on taking a walk by the railroad track.
Hambone, hambone
Have you heard?
Papa's gonna buy me a mocking bird
And if that mocking bird don't sing
Papa's gonna buy me a diamond ring
And if that diamond ring don't shine
Papa's gonna take it to the five and dime
Hambone
My father is indulging me with a mockingbird, and if it doesn't sing, he shall gift me a diamond ring. And if that ring doesn't shine, he will take it to a shop for repair.
Hambone, hambone
Where you been?
Round the world and I'm going again
I just skinned an alley cat
To make my wife a Sunday hat
Took the hide right off a goat
To make my wife a Sunday coat
Hambone, hambone
I'm returning back to traveling around the world after having gifted my wife a Sunday hat made from an alley cat's skin and a Sunday coat made from a goat's hide.
Hambone, hambone
Where's your wife
Out to the kitchen, cooking beans and rice
Hambone
Hambone
My wife is at home cooking beans and rice while I'm going back to traveling.
Hambone, hambone
Trying to eat
Ketchup on his elbow, pickle on his feet
Bread in the basket
Chicken in the stew
Supper on the fire for me and you
Look at him holler, look at him moan
That hambone just can't hambone
Hambone
Hambone
Trying to eat bread and chicken stew, but he has made a mess with ketchup on his elbow and a pickle on his feet. He is screaming and crying, but he can not dance the Hambone.
Lyrics © BROADWAY MUSIC CORPORATION
Written by: EINAR AARON SWAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind