The Children's Song "Tingalayo" (information, lyrics, and videos)

Edited by Azizi Powell

This is Part III of a three part series about songs that include the verse "jawbone walk, jawbone talk/jawbone eat with a knife and fork." This post focuses on the Caribbean song "Tingalayo".

Part I contains information and lyrics of several old time songs from the United States that include that "jawbone walk, jawbone talk"... verse. Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/09/jawbone-walk-jawbone-talk-information.html for that post.

Part II showcases one sound file and two videos of "Jawbone Walk" songs from the United States. Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/09/jawbone-songs-from-united-states-sound.html for that post.

The content of this post is presented for folkloric, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

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INFORMATION ABOUT TINGALAYO
From http://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=8164
Posted by Q 28 Jan 04

[The original Tingalayo song is] "A calypso of the Lesser Antilles, by Massie Patterson and Lionel Belasco, free transcription by Maurice Baron, copyright 1943 by M. Baron Co. [It was originally included in] the book "Calypso Songs of the West Indies," by Massie Patterson and Lionel Belasco, pp. 4-5, full sheet music.

[There are] Many re-writes and later copyrights of this old Lionel Belasco calypso in French patois of the Lesser Antilles (Guadaloupe, Martinique and to some extent in non-French-owned islands"
-snip-
If I understand what I read online, Massie Patterson was a singer of Trinidadian descent who moved to the United States & later collaborated with composer Lionel Belasco. "Tingalayo" is an adaptation by Mrs. Patterson and Mr. Belasco of an old Caribbean Calypso song.

Click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lionel_Belasco for information about Lionel Belaco.

To date, no Wikipedia page exist for Massie Patterson. Information about Ms. Patterson is mostly gleaned from information about the "Rum & Coca Cola" lawsuit of which she was a crucial part.

Click http://www.chipublib.org/search/details/cn/2227856 for a list of the other Calypso songs that were included in Belasco & Patterson's book Calypso Songs of the West Indies. One of the songs that is included in that collection is "L'Annee Passee". The melody of that song was used for the song "Rum & Coca Cola".

Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/09/lannee-passee-calypso-song-that-became.html for information about that song.

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COMMENT ABOUT THE "DONKEY WALK DONKEY TALK" VERSE
The following comment was posted to a Mudcat discussion thread in response to my question about the fact that the Caribbean song "Tingalayo" and several American old time songs have the same "donkey walk, donkey talk" verse:

http://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=8164
Lyr Req: Lula Gal (Jawbone Walk)
Posted by Q, Date: 05 Dec 04 - 10:51 PM
"Azizi, contact between the West Indies and Venezuela and the south and east coasts of the United States could have occurred almost any time.

"Tinga Layo" originally was found in French patois in Trinidad. Slave owners not only traveled with slaves to their holdings, but hired them out to crew ships not owned by them. The slave owner, of course pocketed the bulk of the money. Contact was especially frequent between New Orleans and the French-speaking islands of the Caribbean (some of which became British colonies). Jawbone songs in the States are known back to the 1840s at least.

"Walk Jaw Bone" was a minstrel song written for the performer known as Cool White in 1844 by Silas Sexton Steele. I am sure that the idea came from slave dances and instruments. The chorus was:
"Walk, jaw bone, Jenny come along,
In come Sally wid de bootees on,
Walk, jaw bone, Jenny, come along,
In come Sally wid de bootees on."

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LYRICS
Lyr. Add: TINGA LAYO (Donkey Song)
Patterson and Belasco, 1943

Tinga Lay - o
Marré bourriq ba moen;
Tinga lay - o
Marré bourriq ba moen.
Bourriq parlé,
Bourriq marché,
Bourriq mangé avec un fourchet;
Tinga lay - o

Marré bourriq ba moen;
Tinga lay - o
Marré bourriq ba moen.
Bourriq parlé,
Bourriq marché,
Bourriq mangé avec un fourchet.
Tinga Lay - o

Marré bourriq ba moen.-
(Music diminuendo)

Tinga lay - o
Come, little donkey, come;
Tinga lay - o
Come little donkey come.
Me donkey walk,
me donkey talk,
Me donkey eat with a knife and fork;
Tinga lay - o
(Repeat)

http://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=8164
Posted by Q, 28 Jan 04 - 04:40 PM

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FEATURED VIDEOS

Example #1: RAFFI { TINGALAYO } VIDEO.wmv



musicteacherbsskg1, Uploaded on Mar 10, 2011

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Example #2: Muffin Songs: Tingalayo | nursery rhymes & children songs with lyrics | muffin songs



Muffin Songs, Uploaded on Nov 15, 2011


Tingalayo - http://www.muffinsongs.com (more songs)

Tingalayo! Come little donkey come,
Tingalayo! Come little donkey come.
My donkey walks, my donkey talks,
My donkey eats with a knife and fork.
My donkey walks, my donkey talks,
My donkey eats with a knife and fork.

Tingalayo! Come little donkey come,
Tingalayo! Come little donkey come.
My donkey eats, my donkey sleeps,
My donkey kicks with his two hind feet.
My donkey eats, my donkey sleeps,
My donkey kicks with his two hind feet.

Tingalayo! Come little donkey come,
Tingalayo! Come little donkey come!
My donkey dances, my donkey sings,
My donkey wearin' a diamond ring.
My donkey dances, my donkey sings,
My donkey wearin' a diamond ring.

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Thanks also to those who are quoted in this post. Thanks also to the publishers of these featured videos.

Thank you for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

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Jawbone Songs From The United States (sound file & videos)

Edited by Azizi Powell

This is Part II of a three part series about songs that include the verse "jawbone walk, jawbone talk/jawbone eat with a knife and fork." This post showcases one sound file and two videos of "Jawbone Walk" songs from the United States.

Part I contains information and lyrics of several old time songs from the United States that include that "jawbone walk, jawbone talk"... verse. Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/09/jawbone-walk-jawbone-talk-information.html for that post.

Part III of this series focuses on the Caribbean song "Tingalayo". Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/09/the-childrens-song-tingalayo.html for that post.

The content of this post is presented for folkloric, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

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FEATURED EXAMPLES

Example #1:Leadbelly - Jawbone Walk



benigadol, Uploaded on Nov 7, 2010
-snip-
I've not been able to find a transcription of this song online. I can decipher the "jawbone walk, jawbone talk/jawbone eat with a knife and fork" verse. However, unfortunately, I'm not been able to decipher enough of this song to post a transcription.

The lyrics to Leadbelly's version may be the same as or similar to the lyrics which are included in Part I of this series. That link is found above.

Also, click http://www.traditionalmusic.co.uk/old-time-music/old-time-songs/walk_jawbone.html for lyrics to a version of the Jawbone song.

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Editor:
Notice the jawbone instrument that is played in the following videos.

Example #2: Walk Jawbone



Dmculgan, Uploaded on Apr 26, 2011

Written by Silas S. Steele in 1844 for Cool White. A fellow sings of his simple life's pleasures even as his situation goes from bad to worse. Performed by the Camptown Shakers at a 2010 concert (Dave Culgan- banjo, Renny Allgyer - fiddle, King Bennett - tambourine).
-snip-
"Cool White" was the stage name for a popular White minstrel singer.

I can decipher the verse "Walk Jawbone... Heree come Sally with the booties on" [or "her big boots on"] _

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Example #3: Joe Bone Plays Walk Jawbone at the Stephen Foster Old-TIme Music Weekend, 9 12



Chuck Levy, Published on Jan 1, 2013
Joe Bone (Greg Allen, Bob Murphy, and Caitlin Murphy) at the Florida Masters concert at the Stephen Foster Old-Time Music Weekend, September, 2012.
-snip-
I'm unable to transcribe this song. I'm unsure if it contains the "jawbone walk/jawbone talk" verse. However, I think the chorus is something like "jawbone jawbone walk away".

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Thanks to all those vocalists and musicians who are featured in these examples. Thanks also to the publishers of this sound file and these videos.

