I've done a few posts on this blog about songs and music related to Alabama. Two such pieces on songs from the 19th and early 20th centuries can be found here and here. I've written an item on three pretty obscure albums by state musicians. I also wrote an extensive post on songs featuring Birmingham. I recently came across another relevant early 20th century song, so here we are.
The title is a mouthful: "When the Bees Make Honey Down in Sunny Alabam'". You can read the lyrics below. The singer tells us he's anxious to go home not only to see his folks "who are like a pair of bees in a honey comb" but also to see his "honey lamb" on a Sunday afternoon and maybe buzz up a "honey moon". It's a lighthearted romantic tune with lots of wordplay related to bees and honey.
So who wrote this classic?
Actually, three men very accomplished in their day were responsible. Two collaborated on the lyrics, Sam M. Lewis and Joe Young. Born in New York City, Lewis was a cafe singer who began writing in 1912. His other songs include "I'm Sitting on Top of the World" and "Rock-a-Bye Your Baby with a Dixie Melody", which was introduced by Al Jolson in a Broadway musical. His songs were used in such recent films as The Pelican Brief [1993] and Big Fish [2003], which was based on the 1998 novel by Birmingham native Daniel Wallace.
Co-lyricist Young was born in New York City. He was also a singer and entertained U.S. troops in World War I. In 1935 with Fred Ahlert he wrote his most famous tune, "I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter." Young also wrote "In a Shanty in Old Shanty Town" and "Dancing with You."
Composer Walter Donaldson was born in Brooklyn. He also wrote music for such standards as "Makin' Whoopee", "My Blue Heaven" and "Yes Sir, That's My Baby."
The publishing company Waterson, Berlin and Snyder was founded in 1908 as the Ted Snyder Company. Partners Henry Waterson and Irving Berlin joined in 1917. By the 1920s the firm was one of the largest publishers of popular sheet music in the U.S.
I've come across two recordings of this song. The first was released by Columbia in 1919; the singers are Irving and Jack Kaufman. Jack was the older brother; he, Irving and Philip often sang together. Irving began his recording career in 1914. He sang in a vaudeville style, but even so recorded with such jazz greats as Bix Beiderbecke and the Dorsey Brothers. A link to the recording at the Internet Archive can be found below.
A more recent recording by Ian Whitcomb [1941-2020] from 2007 is available on Spotify. Whitcomb was an English actor, author and singer-songwriter who wrote several books on popular music, including the classic After the Ball [1972]. He stimulated a revival in the use of the ukulele, which he played in concerts, records and film scores.
This sheet music is from my personal collection.
WHEN THE BEES MAKE HONEY DOWN IN SUNNY ALABAM'
(Sam M. Lewis, Joe Young / Walter Donaldson, 1919)
I just feel like telling the world I'm happy and gay;
I just feel like telling you why I'm feeling that way;
This is just the time of the year when bees start to buzz,
And I've got a bee in my bonnet, simply because:
I will be the busiest bee that you ever knew;
Sipping honey all thro' the day that's just what I'll do;
When the bees are buzzin' away near some Rosemary,
How I love to bumble around just take it from me.
When the bees make honey down in sunny Alabam',
That's when I said, I'd be sending a telegram;
Down to honey suckled home,
Where my folks live all alone;
They're like a pair of honey bees,
In a honey comb.
I'm gonna make a beeline straight for home,
That's where I am,
And I've a plan to buzz around with my honey lamb;
Some Sunday afternoon,
If I don't get stung, there'll be a honey moon,
When the bees make honey, down in sunny,
Oh! you Alabam.
Source: International Lyrics Playground
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