| "I'm a King Bee" | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Single by Slim Harpo | |
| A-side | "Got Love If You Want It" |
| Released | 1957 |
| Recorded | March 1957 |
| Studio | J. D. Miller, Crowley, Louisiana |
| Genre | Blues |
| Length | 2:55 |
| Label | Excello |
| Songwriter(s) | James Moore a.k.a. Slim Harpo |
| Producer(s) | J. D. Miller |
"I'm a King Bee" is a swamp blues song written and first recorded by Slim Harpo in 1957. It has been performed and recorded by numerous blues and other artists and in 2008, Slim Harpo's original received a Grammy Hall of Fame Award.
Written by Slim Harpo, whose legal name was James Moore, the song was recorded in March 1957. [1] The recording features a spare arrangement and instrumentation typical of J. D. Miller's production approach. Accompanying Slim Harpo were Gabriel "Guitar Gable" Perrodin on guitar, John "Fats" Perrodin on bass, and Clarence "Jockey" Etienne on drums.
The song has an irregular number of bars (as opposed to the standard 12 bars). According to blues historian Gerard Herzhaft, it is derived from songs by Memphis Minnie, Bo Carter, and Muddy Waters and uses the rhythm figure from "Rockin' and Rollin'" by Lil' Son Jackson. [2] Baton Rouge, Louisiana-based Excello Records originally released it in 1957 as the B-side to his debut solo single, "I Got Love if You Want It". [1]
English rock band the Rolling Stones recorded "I'm a King Bee" for their 1964 debut album. It has been identified as an early important song for the Rolling Stones, [2] although it was not released as a single. The band's arrangement generally follows Slim Harpo's, but includes a slide-guitar break by Brian Jones. The personnel consisted of Jagger on vocals and harmonica, Jones on slide guitar, Keith Richards on acoustic guitar, Bill Wyman on bass guitar, and Charlie Watts on drums. Later, Mick Jagger commented "What's the point in listening to us doing 'I'm a King Bee' when you can hear Slim Harpo do it?" [1]
The Tea Set, which became Pink Floyd, recorded "I'm a King Bee" and several other songs in December 1964. [3] [4] The recording features Syd Barrett, Bob Klose, Roger Waters, Richard Wright and Nick Mason. When it was officially issued on the vinyl-only 1965: Their First Recordings (2015), it became the only cover song ever released by Pink Floyd. The song was later issued for the first time on CD as part of The Early Years 1965–1972 box set in November 2016, along with the other songs recorded in December 1964. [5]
John Belushi performed "I'm a King Bee" on the January 17, 1976 broadcast of Saturday Night Live, with Belushi and the show's house band dressed in bee costumes and bandleader Howard Shore dressed as a beekeeper. Guest host Buck Henry introduced them as "Howard Shore and his All-Bee Band." At the end, Belushi repeated four of the song's last five words several times in different vocal styles for comic effect. [6]
In 2008, Slim Harpo's "I'm a King Bee" received a Grammy Hall of Fame Award, which "honor[s] recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance". [7] The song has been recorded by a variety of musicians. [8]
A Saucerful of Secrets is the second studio album by the English rock band Pink Floyd, released on 29 June 1968 by EMI Columbia in the United Kingdom and on 27 July 1968 in the United States by Tower Records. During recording, the mental health of singer and guitarist Syd Barrett declined, so David Gilmour was recruited to complement him; Barrett left the band before the album's completion.
Slim Harpo was an American blues musician, a leading exponent of the swamp blues style, and "one of the most commercially successful blues artists of his day". His most successful and influential recordings included "I'm a King Bee" (1957), "Rainin' in My Heart" (1961), and "Baby Scratch My Back" (1966) which reached number one on Billboard's R&B chart and number 16 on its broader Hot 100 singles chart. He was a master of the blues harmonica, known in blues circles as a "harp".
Rado Robert Garcia Klose is an English musician, photographer and printmaker. Between 1964 and July 1965, he was the lead guitarist of an early rock band that would later become Pink Floyd. Although he recorded a few songs with that band, he left before their transformation into Pink Floyd. However, on the band's official Facebook page, he has been mentioned repeatedly as a former member.
The Madcap Laughs is the debut solo album by the English singer-songwriter Syd Barrett. It was recorded after Barrett had left Pink Floyd in April 1968. The album had a chequered recording history, with work beginning in mid-1968, but the bulk of the sessions taking place between April and July 1969, for which five different producers were credited − including Barrett, Peter Jenner, Malcolm Jones, and fellow Pink Floyd members David Gilmour and Roger Waters. Among the guest musicians are Willie Wilson from Gilmour's old band Jokers Wild and Robert Wyatt of the band Soft Machine.