Thank you for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

Read More

Jawbone Walk, Jawbone Talk (information & lyrics)

Edited by Azizi Powell

This is Part I of a three part series about songs that include the verse "jawbone walk, jawbone talk/jawbone eat with a knife and fork." This post contains information and lyrics of several old time songs from the United States that include that verse.

Part II showcases one sound file and two videos of "Jawbone Walk" songs from the United States. Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/09/jawbone-songs-from-united-states-sound.html for that post.

Part III of this series focuses on the Caribbean song "Tingalayo". Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/09/the-childrens-song-tingalayo.html for that post.

The content of this post is presented for folkloric, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

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INFORMATION ABOUT JAWBONE INSTRUMENT AND SONGS
From Google Book: The Alabama Folk Lyric: A Study in Origins and Media of Dissemination
edited by Ray Broadus Browne
The Jawbone Song . 120 [page 311]

[This excerpt is presented under the heading "Pseudo Negro Songs]

"The jawbone as a musical instrument and as humor in song has long been popular, especially with Negroes. Scarborough (On The Trail Of Negro Folk-Songs, pp. 102-104), printed several Negro songs mentioning the jawbone as an instrument – “the jawbone of an horse, or ox or mule, with the teeth left in, which makes a queer song when a key or piece of metal was drawn across the teeth.”
For an interesting headnote see Randolph (II, 333). The comic value of the jawbones were recognized by the minstrels and taken up by them. White (American Negro Folk-Songs, pp 305, 333) cites an old minstrel song entitled “The Old Jawbone” was printed in the The Negro Minstrel (Glasgow, 1850, p. 14) and “Walk Jaw Bone” was published in the Negro Forget-Me-Not Songbook (1847, p.55)...

It was also published in Christy’s Negro Melodies No 4 (Phila. ca. 1854, p.18) and in Old Dog Tray Songster (Baltimore, 18-, p. 248), in a version that deserves printing here for comparison:
De jawbone hung agin de wall
De gals all thought dat it would fall.
But dar it hung till de gals all gone,
Den hurra for de old jawbone.

Chorus:
Den walk Jawbone, ginger log
Jaw bone gwine de whole hog...

[Includes text of two songs called “Old Jawbone” collected from two sources in 1952 and 1953]
-snip-
"agin" - against
"hurra" - hurray

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From http://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=52308
Posted by Guest Richie, October 10, 2002
"The origins and branches of Jawbone/Jawbone Walk and the Irish "Walk Jawbone" are numerous. The lyrics seem to be somewhat interchangeable. The tune has minstrel origins, with 'jawbone' probably referring to a stock character in such shows, says Charles Wolfe (1991).

There are early biblical references to the Jawbone: The jawbone was used by Samson, who slew a thousand men with the jawbone of an ass.

In the US, the Jaw Bone is a dance, an instrument, a stock character in minstrel shows as well as a fiddle tune and song.

Here is some info about the uses of the jawbone as an instrument:

"The jawbone was also a recognized instrument in 19th century African-American traditional music." Ceolas

"Now the ol' jawbone, that is a humble instrument. It does help by the way, if the jawbone is removed from the head, stripped and cleaned and dried. Some people keep the lower jaw intact so it has a U shape suitable for carrying. But only one side works too, should you want to share." From http://listproc.ucdavis.edu/archives/banjo-l/log0005/0109.html.

"A jawbone played with a stick so the teeth would rattle was a minstrel percussion instrument - probably borrowed from blacks." From Leadbelly page 19, Charles Wolfe, Kip Lornel.

"The Jaw Bone was a plantation music/minstrel show icon where it was often used as a rhythm instrument in place of, or along side of, bones. Hence there are a lot of mid 19th century songs, some parodies of each other, with Jawbone titles or references. Steven Foster sang of how Angelina Baker left him to weep a tear and beat on the old Jawbone "De Old Jawbone" chorus goes:

"Walk Jawbone with the Turkey too, Never mind that Boogerboo." ...

Hans Nathan (in his book Dan Emmett) records it was sung at a Tennessee frolic in the early 1830's, and it has some similarities to minstrel Dan Emmett's tune (recorded by Uncle Dave Macon and the Fruit Jar Drinkers) "Jordan is a Hard Road to Travel, I Believe." The fiddle tune "Jordan is a Hard Road to Travel" is also known as "Old Jawbone."...

Wolfe found the tune in old minstrel collections, some of which indicate the song was associated with the "Colored Saboyard" Cool White- Words and Music by Silas Sexton Steele "Walk, Jaw Bone" (1844)(written expressly for Cool White)[Source: pages 210-211 from "Minstrel Songs, Old and New" (1883).

Library of Congress recordings of the tune/song prior to WWII were collected from Florida to Ohio. See also the variant "Johnson City Rag." Various ditties have been sung to the melody."
-
[Also, here are two posts on that same discussion threead by by "Guest, Oct. 11, 2002]

"The use of a jawbone, the teeth scraped with a hollow stick, was noted in Florida in 1837 (Epstein, Sinful Tunes and Spirituals, p. 156). The jawbone was mentioned in 1777 (Epstein, p. 49). Probably was a practice brought over from Africa."

**
" An 1856 edition of one of the minstrel volumes was printed in Ireland. I have lost the reference to the title of the book, but it did contain the Jawbone song. It also appeared in "The Negro Minstrel," Glasgow, 1850 (Talley, Negro Folk Rhymes).

Minstrel songs from the States were very popular in the British Isles, and the minstrel troupes went over and played there. The books and tours may be the "Irish" source."*
-snip-
A previous commenter had asked whether there was a source of the "Jawbone" song from Ireland. Another commenter in that discussion thread or another discussion thread about this song or the song "Tingalayo" indicated that the referent to "Irish" here may have actually been "Scottish". [As an aside, there is a "Jawbone Walk" in a famous park in Edinburgh, Scotland. That walkway is so named because a whale's jawbone is placed at the end of this tree lined path. Consequently, that walk may have no connection to the Jawbone Walk song.] In any event, the information about minstrel groups [some of whom were Black] performing in Europe is quite interesting.

Also note that Thomas W. Talley was an African American educator & folklorist. His 1922 book Negro Folk Rhymes was a collection of songs that were sung by African Americans. That said, all of those songs didn't originate with African Americans.

Furthermore, with regard to minstrel songs and old time songs, in the 19th century and early 20th century the referent "Negro songs" sometimes referred to songs that were composed by White people in [supposedly] imitation of "Negroes". Those songs may have include actual verses from Black plantation dance songs, but those sources usually can't be identified.

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From a comment that I posted December 2004 on this Mudcat thread: http://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=13654
Lyr Req: Lula Gal (Jawbone Walk)
"Also, I found a similar verse in a passage about plantation dances and instruments in Paul Oliver's "The Story of The Blues" {Radnor,PA, Clinton Book Co; third printing, 1973;p.49}

In Texas, where the dances were subject to many ethnic influences, Mance Lipscomb played the Buck and Wing, a plantation dance with bird-like steps and flapping arms, the Buzzard Lope, with hunched shoulders and loose-limbed slides, the Hop-Scop which was danced in "stop-time", with suspended rhythm, and the Heel and Toe Polka which hinted at European origin. Most blues guitarist of an older generation, or songsters, and musicians played for such balls for both white and coloured people, who danced similar dances. Henry Thomas, "Ragtime Texas", called out the sets of his Old Country Stomp while strumming his guitar and playing his pan-pipe "quills".

Get your partners, promenade
Promenade 'round the hall
Fall in this side of the hall
take yo'(your)partners-Promenade

Miss Jenny eat, Miss Jenny talk,
Miss Jenny eat with knife and fork

The playing of "quills" is an indication of Thomas' generation.
A Pan's pipe [is]of but three reeds, made from single joints of common brake and called by the English speaking Negroes "the quills"."
-snip-
The "jawbone walk, jawbone talk"/jawbone eat with a knife and fork" verse is also found in the Caribbean Calypso song "Tingalayo. Read a comment about how that could have occurreed in Part III of this series.

