Signifyin' Monkey

said the signifyin' monkey to the lion one day,
'hey, there's a great big elephant down the way,
goin' 'round, talkin',
i'm sorry to say,
about your mama in a scandalous way.
yes, he's talkin' 'bout your mama
and your gran'ma too,
an' he don't show too much respect for you.
you weren't here an' i sure am glad,
'cause what he said about your mama made me mad!'
signifyin' monkey,
stay up in your tree;
you are always lyin' and signifyin';
but you better not monkey with me.
the lion said, 'yeah - well i'll fix him!
tear that elephant limb from limb.'
then he jungle with a mighty roar,
took off like a shot from a forty-four.
he found the elephant where the tall grass grows
and said, 'i come to punch you in your long nose!'
the elephant looked at the lion in surprise
and said, 'boy, you better go pick on
somebody your size.'
but the lion wouldn't listen,
he made a pass,
the elephant slapped him down in the grass.
the lion roared and sprang from the ground
and that's when the elephant really went to town.
i mean he whipped that lion for the rest of the day
and i still don't see how that lion got away.
but he dragged on off, more dead than alive
and that's when that monkey started
his signifyin' jive.
signifyin' monkey,
stay up in your tree;
you are always lyin' and signifyin';
but you better not monkey with me.
the monkey looked down and said,
'oooooeee!
what is this beat-up mess i see?
is that you, lion?
ha, ha, do tell, man, he whipped your head
to a fare-thee-well,
give you a beatin' that was rough enough
and you supposed to be 'king of the jungle'
- ain't that some stuff.
you big overgrown pussycat,
don't you roar, or i'll hop down there
and whip you some more!'
the monkey got to laughin'
and jumpin' up and down,
but his foot missed the limb
and he plunged to the ground.
the lion was on him with all four feet,
gonna grind that monkey to hamburger meat.
the monkey looked up with tears in his eyes,
and said, 'please, mister lion, i apologize!
i meant no harm, please lemme go
and i'll tell you somethin'
you really need to know.'
signifyin' monkey,
stay up in your tree;
you are always lyin' and signifyin';
but you better not monkey with me.
the lion stepped back to hear what he'd say
an' that monkey scampered up a tree
and got away.
'what i wanna tell ya,'
the monkey hollered then,
'is if you fool with me, i'll sic the elephant
on you again!'
the lion just shead and said,'you jive...
if you and your monkey children wanna keep alive,
up in them trees is where you better stay!'
and that's where they are to this very day.
signifyin' monkey,
stay up in your tree;
you are always lyin' and signifyin';
but you better not,
no, you better not,
you are always lyin', and signifyin',
but you better not monkey with me.