The Meek Shall Inherit

The Meek Shall Inherit is a song in the musical. However, the song has been cut off and reduced in the 1986 film. The song's purpose is of Seymour getting guilt and worrying that he is only getting fame and fortune from Audrey II, who is a hungry plant that wants blood. It is sung by Seymour, Several agents, and the chorus girls Crystal, Ronette, and Chiffon test Seymour into the pivotal Faustian pact of the show. Seymour fights with himself about morality vs. material gain. At the end of the song, Seymour, metaphorically and actually, signs over his soul in order to keep the success all for Audrey's love, that he believes only exists in the presence of all his recently acquired money and success.

Lyrics

(1986 Movie Version)

Crystal, Chiffon, Ronnette	Agents (Male)	Agents (Female)
	(Spoken) Seymour Krelborn, so finally we meet you
	This is an occasion, let's toast it,
	Up yours,
	Relax,
	Canape?
	Cigarette?
	Let's talk turkey,
	Sign here and we'll book you on lecturing tours.

		(Spoken) Yes darling,
		We're sending
		Photographers Thursday
		So get the plant ready and wear a clean shirt.
	Need a pen?
		Aren't you thrilled?
		It's the cover of Life Magazine!
	Dessert?

	I'm telling you son, it's a cinch to get ratings.
	The title is Marvin's,
	The concept is mine,
	The first weekly gardening show on a network
	And you're gonna host it,
	you lucky kid,
	Sign!

(Singing) They say the meek shall inherit,
You know the book doesn't lie.
It's not a question of merit,
It's not demand and supply,
They say the meek gonna get it.
You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them	(Singing) You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them	(Singing) You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them
You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them	You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them	You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them
You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them	You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them	You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them
By	By	By
And	And	And
By!	By!	By!

(1986 Soundtrack/Deleted Sequence Version)

Crystal, Chiffon, Ronnette	Seymour	Agents (Male)	Agents (Female)
		(Spoken) Seymour Krelborn, so finally we meet you
		This is an occasion, let's toast it,
		Up yours,
		Relax,
		Canape?
		Cigarette?
		Let's talk turkey,
		Sign here and we'll book you on lecturing tours.

			(Spoken) Yes darling,
			We're sending
			Photographers Thursday
			So get the plant ready and wear a clean shirt.
		Need a pen?
			Aren't you thrilled?
			It's the cover of Life Magazine!
		Dessert?

		I'm telling you son, it's a cinch to get ratings.
		The title is Marvin's,
		The concept is mine,
		The first weekly gardening show on a network
		And you're gonna host it,
		you lucky kid,
		Sign!

(Singing) They say the meek shall inherit,
You know the book doesn't lie.
It's not a question of merit,
It's not demand and supply,
They say the meek gonna get it.
		(Singing) And you're a meek little guy!
You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them,
By and by!
	My future's starting,
	I've got to let it.
	Stick with that plant,
	And, gee,
	My bank account will thrive,
	What am I saying?
	No way, forget it!
	It's much too dangerous
	To keep that plant alive!
	I take these offers,
	That means more killing.
	Who knew success would come with messy, nasty strings.
	I sign these contracts,
	That means I'm willing,
	To keep on doing bloody, awful, evil things
	No!
	No!
	There's only so far you can bend.
	No!
	No!
	This nightmare must come to an end!
	No!
	No!
	You've got no alternative,
	Seymour, old boy
	Though it means you'll be broke again and unemployed
	It's the only solution, it can't be avoided
	The vegetable must be destroyed

	But then,
	There's Audrey,
	Lovely Audrey
	If life were tawdry, and impoverished as before
	She might not like me,
	She might not want me,
	Without my plant,
	She might not love me anymore

They say the meek shall inherit
	(Spoken) Where do I sign?
You know the book doesn't lie
		Right on the line
It's not a question of merit
			Your pen or mine?
It's not demand and supply
		That'll do fine
If on this fact you rely
		Bye-Bye, so-long	Bye-Bye, so-long

You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them		You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them	(Singing) You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them
You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them		You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them	You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them
You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them		You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them	You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them
By		By	By
And		And	And
By!		By!	By!