Barrett is the second and final studio album of new material released by former Pink Floyd frontman Syd Barrett. Recording began at Abbey Road Studios on 26 February 1970, and lasted for 15 sessions until 21 July. The album was produced by Pink Floyd's guitarist David Gilmour and keyboardist Richard Wright, who also contributed on bass guitar and keyboards respectively, along with previous Madcap contributor Jerry Shirley on drums.
"See Emily Play" is a song by English rock band Pink Floyd, released as their second single in June 1967. Written by original frontman Syd Barrett and recorded on 23 May 1967, it has "The Scarecrow" as its B-side. It was released as a non-album single, but appeared as the opening track of the U.S. edition of the band's debut album The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (1967).
Got Live If You Want It! is a six-song extended play (EP) release by the Rolling Stones featuring live recordings from 1965. The title is a pun on the swamp blues song "I Got Love If You Want It" by Slim Harpo; the Stones recorded his "I'm a King Bee" for their 1964 debut album. Got Live If You Want It! reached number one in the UK and was the group's last EP.
"Jugband Blues" is a song by the English psychedelic rock band Pink Floyd, and is featured on their second album, A Saucerful of Secrets, released in 1968. Written by Syd Barrett, it was his sole compositional contribution to the album, as well as his last published for the band. Barrett and Pink Floyd's management wanted the song to be released as a single, but were vetoed by the rest of the band and producer Norman Smith. "Jugband Blues" is directed towards anyone within Barrett's proximity.
"Remember a Day" is a song by the British rock band Pink Floyd, written and sung by their keyboardist Richard Wright, appearing on their second album, A Saucerful of Secrets (1968). It was performed by Pink Floyd only once, as an encore in May 1968; it was subsequently performed by David Gilmour in September 2008 in memory of Wright, who had recently died of cancer, on Later... with Jools Holland, and by Nick Mason during his Saucerful of Secrets tour. The dreamy, poetic lyrics are about nostalgia for the lost paradise of early childhood.
"Arnold Layne" is the debut single released by the English rock band Pink Floyd on 10 March 1967, written by Syd Barrett.
Roger Keith "Syd" Barrett was an English singer, songwriter, musician and painter who co-founded the rock band Pink Floyd in 1965. Barrett was their original frontman and primary songwriter, becoming known for his whimsical take on psychedelia, English-accented singing, literary influences, and stream-of-consciousness writing style. As a guitarist, he was influential for his free-form playing and for employing dissonance, distortion, echo, feedback, and other studio effects.
Pink Floyd were an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic groups, they were distinguished for their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philosophical lyrics and elaborate live shows, and became a leading band of the progressive rock genre, cited by some as the greatest progressive rock band of all time.
Joseph Denton "Jay" Miller was an American record producer, musician and songwriter from Crowley, Louisiana, whose Cajun, swamp blues, and swamp pop recordings influenced American popular culture.
"Vegetable Man" is a song written by Syd Barrett for the English rock band Pink Floyd in 1967. It was considered for the band's third single or for inclusion on their second album A Saucerful of Secrets. Bootlegged for decades, the song did not have an official release until 2016, when it was included on the box set The Early Years 1965–1972.
"Scream Thy Last Scream" is a song by Pink Floyd, written by frontman Syd Barrett and scheduled to be the band's next single after "See Emily Play".
"Every Day I Have the Blues" is a blues song that has been performed in a variety of styles. An early version of the song is attributed to Pinetop Sparks and his brother Milton. It was first performed in the taverns of St. Louis by the Sparks brothers and was recorded July 28, 1935 by Pinetop with Henry Townsend on guitar. The song is a twelve-bar blues that features Pinetop's piano and falsetto vocal. The opening verse includes the line "Every day, every day I have the blues".
Gabriel Perrodin, known as Guitar Gable, was an American Louisiana blues, swamp blues and swamp pop musician. He was best known for recording the original version of "This Should Go On Forever", and his part in the vibrant swamp blues and pop scene in Louisiana in the 1950s and early 1960s.
1965: Their First Recordings is an EP by Pink Floyd released in 2015. It comprises music recorded around Christmas 1964, while the band was known as the Tea Set. These are the earliest Pink Floyd recordings available commercially, with four songs written by Syd Barrett, one written by Roger Waters, and one cover of a song by American blues musician Slim Harpo.