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LYRICS FOR TWO JAWBONE SONGS (FROM THE USA)
Example #1

JAWBONE
Samson, shout! Samson, moan!
Samson, bring on yō' Jawbone.
Jawbone, walk! Jawbone, talk!
Jawbone, eat wid a knife an fo'k.
Walk, Jawbone! Jinny, come alon'!
Yon'er goes Sally wid de bootees on.
Jawbone, ring! Jawbone, sing!
Jawbone, kill dat wicked thing.

Source: Thomas W. Talley Negro Folk Rhymes: Wise And Otherwise (originally published in 1922).
Electronic book can be found at http://www.gutenberg.org/files/27195/27195-h/27195-h.htm

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Example #2

JAWBONE
My wife died in Tennessee,
She sent her jawbone back to me.
Laid my jawbone on the fence,
Ain’t seen nothin' of my jawbone since.

Old jawbone, Jinny get along,
In come Sally with the big boots on.

Who's been here since I've been gone?
A pretty little girly with the red dress on.
She pulled it off, I put it on,
In come Sally with the big boots on.

Old Jawbone, &c.

Jawbone walk and Jawbone talk,
Jawbone eat with a knife and fork.
Laid my jawbone on the fence,
Ain’t seen nothin' of my jawbone since.

Old Jawbone, &c.
http://www.mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=26693
Posted by Bud Savoie
Date: 21 Jan 01 - 01:19 PM

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Thanks to all those who have collected and published these old time songs. Thanks also to all those who are quoted in this post.

Thank you for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

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Five Music Videos From Mauritania, West Africa

Edited by Azizi Powell

This post showcases five music videos from Mauritania, West Africa. Information about Mauritania is also included in this post.

The content of this post is presented for cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

I'm particularly interested in the instruments used by the musicians as well, the singing styles of the vocalists, and the clothing that the performers wear.

Unfortunately, I only speak English and therefore don't know what these songs are about. Any information about these songs will be appreciated.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

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INFORMATION ABOUT MAURITANIA
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mauritania
"Mauritania i/mɔrɪˈteɪniə/ (Arabic: موريتانيا‎ Mūrītānyā; Berber: Muritanya or Agawej; Wolof: Gànnaar; Soninke: Murutaane; Pulaar: Moritani), officially the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Moroccan-controlled Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest. It is named after the ancient Berber Kingdom of Mauretania, which existed long ago in the far north of modern-day Morocco. The capital and largest city of Mauritania is Nouakchott, located on the Atlantic coast."

**
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_of_Mauritania
"The music of Mauritania comes predominantly from the country's largest ethnic group: the Moors. In Moorish society musicians occupy the lowest caste, iggawin. Musicians from this caste used song to praise successful warriors as well as their patrons. Iggawin also had the traditional role of messengers, spreading news between villages. In modern Mauritania, professional musicians are paid by anybody to perform; affluent patrons sometimes record the entertainment, rather than the musicians themselves, and are then considered to own the recording...

Traditional instruments include an hourglass-shaped four-stringed lute called the tidinit and the woman's kora-like ardin. Percussion instruments include the tbal (a kettle drum) and daghumma (a rattle)."...

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FEATURED EXAMPLES
(These examples are presented in chronological order based on their posting date with the oldest date given first.)

Example #1: el mesre7 echa3bi (Mauritania)



bellewarmedia.com, Uploaded on Mar 21, 2008

el mesre7 echa3bi mauretanie

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Example #2: Ely salem Music Mauritania



bellewarmedia.com, Uploaded on Jul 13, 2009

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Example #3: ghermy esweydeye music mauritania



bellewarmedia.com, Uploaded on Feb 16, 2011

Ghermy mint abba eswydeye http://bellewarmedia.com/germy.html

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Example #4: belkhere yelalkom meso eydikom music mauritania



bellewarmedia.com, Uploaded on Mar 2, 2011

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Example #5: dimi mint abba 7ala theghila music mauritania



bellewarmedia.com, Uploaded on Mar 21, 2011

http://bellewarmedia.com/dimi.html
-snip-
From Wikipedia: Music Of Mauritania
"In spite of the rarity of female musicians in Mauritania, the most famous Moorish musician is a woman, Dimi Mint Abba. Dimi's parents were both musicians (her father had been asked to compose the Mauritanian national anthem), and she began playing at an early age. Her professional career began in 1976, when she sang on the radio and then competed, the following year, in the Umm Kulthum Contest in Tunis."

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Thanks to the featured vocalists and musicians who are featured in this post. Thanks also to the publishers of these videos on YouTube.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

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Three Examples Of The Gospel Song "Packing Up Getting Ready To Go" Led By Marion Williams

This post showcases three examples of the Gospel song "Packing Up Getting Ready To Go as led by Marion Williams. Information about Marion Williams is also included in this post.

The content of this post is presented for religious and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

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INFORMATION ABOUT MARION WILLIAMS
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marion_Williams
"Marion Williams (August 29, 1927 – July 2, 1994) was an American gospel singer...

Williams was invited to join the Ward Singers when they heard her singing during a visit to a close friend in Philadelphia in 1946. Williams did so in 1947, staying with them for eleven years. Her first recording with the group was "How Far Am I from Canaan" (1948), followed by the breakthrough "Surely God Is Able", which launched Williams and the rest of the group into superstardom. Their concerts were mobbed by frenzied fans.

Dissatisfied with the low pay she was receiving while starring for the group, Williams left the Ward Singers in 1958, followed by most of the rest of the group, to form the Stars of Faith. The Stars of Faith was unable, however, to reproduce the success the Ward Singers had enjoyed, as Williams retreated from the spotlight to give other members of the group more opportunity to star. The group's career recovered, however, in 1961, when it appeared in Black Nativity, an Off-Broadway production, and toured across North America and Europe"...

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FEATURED EXAMPLES
(These examples are presented in chronological order based on their posting date with the oldest date given first.)

Example #1: Clara Ward Singers- Packin Up



DaSourcespr06·Uploaded on May 7, 2008

The original version of the song "Packing Up", feat. Marion Williams, 1958.

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Example #2: Marion Williams - Packing Up Mahalia Jackson tribute



blessedover, Published on Sep 11, 2012

carnegie hall [1975]

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Example #3: Marion Williams "Packin' Up" - Hootenanny 1963



HistoricFilmsArchive, Published on Jan 18, 2013

The fabulous Marion Williams & the Stars of Faith perform an intensely lively version of "Packin' Up" on Hootenanny 1963.

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Thanks to the musical legacy of Marion Williams and thanks to the other vocalists who are featured in this post. Thanks also to the publishers of these videos on YouTube.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

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What Are The Names Of These Haitian Singing Games?

Edited by Azizi Powell

This post showcases two Haitian singing games that I happened upon on YouTube.

I'm hoping that someone recognizes these games and can post their names & their words in English. (Unfortunately, I only speak & read English, but I can use Google translate if you write in French.)


Thanks in advance!

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UPDATE: September 9, 2013
A big THANKS to Lesly, one of the men participating in these video taped games for sending the words to these games to the videographer Joylin Clark. THANKS also to Joylin for sharing them with us!!

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FEATURED VIDEOS
Example #1: HAITI KIDS IN SCHOOLYARD; SONG & DANCE [GAME NAME: SHOW US YOUR FRIEND]*



joylin clark·Uploaded on Mar 24, 2010

Haiti-Trouin kids from St. Anne...schoolyard song & dance #1
-snip-
-snip-
Performance Instructions (as per my observations of the video):

People form a large circle (ring), stand in the circle without holding hands, and sing & clap their own hands in accompaniment. Persons forming the circle may also move rhythmically or dance to the beat while they are singing and clapping their hands.

A center person moves around the inside of the circle. At a certain part of the song, the center person walks up to a person (of the other gender) forming the ring and escorts that person into the center of the ring.

