I'm a King Bee

"I'm a King Bee"
Single by Slim Harpo
A-side "Got Love If You Want It"
Released 1957 (1957)
Format 7" 45 rpm record
Recorded 1957 (1957)
Genre Blues
Length 2:55
Label Excello (Cat. no. 2113)
Writer(s) James Moore aka Slim Harpo
Producer J. D. Miller

"I'm a King Bee" is a swamp blues song that has been performed and recorded by numerous blues and other artists. 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".[1]

Contents

Original song

Written and first recorded by Slim Harpo, the song was released in 1957 as the B-side to his debut single, "I Got Love if You Want It", but went on to become better known than the A-side. It features a spare arrangement and instrumentation common to J. D. Miller's production approach for Baton Rouge, Louisiana-based Excello Records. The song, with an irregular number of bars, uses the rhythm figure from "Rockin' and Rollin'" by Lil' Son Jackson.[2]

Rolling Stones version

English rock band The Rolling Stones recorded "I'm a King Bee" for their 1964 debut album (The Rolling Stones (UK), England's Newest Hit Makers (US)). Despite not being released as a single, the song has been called an early "important hit" for the Rolling Stones.[2] The band's arrangement generally follows Slim Harpo's, but includes a slide-guitar break by Brian Jones. 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?"[3]

Other versions

The Tea Set, later known as Pink Floyd, recorded "I'm a King Bee" in December 1964.[4] The recording, which features Syd Barrett, Bob Klose, Roger Waters, Richard Wright and Nick Mason, is officially unreleased. The Grateful Dead performed the song many times in concert between 1966 and 1972. It has been released on the albums Live at the Fillmore East 2-11-69, Fillmore West 1969: The Complete Recordings, Fillmore West 1969, and Ladies and Gentlemen... the Grateful Dead. The Doors performed it at The Matrix Club in 1967, which was released on Live at the Matrix 1967. Also at a 1970 Detroit show, a version with Ray Manzarek singing the lead vocals and John Sebastian (formerly of The Lovin' Spoonful) guesting on harmonica, was recorded and subsequently released on Live in Detroit.

In the 1970s, Led Zeppelin sometimes performed "I'm a King Bee" as part of the live "Whole Lotta Love" medley. John Belushi spoofed the song on the January 17, 1976 episode of Saturday Night Live, performing it live while dressed in a bee costume. Muddy Waters recorded it for his 1981 album King Bee. In 1998, Add N to (X) released "King Wasp", which samples Harpo's song, on their album On the Wires of Our Nerves. 22-20s recorded a version of the song for their 2003 live EP 05/03. The Stone Foxes released a single version on April 26, 2011; it features vocals by Avi Vinocur and was used in a television commercial for Jack Daniels' Tennessee Honey liquor.

References

  1. ^ "Grammy Hall of Fame Awards". The Recording Academy. 2008. http://www.grammy.org/recording-academy/awards/hall-of-fame#i. Retrieved March 18, 2011. 
  2. ^ a b Herzhaft, Gerard (1992). Encyclopedia of the Blues. University of Arkansas Press. p. 453. ISBN 1557282528. 
  3. ^ Everett, Tod (1989). The Best of Slim Harpo (liner notes). Rhino Records. p. 1. RS 70169. 
  4. ^ Povey & Russell 1997, p. 19.