(2003 Broadway Revival Version)

Seymour	Bernstein, Mrs.Luce, Skip Snip	Crystal	Ronnette	Chiffon
				(Spoken) There he is girls!
				I found him! There's Seymour!
		(Spoken) Seymour,
		Can we have your autograph?
			(Spoken) We saw you on channel five news!
		You looked so handsome
				And you're gonna be so rich!
(Spoken) Please girls, not now.
		Is it true Audrey II is Grand Marshal for the Rose Bowl?
				Is it true the shop is decorating the senior prom?
It's all true, now please
			There's another big hotshot looking for you, Seymour
			From uptown,
			He's been askin' all over, where can he find you?
			You're famous, Seymour!
	(Bernstein, Spoken) Is that him?
			That's him, Mr. Bernstein.
	Thank you, girls.
	Seymour Krelborn,
	Sweetie,
	Honey,
	Pussycat!
Do I know you?
	Of course not, but are you gonna be happy when you do.
	Seymour,
	Sweetheart,
	Dollface,
	Bubbelah

	(Singing) Hey, Seymour Krelborn you prince you.
	My name is Bernstein,
	I'm with NBC,
	I came down here to convince you,
	To do a weekly TV show for me.
	"Seymour Krelborn's Gardening Tips"
	(Spoken: You like it? I love it!)
	(Singing) For half an hour on Sunday's at four.
	TV's first home gardening program,
	You'll make a mint and our ratings will soar!

		(Singing) They say the meek shall inherit,	(Singing) They say the meek shall inherit,	(Singing) They say the meek shall inherit,
		You know the book doesn't lie,	You know the book doesn't lie,	You know the book doesn't lie,
		It's not a question of merit,	It's not a question of merit,	It's not a question of merit,
		It's not demand and supply.	It's not demand and supply.	It's not demand and supply.
		They say the meek gonna get it,	They say the meek gonna get it,	They say the meek gonna get it,
		And you're a meek little guy,	And you're a meek little guy,	And you're a meek little guy,
		You know the meek are gonna get	You know the meek are gonna get	You know the meek are gonna get
		What's comin' to 'em	What's comin' to 'em	What's comin' to 'em
		By and by.	By and by.	By and by.

				(Spoken) Your own TV show, Seymour!
			(Spoken) Coast to coast!
				Your name in lights!
			Your face on screens!
				Sign it!
			Sign it!
			Sign that contract!	Sign that contract!
				Isn't it exciting?
		(Spoken) Here he is, Mrs. Luce!
		We found him!
		He's right here!
	(Mrs. Luce, Spoken) Oh my darling,
	My precious,
	My sweet, sweet thing.
	So delighted to make your acquaintance
	Cutie
	Sweetness
	Seymour
	Babydoll
	(Singing) I'd like a word with you, lover,
	I'm sure you know me, the Editor's wife,
	We want your face on the cover
	Of the December third issue of Life,
	Yes the cover of Life Magazine,
	Now that's an honor we so seldom grant,
	We'll send someone down, let's say Thursday,
	For shots of you and your beautiful plant!
		(Singing) They say the meek shall inherit,	(Singing) They say the meek shall inherit,	(Singing) They say the meek shall inherit,
		You know the book doesn't lie,	You know the book doesn't lie,	You know the book doesn't lie,
		It's not a question of merit,	It's not a question of merit,	It's not a question of merit,
		It's not demand and supply.	It's not demand and supply.	It's not demand and supply.
		They say the meek gonna get it,	They say the meek gonna get it,	They say the meek gonna get it,
		And you're a meek little guy,	And you're a meek little guy,	And you're a meek little guy,
		You know the meek are gonna get	You know the meek are gonna get	You know the meek are gonna get
		What's comin' to 'em	What's comin' to 'em	What's comin' to 'em
		By and by.	By and by.	By and by.

		(Spoken) Life Magazine!
		Oh my goodness, Seymour!
		You're gonna make it straight to the top!
				(Spoken) How did you do it?
			(Spoken) Here he is, sir!
			The incredible Seymour Krelborn!
			Owner of the fabulous Audrey II.
			America's most amazing-
			And largest- unidentified plant.
	(Skip-Snip, Spoken) So this is Seymour Krelborn.
	We've been trying to reach you, baby.
	Have your lines been busy!
	Did you get our telegram?
I don't think so.
	Well, it's a good thing I came down in person then.
	Pleased to meet you, kid.
	Skip-Snip, William Morris Agency.
	(Singing) Forget the cable we sent you,
	It's nice to meet me, the pleasure is yours.
	Now let my firm represent you,
	We'd like to book you on lecturing tours.
	College campus, rotary club.
	The kinda bookings my office can do.
	Show the plant, then talk, answer questions.
	It's educational, lucrative too.
(Singing) My future's starting,
I've got to let it.
Stick with that plant,
And, gee,
My bank account will thrive,
What am I saying?
No way, forget it!
It's much too dangerous
To keep that plant alive!
I take these offers,
That means more killing.
Who knew success would come with messy, nasty strings.
I sign these contracts,
That means I'm willing,
To keep on doing bloody, awful, evil things
No!
No!
There's only so far you can bend!
No!
No!
This nightmare must come to an end!
No!
No!
You've got no alternative,
Seymour, old boy
Though it means you'll be broke again and unemployed
It's the only solution, it can't be avoided
The vegetable must be destroyed