The two center people dance. Center person #1 then rubs center person #2 head, gives that person a kiss on the cheek, then leaves the center and rejoins the others forming the circle. The game then immediately begins from the beginning.
-snip-
I particularly like this song. It's very catchy. I really wish I knew what they are singing.
-snip-
Here are the words and performance information for this song from Lesly:
"Show us your friend-

Show us your friend

Show us your friend He is there He is there

Pass your hand over his head Give him a kiss. (By example: i am inner the circle,i will show them my friend.everybody sing together

"Lesly,show us your friend Lesly,show us you friend.

She is there She is there" (while we sing this part" she is there,she is there".i am taking my my friend in the circle dance with her, pass my hand over his heard,give her a kiss).

Then i let her inside the circle and go to show his friend. Until everyone passes through inside the circle."
-snip-
*Lesly didn't write down the title for this game. However, given its words, it seems to me that a good title for this game would be "Show Us Your Friend".

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Example #2: Trouin, Haiti [GAME NAME: YA SO- THE FOOT DANCE]*



joylin clark. Uploaded on Apr 6, 2010

The Foot Dance..Sponsor child, Lesly plays the bongo...
-snip-
Performance Instructions (as per my observations of the video):

People form a large circle (ring), stand in the circle without holding hands, and sing & clap their own hands in accompaniment. Persons forming the circle may also move rhythmically or dance to the beat while they are singing and clapping their hands.

Two people (hereafter known as "the center people") move around the inside of the circle. One moves clockwise and the other moves counterclockwise.

At a certain part of the song, one of the center people stand in front of a person forming the ring, and the other center person stand in front of another person. Each of the center people move their feet between the legs of their designated person. Those persons then do the same to their center person, and then change places with the center persons. The game then begins again from the beginning.

This game reminds me of "Little Sally Walker (Walking Down The Street), a contemporary version of "Little Sally Walker" in that like that "Foot Dance" game, the person in the center of the circle (the ring) moves around the ring, then picks a person standing in the ring and then does some motion in front of that person. That person then does the same motion, and then the two people exchange places and that person becomes the new center person.The game then immediately begins from the beginning.

Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2011/09/little-sally-walker.html for a video of that game.

UPDATE: September 7, 2013
Here are the words & performance instructions to this song from Lesly, a Haitian male who participated in this videoed game. Thanks Lesly!! Also, thanks to Joylin Clark for sending me these words from Lesly via iPhone.

"Ya so- Ya so,ya so oo oo oo

Ya so,ya so oo oo oo

Ya so,ya so. I would look at you

I would yas,i 'd yas

I would look at you

I woud yas,i' d yas

(you see the video,there is a circle,inside the circle there is someone. The inner circle will choose someone he wants to dance with her feet while everyone is singing together"

Ya so,ya so oo oo oo

Ya so,ya so oo oo oo

Ya so,ya so" (here, he will stand before his anointed.

" i would look at you

I would yas,i'd yas

I would look at you

I would yas,i'd yas"

(As we sing this part, the inner circle will hit His left foot from the right foot of the others three times,right to the left foot in others three times. Subsequently quitting inside the circle for the people he selected.

Until everyone passes trough the circle.

Lesly"
-snip-
*Lesly didn't write down the name of this game. However, given its words and performance activity, it seems to me that a good title for this game would be "Ya So" (The Foot Dance).

****
Please share any information that you may have about these games, and/or games that are similar.

Thanks to the persons featured in these videos. Thanks also to the publisher of these videos.

The content of this post is presented for folkloric, recreational, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Viewer comments are welcome.

Read More

Sugar Aloes - I Love Being Me (Lyrics & Comments)

Edited by Azizi Powell

This post showcases a video of Soca superstar Sugar Aloes performing his song "I Love Being Me". That video also features a brief appearance of the Soca superstar Baron.

In this lighthearted song, Sugar Aloe asserts that he doesn't look or sound like Baron. Indeed, within the song Aloe points out some differences between himself and Baron.

The content of this song is presented for folkloric, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

****
INFORMATION ABOUT SUGAR ALOE
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sugar_Aloes
"Sugar Aloes, aka Michael Anthony Osuana, is a prominent calypsonian hailing from Trinidad and Tobago. Singing local hits such as "Party Time" and parang favorite "Juanita", Aloes has amassed a fan base of at least three generations of Trinidadians and calypso lovers region-wide. Sugar Aloes is also famous for his songs "I Love Being Me" and "Signs of the end of Time". On Sunday 3 February 2008 Michael Anthony Osuana, aka Sugar Aloes, was crowned the winner of the Calypso Monarch 2008 Competition[1] at Queens Park Oval in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad. He won this competition singing a song entitled "Look in the Mirrow". In this song, he made some sarcastic remarks about government, which maintained a certain degree of humour."
-snip-
Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/08/what-sugar-means-in-soca-music.html for my speculation about the meaning of the stage name "Sugar Aloe".

****
SHOWCASE VIDEO
Sugar Aloes - I Love Being Me



trinidesi, Uploaded on Oct 17, 2007

Aloes in his element singing his Classic "I Love Being Me" in d 1992 dimanche gras.
-snip-
From http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_Dimanche_Gras
"Dimanche Gras (Big Sunday) is a huge competition that takes you into J'ouvert which is the start of the two day Carnival celebrations in Trinidad and Tobago. The Kings and Queens of the Carnival Bands are paraded before judges, one of which will win King and Queen of Carnival, as well as the Calypsonians competing against each other with their various compositions in song, all hoping to come away with the coveted title of Calypso Monarch."

****
LYRICS

[verse 1]
I've met many people trying to make confusion
Trying to put Baron against me
Some say for an imposter I'm blissed with imitation
And how I trying to sound just like he
But I will like to let those people know
For fourteen long years, Baron did leave and go
1979 is when I came on de scene, then Baron came back in

[chorus 1]
But I don't sound like de Baron
For your information, de Baron doh sound like me
So when I'm singing my tune
And you hear a sweet croon
I'm just being me

[verse 2]
Even when I'm dressed in some fancy style or fashion
Or wearing some costly jewelry
Dey talk bout how dey see me talking to four, five woman
Dey does say I trying to be like he
But is one ting dat dey don't understand
Baron love Indian and plenty action
I just love nice tings and I'm being friendly
Yes it makes me happy

[chorus 2]
But I don't look like de Baron
And if ah should mention, Baron more "bashy" than me
So whenever you see me
Looking nice and dandy
I'm just being me

[verse 3]
I and Baron do address each other as brothers
We think dats the way dat it ought to be
But through jealously people just getting horrors
And decide to make a controversy
Even reportors and all join de crew
And de question is who have more gold than who
Like when I'm not feelin to put mines on
Dey does say dat it in de pawn

[chorus 3]
But I don't have gold like Baron
For their information, Baron don't have gold like me
So whenever I'm wearing
It's not flam ah flamming
I'm just being me

[verse 4]
Mehself and Baron we both have religious background
So we enjoy singing from since we small
If you should notice while are we on de stage performing
Is so natural dat we don't have to bawl
We just relax and let the feelings flow
Do what we want, where ever we go
It's a gift from god dat we both receive
So please don't be deceived

[chorus 4]
And please don't take me for Baron
Just pay close attention
And don't take Baron for me
We both have one ting in common
It's ah gift from heaven
But I love being me

[chorus 5]
Don't mistake me for Baron
Just pay close attention
Doh mistake Baron for me
We both have one ting in common
Dats public attraction
But I love being me

Source: http://www.socafreak.com/sugar-aloes-lyrics.html
Sugar Aloes Lyrics - Calypso Music Lyrics

****
SPECULATION ABOUT WORDS AND REFERENCES IN THIS SONG
(Disclaimer: I'm an African American and am not an expert on Trinidadian culture and/or Trinidadian words or phrases. I'm hoping someone who is familiar with the use of these terms in Trinidad will help with these explanations by adding any additions and corrections.)

Baron love Indian
Baron loves (is more interested in or more involved with
Indian women) than Aloe is.

