Hey Jimmy Joe John Jim Jack
(Through Children's Eyes)
1961



Listen

Highlights
  • From the 1961 Broadway show Joel Spector presents Let It Ride! starring George Gobel, Sam Levene and Barbara Nicholas.
  • A Broadway musical based on the 1935 Broadway farce Three Men on a Horse by George Abbott.
  • The musical, with book by Abram S. Ginnes, opened in New York at the Eugene O’Neill Theater on October 12, 1961, and ran for 68 performances.



Recording History
Jimmy Elledge, Hey Joe John Jim Jack / Funny How Time Slips Away, RCA Victor, 47-7946
Michael Feinstein, 2002
George Gobel, The Original Broadway Cast Recording LET IT RIDE!, RCA Victor, LOC/LSO-1064, 1961
The Limeliters, Through Children's Eyes, RCA Victor, 1962
Debbie Reynolds, Tammy and 11 Other Great Folk Hits, Dot Records, DLP 3492, 1957
Diamond Dave Somerville, The Cosmic Adventures of Diamond Dave, Rockwood Records, 2005
Lyrics
There once was a tiger, tiny little tiger, playin' with his tiger toys
But his nurse-maid made him so afraid, he didn't dare make a noise
What happened to the tiger, tiny little tiger, who never learned to roar?
He's just a mat, stretched out flat on somebody's bedroom floor.
What we're sayin' is...
 
Hey, Jimmie, Joe, John, Jim, Jack
Even little tigers lose their knack
When somebody twice their size
Can't see the world through children's eyes.
 
There once was a bunny, fluffy little bunny, through the piney woods he'd roam
But his mother cried, "Come back inside! A bunny belongs at home!"
What happened to the bunny, fluffy little bunny, who never learned to hop?
Because the bunny couldn't hop, he hangs in a butcher shop.
What we're sayin' is...
 
Hey, Jimmie, Joe, John, Jim, Jack
Even little bunnieslose their knack
When somebody twice their size
Can't see the world through children's eyes.
 
There once was a beagle, happy little beagle, following his tail around
But his father said, "Go straight to bed, and don't make a single sound!"
What happened to the beagle, happy little beagle, who never learned to bay?
Some burglars came, and to his shame he turned tail and ran away.
What we're sayin' is...
 
Hey, Jimmie, Joe, John, Jim, Jack
Even little beagles lose their knack
When somebody twice their size
Can't see the world through children's eyes.
 
Don't do this.
Don't do that.
You might as well just be a statue.
That's how children lose their spark.
But if grown-ups would take part in things that children have their heart in
They'd never end up hiding in the dark
 
What we're sayin is...
Hey, Jimmy, Jack, John, Jim, Joe
When you have your own kids let them know
Even though you're twice their size
You see the world through children's eyes.