Hi there

I've been tracking down the origins of this song. Turns out the Doc Dasher & Eddie Heyward version is a different song. The only line in common with the version the Dozens did is "Evolution Mama, don't try to make a monkey out of me."

You can find it on Document # DOCD 5380, or on iTunes as part of a different compilation (search under Doc Dasher)

I'm still stumped by a couple lines, so any help would be appreciated, but here is what I have so far:


EVOLUTION MAMA
Doc Dasher, vocal Eddie Heyward, piano

A brown-skin man named Sam
Was called the sheik of Alabam'.
He had a high yella who could get his legs (?) over
Till at night he (cried forlorn hand???).
She said: "Look-a here, monkey man."
That started trouble in the land.
She said: "Who's a monkey?"
She said: "You's a monkey.
If I'm a monkey,
You's a monkey."
Here's where fightin' began.

He cried, "Evolution mama, don't try to make a monkey of me.
There's plenty more good women, who thinks I'm just a honey bee.
I've never even been to monkey land.
Don't take my money and give it to some outside man.
You see me flirtin' 'round with some high brown,
Don't let it fill your head and act like a clown.
Evolution Mama, don't you set appeal to me. (? — I think he forgot the lyric here)
If you want yourself a monkey, shake yourself a coconut tree.
Remember all monkeys don't live in a tree.
Remember all honey don't come from a bee.
Evolution mama, you have nothin' that appeals to me.

"Evolution mama, don't try to make a monkey of me.
There's plenty more good women, who thinks I'm just a honey bee.
I've never even been to monkey land.
Don't take my money and give it to some outside man.
You see me flirtin' 'round with some high brown,
Don't let it fill your head and act like a clown.
Evolution mama, you have nothin' that appeals to me.
If you want yourself a monkey, go shake yourself a coconut tree.
I ain't good lookin'; I don't dress fine.
Just a do-right papa, love to take my time.
Evolution mama, don't try to make a monkey of me."


To make things more interesting, the Carl Deacon Moore version (credited to Terry Shand) is essentially the same song as the Dozen's version!

Not sure who Terry Shand is, a correspondent said he was a composer, not a lyricist; so we still may have a mystery here as to where Carl Moore got it.

Onward!