Note that East Indians (South Asians; people whose ancestry in whole or in part are from India) are an integral population of Trinidad, and Indian culture has greatly influenced Soca music and other Trini music genres.

**
Bashy
(found in the line "Baron more bashy than me")

Based on how this word is used, I THINK that it means that Sugar Aloes is saying that it's his contention that his jewlery is more costly than Baron's. And/or does "bashy" in that line mean that Aloe is contending that Baron's jewlery is more ostentatious or is fake (is "bling bling"?)

Notice the preceding & subsequent lines about wearing gold (jewelry).

However, if either of those guesses are what bashy means in that line, notice the differences between that use of "bashy" and this Jamaican definition that is found in urbandictionary.com
From http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=bashy

bashy
adj.
1. A Jamaican slang word for something being of value or looking good.
2. Something's looks or aesthetics having the tendency to be awesome.
3. Rhasta word for: nice, down, dank, sweet, cool, etc. A descriptive word of praise.

1. Our time riding hoorses on da beach proved to be a bashy time mon, should've come.

2. You lookin bashy girl! Where did you get that sexy romper for romping?

3. My Thanksgiving dinner? Yeah yeah it was bashy, with that smoke and my mom's home cooking.
-snip-
Maybe the important phrase in that definition is "looking good". Something can look good and still be an imitation.

Given the canon of Caribbean singers, I find it unlikely that Sugar Aloe would praise Baron over himself. But it would be a natural part of Calypso/Soca music for Sugar Aloe to "put down" Baron in a good natured, witty way.

**
Flam ah flamming
(used in the chorus 3 found above
I THINK this means the jewlery that I wear is not for show (it's not me showing off) but is just me being me.

**
dandy
Found in the lines:
"So whenever you see me
Looking nice and dandy"

I think this means "looking like a dandy".
Dandy- a man who is a sharp dresser (dapper, natty)

**
In de pawn
"Dey does say dat it in de pawn" = in the pawn shop

****
RELATED LINKS

Click this pancocojams post about Baron http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/08/baron-find-yourself-and-sweet-soca-man.html

****
Thanks to Sugar Aloe & Baron for their musical legacy. Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post, and thanks to the publishers of the videos which are showcased in this post.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

Read More

What "Sugar" Means In Soca Music

Edited by Azizi Powell

This is Part IV in a four part series of posts about the meanings of the words "sweet" and "sugar" in Soca music.

Part IV focuses on the various meanings of the word "sugar" and showcases a song by Calypso/Soca superstar Lord Kitchener and a song by the Soca superstar Sugar Aloe.

Part I focuses on the various meanings of the word "sweet" and showcases the song "Sweet Music" by the Founder of Soca music Lord Shorty (Ras Shorty). Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/08/what-sweet-means-in-soca-music.html for Part I of this series.

Part II showcases the Calypso/Soca superstar Baron. Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/08/baron-find-yourself-and-sweet-soca-man.html for Part II of this series.

Part III showcases two recordings of songs entitled "Sweet Soca Music". Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/08/two-recordings-of-songs-entitled-sweet.html for Part III of this series.

The content of this post is presented for folkloric, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

****
WHAT "SUGAR" MEANS IN SOCA MUSIC
I believe that the word "sugar" in Soca music (and also in Dancehall music) can be a play on the widely known phrase "sweet Soca music".

"Sugar" in a Caribbean stage name can also simultaneously refer to the vocalist's smooth, honey voice and crooner style of singing & the type of songs that are sung.

Read Part I & Part III for information & comments about the meanings of the word "sweet" in the context of Soca music.

More comments about the meanings of the word "sugar" in Caribbeean cultures-but particularly in Soca music-are found after each of thee two featured videos.

****
FEATURED VIDEOS
Example #1: Lord Kitchener - SUGAR BUM BUM



IsDePanInMe, Uploaded on Nov 17, 2007

Calypso/Soca classic by the Grandmaster.
-snip-
Click http://www.sweetslyrics.com/531504.LORD%20KITCHENER%20-%20SUGAR%20BUM%20BUM.html for the complete lyrics to "Sugar Bum Bum".

**
"Sugar bum bum" means a "sweet butt". In the United States the singular word "bum" means "butt", however in my experience, that word is most often used by non-Black Americans.

In the first line in Lord Kitchener's song "Sugar Bum Bum", "Audrey, where you get that sugar", the word "sugar" is a shortened reference to that woman's bum bum (butt, behind).

Also, in the verse "Give way me land, give way me car
But let no man touch my sugar", the word "sugar" is also a referent to the woman's bum bum.

Notice that in the song "Sugar Bum Bum" Lord Kitchener makes references to the female having a big behind. In many African and African Diaspora cultures a female with a big butt is admired.*

Also notice the reference to butts in this commenter's post to this video's viewer comment thread:
"Looks like the audience couldn't get their sugar bum bum's off their chairs. Where was it recorded? Prison?"
-JJMMWGDuPree, 2011
-snip-
This comment suggests that the usual audience response to Soca music is dancing or at least moving to the music in your seat. However, I've noticed that when Black folks are in settings that are either integrated with White people or settings that are considered "upper class", there is often some confusion about which rules of audience behavior to follow. Or there is a tendency to follow the White middle class standard which is the opposite of dancing or moving in one's seat (or overtly responding to performances until those performances are completed.

*In the United States contemporary versions of children's jump rope rhyme "Policeman Policeman" contain the line "Here comes a woman with an African booty". Unlike many other referents to Africa, someone describing a female teenagers or a woman's butt as an "African booty") is considered a compliment. Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2011/12/meaning-of-african-booty-in-childrens.html for a pancocojams post that jump rope rhyme.)

****
Example #2: Sugar Aloes - I Love Being Me



trinidesi, Uploaded on Oct 17, 2007

Aloes in his element singing his Classic "I Love Being Me" in d 1992 dimanche gras.
-snip-
Click this pancocojams post about this song:
http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/08/sugar-aloes-i-love-being-me-lyrics.html
**
Click Part II of this series for a video of Baron and judge for yourself if these two vocalists look and sound alike.

**
Given that "aloe" is a plant that is native to Africa, the name Sugar Aloe is a good fit for a Black Caribbean singer. The form of aloe that is most widely known throughout the world is "aloe vera" (true aloe).

In addition to "Sugar Aloe", another Caribbean "sugar" stage name is the Soca singer "Sugar Daddy" who is featured in Part III of this series. And "Sugar Minott" is a Dancehall Reggae singer with a "sugar" stage name.

In addition to the play on the meanings for the word "sweet", I wonder if the word "sugar" used in Caribbean artists stage names may be an oblique reference to slang term "sugar daddy". Even if that is so, it seems to me that the American (United States) term "Sugar Daddy", meaning "A wealthy, usually older man who gives expensive gifts to a young person in return for sexual favors or companionship."* - doesn't apply to that Caribbean referent. In the USA, a "sugar daddy" is looked down upon. However, I get the sense (from reading behind the lines & lyrics) that a Caribbean "Sugar Daddy" is admired. I wonder if a Caribbean "sugar daddy" is similar to (if not the same as) as the Jamaican "don dada", meaning the main man, a man who is able to get any female he wants.

It seems to me that the complimentary Caribbean meaning of "sugar daddy" is very much like the once little used, and now retired 1990s African American slang term "fly guy" (The term "fly girl" was used much more often than "fly guy").**

Please correct me if I'm wrong about this.

*Source: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/sugar+daddy.

** Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/01/fly-fly-girl-slang-definition-examples.html for a pancocojams post about "fly", "fly girl", and "fly guy".

****
Thanks to Lord Kitchener and Sugar Aloe for their musical legacy. Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post, and thanks to the publishers of the videos which are showcased in this post.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

Read More

Two Recordings Of Songs Entitled "Sweet Soca Music"

Edited by Azizi Powell

This is Part III in a four part series of posts about the meanings of the words "sweet" and "sugar" in Soca music. These posts use song titles, lyrics, artist's names, and comments from YouTube video comment threads.