But then,
There's Audrey,
Lovely Audrey
If life were tawdry, and impoverished as before
She might not like me,
She might not want me,
Without my plant,
She might not love me anymore
		They say the meek shall inherit	They say the meek shall inherit	They say the meek shall inherit
Where do I sign?
		You know the book doesn't lie.	You know the book doesn't lie.	You know the book doesn't lie.
	Right on the line.
		It's not a question of merit.	It's not a question of merit.	It's not a question of merit.
	That'll do fine.
		It's not demand and supply.	It's not demand and supply.	It's not demand and supply.
	This copy's mine.
		You'll make a fortune, we swear it.	You'll make a fortune, we swear it.	You'll make a fortune, we swear it.
	Couldn't go wrong.
		If on this fact you rely-	If on this fact you rely-	If on this fact you rely-
	Bye-bye, so long.
	You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them	You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them	You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them	You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them
	You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them	You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them	You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them	You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them
You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them	You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them	You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them	You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them	You know the meek are gonna get what's comin' to them
By	By	By	By	By
And	And	And	And	And
By!	By!	By!	By!	By!

The Meek Shall Inherit (Reprise) (Demo) Lyrics

"You ain't in Kansas, neither!"

The Following Information is non-Canon. Demos and deleted songs are not considered canon to the Little Shop of Horrors musical, as they were not included in the final version of the musical, instead think of them as part of the history of making LSOH.

The following lyrics are from a deleted reprise of the song with Patrick Martin.

Patrick Martin
(Spoken) You can't afford to say no to this one.
Sweetheart,
Baby,
Hotshot,
Halibut,
(Singing) Come on, don't act so above it,
I'm Patrick Martin, the marketing ace.
I got a concept, you'll love it.
To get this plant all over the place,
I'll take cuttings off of the leaves,
I'll treat 'em gently, we'll move them in pots,
Where there's now just one of this species,
Take my word, pretty soon there'll be lots.
(Spoken) Sign, and we'll start.

Deleted Sequence

Deleted_Scene) — Deleted Scene)

Deleted Sequence Of The Meek Shall Inherit

The Movie Version of the Song cuts Seymour's soliloquy, as well as changing the Businessmen's verses into dialogue in the beginning of the song, curiously, the soundtrack album includes Seymour's Soliloquy.

During the Dream Sequence, Seymour is seen amid falling money and at one point becoming the plant. He also runs down a long heaven like area where he passes an hour glass with blood-red sand and a bleeding portrait of Mr. Mushnik at the end. Finally, when he begins to think about Audrey, a Parody scene out of Singing in the Rain is shown, and Audrey hugs the plant, and once Seymour makes his decision, he his standing amid giant contracts and business men magically floating and flying in to hand him contracts.

When asked about the sequence in a 2012 interview, Frank Oz responded, "I cut that because I felt it just didn’t work and that was before the first preview in San Jose. It was the right choice, so I don’t even know what happened to that. It didn’t really add value to the entire cut."^[1]

In addition to being featured on the soundtrack album, color stills found their way into the Topps trading card set, the scene was featured in the photonovel, and a few stills also surfaced on lobby cards.

Storyboards

These storyboards for the Meek Shall Inherit are by Mike Ploog.^[2]

Matthew 5:5

"Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth."

The idea being that the humble, gentle, quiet and/or submissive people will be the ones allowed into the Kingdom of Heaven. Though highly debated, the meaning to be taken from this song is that the Greek Chorus/ Urchins mournfully sing the loss of Seymour. He isn't meek anymore, and will not receive what's coming to him - he loses Audrey. And the buildup and choice of wording and timing: "get what's comin' to 'em" implying that the good will get good, bad will get bad.

References

↑ Little Shop of Horrors: A Q&A with Frank Oz
↑ Storyboards from Propmasters.net https://www.propmasters.net/product_info.php?currency=EUR&cPath=42&products_id=1842&osCsid=372dd6b6285de00f3eeefb85e74f0949

[1] Little Shop of Horrors: A Q&A with Frank Oz

[2] Storyboards from Propmasters.net https://www.propmasters.net/product_info.php?currency=EUR&cPath=42&products_id=1842&osCsid=372dd6b6285de00f3eeefb85e74f0949

[1]

[2]