The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite and laughs at his own inability to pronounce that correctly, which Mike Mills kept trying to get him to do. Stipe says he loved Dr. Seuss as a kid but always pronounced his name the wrong way. The song's complete title is not featured in the lyrics, but there is the line "the sidewinder sleeps in a coil" as well as the later line "the sidewinder sleeps on its back". A sidewinder is a species of rattlesnake ("Crotalus cerastes"), and also an antique style of telephone, with a winding handle on the side. The lyrics frequently refer to making and
The Sidewinder (composition) The Sidewinder (composition) "The Sidewinder" is a composition by Lee Morgan. It was first recorded for Morgan's Blue Note album of the same name, on December 21, 1963, and has become a jazz standard. The name of the composition, according to Morgan, came from "the 'bad guy' on television", not the snake. Bars 17–18 of the 24-bar composition feature a surprise change to a minor chord. Trumpeter Morgan recorded the track with tenor saxophonist Joe Henderson, pianist Barry Harris, double bassist Bob Cranshaw and drummer Billy Higgins. It was released as part of Morgan's album "The Sidewinder", as well as