Part III showcases two recordings of songs entitled "Sweet Soca Music".

Part I focuses on the various meanings of the word "sweet" and showcases the song "Sweet Music" by the Founder of Soca music Lord Shorty (Ras Shorty). Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/08/what-sweet-means-in-soca-music.html for Part I of this series.

Part II showcases the Calypso/Soca superstar Baron. Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/08/baron-find-yourself-and-sweet-soca-man.html for Part II of this series.

Part IV focuses on the various meanings of the word "sugar" and showcases a song by Calypso/Soca superstar Lord Kitchener and a song by the Soca superstar Sugar Aloe. Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/08/what-sugar-means-in-soca-music.html for Part IV of this series.

The content of this post is presented for folkloric, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

****
WHAT THE PHRASE SWEET SOCA MUSIC MEANS
I believe that the word "sweet" in the phrase "Sweet soca music" means "beloved".

It seems to me that the popularity of the phrase "sweet soca music" is probably attributed in large part to its alliteration. However, that phrase "works" (fits well) because it embodies the admiration/approval meaning of the word "sweet" while it speaks to an aesthetic preference for a certain type of music and a certain type of voice tone. Read Part I for information & comments about the meanings of the word "sweet" in the context of Soca music.

I have also seen the phrase "sweet Trini music" and "sweet Trini culture" in various YouTube comment threads. I believe that the word "sweet" in those phrases also has the meaning "beloved".
"Trini" is a contemporary colloquial referent for "Trinidad".

FEATURED MUSIC EXAMPLES
Example #1: Sugar Daddy - Sweet Soca Music



SugarDaddyVEVO, Uploaded on May 11, 2011
-snip-
My speculation about the stage name "Sugar Daddy" are included in Part IV of this series.

To date, all the comments in this video are in French (which unfortunately I can't read without the use of an online translator to English.)

****
Example #2: New Teddyson John | SWEET SOCA MUSIC [2013 St Lucian Soca][Produced By Precision Productions]



Julianspromos Main, Published on May 16, 2013

Written by Jelani Nedd of Cloud9tt & Kasey Phillips, Background Vocals by Jenna Gaston
Guitars by Keron "Sheriff" Thompson. Produced & Mixed by Precision Productions. Mastered by Mike Wells CA.

As the spirit of Carnival descends upon the beautiful isle of St. Lucia, an undeniable call to freedom is released into the air, by the reigning Groovy Monarch himself, Teddyson "TJ" John.

In a perfectly sweetened mix of rhythm and soul, Precision Productions concocts a tuneful serum designed to soothe masqueraders, who have been longing for this season's return, while simultaneously injecting their hearts with the frenzied joy only "Sweet Soca Music" can provide.

And, in only his first writing endeavour with the team, Jelani Nedd of Cloud9tt, brings to life that sublime feeling of this festival's music with poetic phrasing and imaginative descriptions.

With its matchless energy, this track is sure to have listeners happily chipping throughout the streets.
-snip-
Here are a few comments from this video's viewer comment thread:

"tune sweet!!
-DjDevie, 2013

**
"whatttt a chune"
-Wasim Khan, 2013
-snip-
"Tune" here means the entire song (record, "jam") and not just the melody. Another way of writing "tune" which signals "Caribbean-ness" is "chune". The word "tune" or "chune" are sometimes written with repeated vowels (Tuuune!; "Chuuune!") to express heightened satisfaction & approval. ·

**
BIG HIT, JUST HIT MEH RIDDIM , JUST GIVE MEH THAT SWEET SOCA MUSIC 
-Jay Roberts, 2013
-snip-
"Riddim" (meaning "rhythm") is another signal of Caribbean commentary.

****
Thanks to Sugar Daddy and Teddyson John for their music. Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post, and thanks to the publishers of the videos which are showcased in this post.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

Read More

Baron - "Find Yourself" and "Sweet Soca Man"

Edited by Azizi Powell

This is Part II in a four part series of posts about the meanings of the words "sweet" and "sugar" in Soca music.

This post showcases the Calypso/Soca superstar Baron.

Part I provides information about Calypso music and Soca music. Part I also provides definitions about the various meanings of the word "sweet" in Soca music and showcases the song "Sweet Music" by by the Founder of Soca music Lord Shorty (Ras Shorty). Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/08/what-sweet-means-in-soca-music.html for Part I of this series.

Part III showcases two recordings of songs entitled "Sweet Soca Music". Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/08/two-recordings-of-songs-entitled-sweet.html for that post.

Part IV focuses on the various meanings of the word "sugar" and showcases a song by Calypso/Soca superstar Lord Kitchener and a song by the Soca superstar Sugar Aloe. Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/08/what-sugar-means-in-soca-music.html for Part IV of this series

The content of this post is presented for folkloric, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

****
INFORMATION ABOUT BARON
From http://www.bestoftrinidad.com/calypso/baron.html
"REAL NAME: Timothy Watkins, Jr

[Date of birth not given]

CAREER: While growing up in Bamboo Village, La Romaine, Baron sang Baptist spirituals with his parents at the church they led, and later began singing at various community events. Baron won the Scouting for Talent competition during the early 1970s and made his singing debut at the Original Young Brigade Calypso Tent in 1971, after being introduced to the management by his long-time friend, Lord Shorty, who gave the young calypsonian his trade name, Baron, and wrote his first hit, Severe Licking. Baron then performed in North America for about 13 years before returning to Trinidad in 1984"...
****
FEATURED VIDEOS
Example #1: Baron - The Sweet Soca Voice



Trinidadculture, Uploaded on Aug 5, 2008
-snip-
As noted by a commenter to this video's viewer comment thread http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YtZg2I3bhs the title of this song is "Find Yourself".

Here's another comment from this video's viewer comment thread

"baron. sweet honeyed voice. cannot resist that voice. I enjoy going to his concerts too."
-brett12ism, 2011

****
Example #2: Baron - Sweet Soca Man



IsDePanInMe, Uploaded on Nov 13, 2009

Caribbean Music Awards 91...
-snip-
Here are a few comments from this video's viewer comment thread:
"sweet Baron i love ur songs .i am enjoying your music"
- alasha ellis, 2013
**
"Love this bass part. Very cool how smooth Baron is, right over top of that cooking rhythm section, as if nothing can perturb him."
-Frodohotep, 2012

**
"too sweet"
-carawak1, 2011

Reply:
"Dem chune will mek yuh ah diabetic!!! Sweet..Sweet..Sweet!!!!"
-K@@lruler, 2011
-snip-
All of these comments are compliments.

****
Thanks to Baron for his musical legacy. Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post, and thanks to the publishers of the videos which are showcased in this post.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

Read More

What "Sweet" Means In Soca Music

Edited by Azizi Powell

This is Part I in a four part series of posts about the meanings of the words "sweet" and "sugar" in Soca music. These posts use song titles, lyrics, artist's names, and comments from YouTube video comment threads.

This post focuses on the various meanings of the word "sweet" and showcases the song "Sweet Music" by the Founder of Soca music Lord Shorty (Ras Shorty).

Part II showcases the Calypso/Soca superstar Baron. Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/08/baron-find-yourself-and-sweet-soca-man.html for Part II of this series.

Part III showcases two recordings of songs entitled "Sweet Soca Music". Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/08/two-recordings-of-songs-entitled-sweet.html for Part III of this series.

Part IV focuses on the various meanings of the word "sugar" and showcases a song by Calypso/Soca superstar Lord Kitchener and a song by the Soca superstar Sugar Aloe. Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/08/what-sugar-means-in-soca-music.html for Part IV of this series.

The content of this post is presented for folkloric, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

****
INFORMATION ABOUT CALYPSO AND SOCA MUSIC
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soca_music
"Soca is a style of Caribbean music originating in Trinidad and Tobago.

