From “Just Imagine”, 1930.
Words and music by B. G. De Sylva, Lew Brown, and Ray Henderson.
The sheet music:
Accompaniment by James Pitt-Payne:
Lyrics
- Love has made me tender
I now appreciate
Ev’ry little creature on this earth that has a mate
Once I hated crickets
I couldn’t stand a bee
Now here is the motto that I follow faithfully
Chorus
Never swat a fly
He may love another fly
He may sit with her and sigh
The way I do with you
Never harm a flea
He may have a fav’rite she
That he bounces on his knee
The way I do with you
Never stop a bee if he is going anywhere
You may be concluding some terrific love affair
Be careful! don’t step on an ant
In the middle of a pant
He may want to but he can’t
The way I do with you
- I’m the same as you are
The tears come to my eyes
When I see professors chasing helpless butterflies
Fishermen are hateful
They lead a wicked life
Ev’ry day they separate some husband from his wife
Chorus
Never swat a fly
He may love another fly
He may sit with her and sigh
The way I do with you
Never spray a nit
With a great big can of Flit
He may think some nit has “IT”
The way I do with you
Never stop a moth if he is gliding thru the air
He may have a date in someone’s flannel underwear
Be careful! don’t you dare to slay
Two mosquitoes while they play
They may want to make “Hey! Hey!”
The way I do with you
Sung here by Laurence Rubenstein: