We keep hearing about how the bee is an endangered species... but that doesn't appear to be the case in the world of popular music. I couldn't believe how many bands I found named after bees... and this is just the start. Look out for further posts about The Honey Bees, The Bumble Bees, The Killer Bees and The King Bees... if I ever dare set foot in the hive again after today.
THE BEES #1
We start today in Harlem, 1954, with a cool little number from Billy "Blue" Bland and his Bees.
The Bees - Get Away, Baby
THE BEES #2
Next, some bluesy Cincinnati Bees from 1962 - oh yes!
The Bees - Oh Yes
THE BEES #3
It's been a while since we had any surfer rock on this feature, so here's some from '64. You can thank me later.
The Bees - Jadoo / Shy Boy
THE BEAS #4
There may be a spelling error here, but it's not going to prevent me from playing what may well prove to be today's best song. From 1965, who could resist Dr. Goldfoot And The Bikini Machine? From a movie of the same name, apparently.
The Beas - Doctor Goldfoot And The Bikini Machine
THE BEES #5
LA Bees from 1965, with added harmonica - always a bonus. Members of the group went on to join the W.C. Fields Memorial Electric String Band.
The Bees - Baby Let Me Follow You Down
THE BEES #6
More Californian Bees from 1966 on "Liverpool" records... presumably they thought that would help them cash in on the Merseybeat phenomenon.
The Bees - Voices Green And Purple
THE BEES #7
Skanking Jamaican Bees from 1967 from a group of musicians that discogs tells me had a wide variety of aliases (including E.K. Bunch, Pyramids Of Jamaica, Roy And Duke All Stars, Seven Letters, Sir Collins And The Earthquakes, Sonny & The Stoneagers, Symarip, The Alterations, The Bed Bugs, The Family Circle, The Jamaican Cousins, The Original Africans and The West Indians).
The Bees - Jesse James Rides Again
THE BEES #8
A swarm of Korean Bees from 1970.
Bees - 초원 (Prairie)
THE BEES #9
1973 brings us some French "jerk - pop - mooger - acid rock" according to the Tube of You. With added bagpipes if you stick around for the B-side.
The Bees - Hair-stylist / Bagpipes Are Back
THE BEES #10
Power Pop Bees from New Jersey in 1979 - that'll do for me.
The Bees - Already In Love / Shoehead
THE BEES #11
A splash of British Power Pop next, but it pales beside the previous offering, I'm afraid. Lead singer Rick Camp would go on to join the Blind Dog Beerbelly Blues Band.
Good advice for the ladies though...
The Bees - Leave Willie Alone
THE BEES #12
Austrian Schlager Bees from... I'm guessing some time in the early 80s, based on what they're wearing.
The Bees - Bleib Bei Mir
BEES #13
Greek Bees from 1984, aka Παντελής Καραχισαρίδης (Pantelis Karahisaridis), the drummer from Greek band Sharp Ties. (So why is he wearing a scarf?)
Bees - Maybe Someday
THE BEES #14
Funky South African Soul from 1988.
The Bees - She's a Witch (Tikoloshi)
THE BEES #15
Nigerian Reggae Bees, going to war in 1989...
The Bees - War
THE BEES #16
Sleazy Californian punk from 1998 - they soon changed their name to the Superbees, though the youtube poster believes that made them less super.
The Bees - Really Want To Know
THE BEES #17
The Bees I was most familiar with before I started this post. These Isle Of Man Bees released four albums between 2002 and 2010, and buzzed their way into the UK Top 30 in 2005 with a tune that Radcliffe & Maconie play on a regular basis. I might have seen them live at some point.
The Bees - Chicken Payback
THE BEES #18
Here's another band I was also familiar with, but only in their later life as The Silver Seas ("copyright issues" forced the name change... though curiously not for any of the other bands featured here today!).
They're from Nashville, though you probably wouldn't know that. Here they are in 2004...
The Bees - Starry Gazey Pie
THE BEES #19
Finally, two folky sisters from 2018. Don't be alarmed, they're from Barcelona.
The Bees - Albert
So then, Hive Mind, which Bees are best?