Soca originally combined the melodic lilting sound of calypso with insistent cadence music from Dominica and the French Antilles (which is often electronic in recent music), and Indian musical instruments—particularly the dholak, tabla and dhantal—as demonstrated in Shorty's classic compositions "Ïndrani" and "Shanti Om".

It has evolved in the last 20 years primarily by musicians from various Anglophone Caribbean countries"...

****
From http://www.courses.vcu.edu/ENG-snh/Caribbean/Barbados/Images/calypso.htm
"Calypso (or kaiso) was invented in Trinidad, but its influence has spread out to infect all of the Caribbean. Each island has well-respected, major calypsonians and national pride for the musicians runs high...

Many people believe that calypso is about jumping up and dancing at carnivals, that the form is devoted to entertainment. But true calypso is a very serious form of social commentary. The calypsonians address everything...Nothing is sacred in calypso" (www.funbarbados.com).

Soca, on the other hand, is a much less serious music form that uses the same beats and rhythms as found in calypso."

****
iNFORMATION ABOUT RAS SHORTY
From http://www.angelfire.com/ny/Playmas/shorty.html
"Ras Shorty I who was born Garfield Blackman in Trinidad started singing calypso as the LORD SHORTY as early as 1963 with his tune "Cloak and Dagger" in Trinidad. He won his first title in 1970 in South Trinidad when he beat former monarchs Bomber and Black Stalin who placed second and third respectively. He was crowned King of San Fernando at that event. However he was unable to beat Calypso Monarch, The Mighty Duke at the National finals in Port of Spain that year.

In the 1970's he began writing calypso songs for other young calypsonians including "MAESTRO" and his cousin "BARON" who had a hit called "SEVERE LICKING" produced by Shorty. Trinidad and Tobago has been renowned for its magnificent carnivals,calypso and in this century's only musical invention: the steel pan. A prolific musician,composer and innovator, Ras Shorty experimented with the calypso beat for nearly a decade before unleashing "the soul of calypso,"...soca music...

"Upon the release of his first album "Sweet Music" and his next "Endless Vibrations", Shorty became more popular with young audiences who followed his revolutionary masterpieces of soca. One composition called "Om Shanti" caused such an uproar in Trinidad that it became very controversial."...

****
MEANINGS OF "SWEET" IN SOCA MUSIC
My sense is that the word "sweet" in the widely used phrase "sweet Soca music" is different than the meaning of the Italian musical term "dolce" (English translation "sweet")
http://piano.about.com/od/musicaltermsa1/g/GL_dolce.htm
"Definition: The Italian musical term dolce, meaning “sweet,” is an indication to play in a tender, adoring manner; to play sweetly with a light touch. Dolce is often used with other musical commands, as in “allegretto dolce e con affetto”: semi-quick, sweet, and with affection."

I think that the word "sweet" has more than one meaning in Soca music and these varying meanings can be used simultaneously.
(Disclaimer: I'm African American and by no means am an expert on Soca or other Caribbean music. Additions, corrections, and comments are welcome.)

1. A term of affection and/or admiration that is applied to a genre of music, and/or other cultural offerings
Read this definition about the colloquial meaning of "sweet" that was posted by tlc, Nov 20, 2004:
"http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=sweet
"sweet
Adj.
An intensive used to express satisfaction, acceptance, pleasure, excellence, exaltation, approval, awe, or reverence. When used individually, the level of satisfaction expressed is most often directly proportionate to the duration of the vowel sound.

"Mashed potatoes for dinner. Sweet."
"I just won a million dollars? SWEEEEEEET!"

2. A description of a style (sound) of music and/or the singer's voice tone; similar to the American term "crooners" i.e singers have a smooth voice tone and not a harsh, or gritty voice tone.
For example, here's a commenter from a video* of Soca singer Baron
"baron. sweet honeyed voice. cannot resist that voice. I enjoy going to his concerts too."
-brett12ism, 2011

*This video is showcased in Part II of this series.

3. reference to the fact that soca music is lighthearted, positive, and non-confrontational, unlike Calypso's much more serious subjects of political commentary and/or social commentary.
Read the excerpt about the Calypso song "Sweet Tempo" which is found in the Related Links section below.

****
FEATURED MUSIC EXAMPLE
Lord Shorty - Sweet Music



CanchozI, Uploaded on Feb 25, 2010

Lord Shorty - Sweet Music (Sweet Music LP 1976)

****
RELATED LINK
From http://www.thedominican.net/2010/05/dominica's-first-calypso-queen.html
[article about and and interview of Juliana “Jahlee” Alfred, Dominica's first Calypso Queen]
"In its early years, Calypso music was known for its witty, smutty, political and social commentary.

Many households did not allow this type of musical genre into their doors because it was deemed unsuitable for listening consumption.

However, as the years progressed, calypso became more popular and acceptable in Dominica. Women also began entering the calypso arena as competitors and have given just as much good lyrics in these competitions as their male counterparts did.

...Sweet Tempo was your winning song, who helped you with writing that song and why Sweet Tempo? Is there a meaning to that song?

...I was born in the southern part of the Island, Grand Bay. Where in Dominica carnival there is considered a Rough Mas. So I wanted a topic that says we need to play Mas with no violence, with a sense of One Love, Peace, and have an incident free Carnival. We need a tempo that's sweet. So I came up with Sweet Tempo.”
-snip-
Click http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0_6GTPOxI8 for a video of Jahlee's song "Sweet Tempo"

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Thanks to Ras Shorty I (Lord Shorty) for his musical legacy. Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post, and thanks to the publisher of the video which is showcased in this post.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

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Traditional Hymn and Gospel Renditions of "Rock Of Ages"

Edited by Azizi Powell

This post features four different genre of the 18th century hymn "Rock Of Ages" (also known as "Rock OF Ages, Cleft For Me". Those genres which are represented in this post are: traditional English hymn, White American Gospel, and African American Gospel.

Information about the composition of "Rock Of Ages" and a link to the lyrics of that hymn are also given in this post.

The content of this post is presented for religious, anthropological, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE HYMN "ROCK OF AGES"
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_of_Ages_(Christian_hymn)
"Rock of Ages" is a popular Christian hymn by the Reverend Augustus Montague Toplady written in 1763 and first published in The Gospel Magazine in 1775.

...Traditionally, it is held that Toplady drew his inspiration from an incident in the gorge of Burrington Combe in the Mendip Hills in England. Toplady, a preacher in the nearby village of Blagdon, was travelling along the gorge when he was caught in a storm. Finding shelter in a gap in the gorge, he was struck by the title and scribbled down the initial lyrics on a playing card.

The fissure that is believed to have sheltered Toplady is now marked as the "Rock of Ages", both on the rock itself and on some maps, and is also reflected in the name of a nearby tea shop."
-snip-
Click http://www.hymnsite.com/lyrics/umh361.sht for the lyrics for that song.

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FEATURED VIDEOS
(These videos are posted in chronlogical order based on their posting date, with the oldest video posted first.)

Example #1: Hide Me, Rock of Ages - The Statesmen Quartet



statesmenfan, Uploaded on Oct 29, 2008
-snip-
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Statesmen_Quartet
"The Statesmen Quartet was a southern gospel music group founded in 1948 by Hovie Lister. Along with the Blackwood Brothers, the Statesmen Quartet is considered the most successful and influential gospel quartet of the 1950s.[1]...Along with hits spanning many decades, The Statesmen Quartet had many notable successes including being the first Gospel group to receive endorsement deals. Additionally, they made television commercials, appeared on numerous radio and TV shows, and were signed to RCA Victor before launching their own label, Skylite Records, with The Blackwood Brothers."
-snip-
The music genre given to this group on that Wikipedia page is "Southern Gospel". It seems obvious to me that the genre of "Southern Gospel" was heavily influenced by African American Quartet singing. Click http://www.kusp.org/playlists/crosscurrents/history.html for information about the history of African American religious music in general, and African American Quartet singing in particular.

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Example #2: Union Baptist Church Gospel Choir Singing "Rock of Ages" 02.22.09-11A.M.



