Lord Templar calypso song-Sweet as a Honey Bee

Subject: Lord Templar calypso songs
From: GUEST,MissMolly
Date: 04 Sep 24 - 09:29 PM

Does anyone have the lyrics to Sweet as a Honey Bee by Lord Templar?

Subject: RE: Lord Templar calypso song-Sweet as a Honey Bee
From: GUEST,Grishka
Date: 06 Sep 24 - 01:45 PM

Hi, Molly (– could it be that we met before on Mudcat? How are you?),

Perhaps this is the song, though it rhymes "bee" with "Houdini", not "Templar". Maybe he has transformed by magic or witchcraft, for sake of the rhyme?

Subject: RE: Lord Templar calypso song-Sweet as a Honey Bee
From: Joe Offer
Date: 06 Sep 24 - 06:14 PM

Here's a link to the album by Wilmoth Houdini:
https://folkways-media.si.edu/docs/folkways/artwork/ARH07010.pdf

Unfortunately, the notes do not include lyrics, but the notes are very interesting nonetheless.

Subject: RE: Lord Templar calypso song-Sweet as a Honey Bee
From: GUEST,Grishka
Date: 07 Sep 24 - 09:18 AM

The Lord Templar song appears to be titled "Sweet as Honey Be" – which, allowing for dialect, makes more sense. The seller dates it "1950s?", much later than Mr. Houdini's song.

Here you find some lyrics titled accordingly, but dated 1986: "I wanna lover sweet as honey be." It may or may not be based on Lord Templar's song. Later on we read "buzz around me, sweet honey be" – the transcriber didn't win a spelling bee.

Whoever finds out more, keep us updated.

Subject: RE: Lord Templar calypso song-Sweet as a Honey Bee
From: GUEST,Phil d'Conch
Date: 09 Sep 24 - 07:33 PM

No lyrics (yet.) A crappe tonne of background and trivia in the old notes. Mind the drift:

Honey Bee:
The Lord Templar artwork track title is Sweet As A Honey Bee. The Discogs title (above) is a typo. I see the sister label Supertone release isn't up there yet. Same, MLP807 catalog#. Same preposterously prodigious prices.

Wlimouth Houdini title is Sweet Like A Honey Bee, Okeh 8621, 1928, side B (b/w Song No.99.) May be the same song… maybe not.


'Lord' Templar:
There is a list of Calypso Monarchs. He's not on it. Not as “Templar” anywho. Meaning, he was almost certainly a 'Manhanttan' calypsonian, like Harry Belafonte &co.

His only gig seems to have been Master of Ceremonies for Chicago dance legend Jimmy Payne's “Calypso Carnival” for the latter part of the Blue Angel's 1954 season. The club owner (Jean Fardulli) & Monarch Records owner (Manny Warner) were business pals.

Trivia: And speaking of Belafonte, Payne's first M/C for the Carnival's 1953 premier was none other than Lord Burgess, before he was a Lord even.

Subject: RE: Lord Templar calypso song-Sweet as a Honey Bee
From: GUEST,Phil d'Conch
Date: 09 Sep 24 - 07:35 PM

Manhattan Calypso:
The old, less-than-complimentary, genre label was a reference to North American pop's so-called “Brill Building Sound,” 1619 Broadway, Manhanttan. AKA: Tin Pan Alley.

Lord Templar & Manuel M. “Manny” Warner's Monogram, Records (Soundcraft, Supertone et al) were in the lesser known Alden Building a few doors down at 1650 Broadway. Tenants had access to the tiny Allegro Sound demo studio located in the basement. Label hypes & marketing to the contrary, no pressing or manufacturing on site.

General consensus is, the Alden eventually had as much, or more, to do with the Brill Sound as the Brill. Particularly true if one breaks it down by genre, like calypso.