The KKK Took My Baby Away... 2025 (Covered by The Hawkbirds)

Details

Description

The Hawkbirds covering the Ramones track, “The KKK Took My Baby Away” 2 years after first posting this song on November 25, 2023…. https://youtu.be/fTFhJXJYJ3w

Background…

The song "The KKK Took My Baby Away", written by Joey Ramone, is on the 1981 album "Pleasant Dreams". There are conflicting stories behind the meaning of the song, but ultimately, both Marky Ramone and Joey's brother, Mickey Leigh, confirm that the song is about a relationship between Joey and an African-American girl named Wilna. Supposedly, her parents objected to their daughter dating a Jewish man, and forbid her from seeing him.

Lyrics…

🎶 She went away for the holidays
Said she's going to L.A.
But she never got there
She never got there, She never got there, they say

The KKK took my baby away
They took her away, Away from me
The KKK took my baby away
They took her away, Away from me

Now I don't know
Where my baby can be
They took her from me, They took her from me
I don't know
Where my baby can be
They took her from me, They took her from me

Ring me, ring me ring me
Up the President
And find out
Where my baby went
Ring me, ring me, ring me
Up the FBI
And find out if
My baby's alive… Yeah, yeah, yeah

She went away for the holidays
The KKK took my baby away
They took my girl
They took my baby away 🎶

From the shelf…

🧸 Brown Bear has never understood racism. How could he? His family and friends come in every shade of fur… brown, black, snowy white, and even panda-spotted. AND he is dating Rose, a rabbit… who is not even the same species! Brown Bear doesn’t even think about it… because to him it’s about soul, kindness, and shared snuggles under moonlight. He doesn’t judge by the color of fur, birthplace, or religion. He believes in one simple truth: All creatures deserve respect… Big or small… Furry or feathered… Hopping or stomping. And if Rose’s parents tried to keep him away from her, Brown Bear would fight for her paw with his fierce roar… Because love is love, and Brown Bear is all in.
🧸❤️🐇

Audio…

This song was recorded on May 10, 2025 in our basement studio on 6 tracks using a Zoom H6 audio interface, and mixed with GarageBand.

*In order to accommodate Sunflower´s voice, we raised the key two full steps, but the guitar is in standard tuning. In the original, the guitar was tuned a half step down from standard tuning.

1. Vocals (Audix OM5 Hypercardioid Dynamic Microphones)
2. Lead guitar (Gibson Les Paul Studio) & amp (Marshall Valvestate 2000)
3. Bass guitar (Ibanez miKro) & amp (Fender Rumble 40)
4. Bass drum (Ludwig Neusonic 22”)
5. Toms/snare (Ludwig 13" Mid, 16" Floor, and 14” Snare)
6. Cymbals (Zildjian A Custom)
(Drums recorded with an overhead pair of sE Electronics sE8 Condenser mics and an Audix D6 Dynamic Kick Drum mic.)


The band…

The Hawkbirds Family-
👩🏼 Sunflower Hawkbird - Lead vocals and bass guitar
👩🏻‍🦰 Mom Hawkbird - Lead guitar and back up vocals
🧑🏻 Dad Hawkbird - Drums
🧸 Brown Bear - Audio engineer

Thank you so much for watching our videos—we are deeply grateful for all the positivity and encouragement you've shared with us. Your support tells us there is so much good in the world. Let’s continue this journey together, spreading kindness and empathy wherever we can! We feel truly honored to know each and every one of you, and we absolutely love you all!❤️👩🏻‍🦰👩🏼🧸🧑🏻❤️