BaptistBoi, Uploaded on Feb 24, 2009
-snip-
I'd categorize this rendition of "Rock Of Ages" as an African American Gospelized hymn.

According to a commenter in this video's viewer comment thread, it appears that this arrangement was originally done by Truth Ministry (TM) Youth Mass* Choir.

Click http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RyXyFzb8_i4 for a sound file of that choir's rendition of this song.

*In African American Baptist churches the term "mass choirs" usually means members of all of the church's choirs combined in one choir. In the case of the Truth Ministry choir, the term "mass" choir may mean "a combination of several youth choir from that church or from several churches".

By the way, "Union Baptist" is a common name for African American Baptist churches. In the 1950s and 1960s I was a member of a church with that name in Atlantic City, New Jersey (actually "Union Baptist Temple"). At that church then & now, the song "Rock Of Ages" is sung as a hymn. Indeed, when I was attending that church-if not now- to "gospelize" that hymn in the way that choir in the video did would have probably been frowned upon and considered to be sacriligious.

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Example #3: Rock of Ages cleft for me (Acapela)



calvarymennonite, Uploaded on Mar 28, 2010

Rock of Ages cleft for me (Acapela) as sung by Calvary Mennonite Youth Group
-snip-
This is the traditional rendition of the hymn "Rock Of Ages".

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Example #4: "Rock of Ages" | Northwestern High School Reunion Choir



The_Music_Note, Uploaded on Jul 22, 2011

The Northwestern High School Reunion Choir perform a classic favorite of ours, "Rock of Ages", at the 2009 Reunion Benefit Concert at the Northwestern High School Auditorium. The song rocks on forever and ever thanks to alumnus and former student director, Mr. Sevron Howard, Class of 1999.
-snip-
This is another example of the gospelized version of "Rock Of Ages". Notice that the differences in the performance of this predominately African American choir and the African American choir in Example #2 of this post (for instance, the lack of accompanying handclapping and rhythmical movement in the beginning of Video #4.)
-snip-
One commenter on this video's viewer comment thread http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHTcHAytXy4 wrote: "with all the respect, this is a song to sing with a slower music.

this kind of music takes the peace of the song away."
-snip-
My response to that comment was "It seems to me that people who like this rendition of that song could gather just as much peace from it as they could gather from the traditional, slower rendition. And/or those people or some other people might not get any sense of peace from the traditional, slower rendition of "Rock Of Ages" because that rendition doesn't conform to their musical aesthetics.

In other words, it's okay for musical taste to vary in religious music as well as other music."

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RELATED LINK
Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/08/kizingo-sda-youth-choir-rock-of-ages-i.html for a post about a Kenyan song that is based on the English hymn "Rock Of Ages".

****
Thanks to the composer of "Rock Of Ages". Thanks also to those who are quoted in this post, thanks to those choir members and musicians who appeared in these videos, and thanks to the publisher of these featured videos.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

Read More

Kizingo SDA Youth Choir - Rock Of Ages, I Am Hidden In Thee

Edited by Azizi Powell

This post features a video of the Kizingo Seventh Day Adventist (SDA) Youth Choir of Mombasa, Kenya singing the song "Rock Of Ages, I Am Hidden In Thee". The lyrics to that song-as found in that video-are included in this post.

The content of this post is presented for religious, anthropological, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

This is a companion piece to the following pancocojams post:
http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/08/seven-gospel-songs-from-kenyan.html. Note the statement that I made in that post about some of my anthropological interests in these types of videos.

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FEATURED VIDEO

Kizingo SDA Youth Choir Mombasa-Nina Raha



Calvince Ochar, Published on Feb 1, 2013

I am happy to be hidden under the Rock of Ages. A touching song by Kizingo SDA Youth choir from Mombasa Kenya.
-snip-
I'm not sure if this song should be categorized as "Gospel" in the African American definition of that word. Instead, it seems to me that this song is a good example of what I call an "African Hymn" as it seems clearly to have been based on the 18th century English hymn "Rock Of Ages."

The pancocojams post http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/08/traditional-hymn-and-gospel-renditions.html featured one American traditional hymn and three American Gospel renditions of that song.

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LYRICS - ROCK OF AGES, I AM HIDDEN IN THEE

I have joy in the Rock of Ages
In my tribulations I run to thee
I am a sinner, but I’m yours;
Rock of Ages, I am hidden in thee
I am a sinner, but I’m yours;
Rock of Ages, I am hidden in thee

[repeat all of above lyrics 1x]

[CHORUS]
Soloist: I am hiding I am hiding
Choir: Rock of Ages, I’m hidden in thee.
Soloist: I am hiding I am hiding
Choir: Rock of Ages, I’m hidden in thee.

[repeat all of these lyrics 4 times]

[Instrumental]

In times of peace or sorrow
When temptations abound
In life’s uncertainties I came to thee
Rock of Ages, I am hidden in thee
In life’s uncertainties I came to thee
Rock of Ages, I am hidden in thee

[repeat all of these lyrics 1x]

CHORUS
[repeat four times]

[instrumental]

When defeated in life’s struggles
I hold on to grace and hope
In trials I stand on thee
Rock of Ages, I am hidden in thee

In trials I stand on thee
Rock of Ages, I am hidden in thee

[repeat all of above lyrics 1x]

CHORUS
[repeat multiple times]

-snip-
These lyrics were superimposed on the video. Additions & corrections are welcome.

I'm unsure if this is the correct title for this song. I selected that title based on the use of that line in the chorus (I added the word "chorus" and the instructions that are found in brackets.)

****
Thanks to the composer/s of this featured song. Thanks also to those who are quoted in this post, thanks to those choir members and musicians who appeared in these videos and thanks to the publisher of this featured video.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

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Seven Gospel Songs From Kenyan & Tanzanian Seventh Day Adventist [SDA] Choirs

Edited by Azizi Powell

This post showcases seven Gospel* songs from Kenyan or Tanzanian Seventh Day Adventist [SDA] Choirs.

*I'm not even sure if I correctly categorized these songs as "Gospel". Maybe a more accurate genree would be something like "African Hymns".


All copyrights remain with their owners.

**As usual, I'm interested in observing & comparing the clothing, manner of presentation, hairstyles (particularly female hairstyles), musical instruments found in featured videos, and format of these featured video.

For example, it's interesting to me that so many of these types of East African religious (Gospel?) videos begin with the focus on the keyboardist. Also, it appears that the norm in Tanzania, but not in Kenya, that women members of these choirs wear their hair "afros" (and not straightened with a hot comb or a permanent). Also, while a number of female members of the featured Kenyan choirs wear their hair straightened- unlike Black choirs in the United States and in the nation of South Africa- none of those females dyed their hair blond or red. And it doesn't appear that any of those females have hair extensions, weaves, or wigs.

Furthermore, I find it interesting that these East African Seventh Day Adventist choir videos all have basically the same format: The video begins with a focus on the keyboardist, and includes scenes of the choir in various poses. Often in each scene the choir members are wearing different group coordinated robes or suits.

Although examples of this aren't numerous in this particular complilation, some videos of East African SDA choirs include scenes of Biblical images of a white skinned Jesus with other Biblical figures such as John the Baptist.

And as an African American, I'm interested in noting that in videos of East African Seventh Day Adventist choirs that I've seen to date, the choirs don't move rhythmically to the beat of the songs nor do they clap their hands in accompaniment or other actions that are done by Gospel choirs in the USA or in the nation of South Africa.

This post serves as a companion piece to an earlier pancocojams post of Kenyan religious music:

http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2012/06/videos-of-kenyan-catholic-choirs-part-i.html

The content of this post is presented for religious, anthropological,** and aesthetic purposes.
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FEATURED VIDEOS
(These videos are posted in chronological order based on the posting date of the videos, with the oldest dated video given first.

Unfortunately, I don't speak or read Swahili, the language that I think is used for each of these featured songs. Information in English about these songs would be greatly appreciated.)

Example #1: AVSEQ03.DAT [Tanzania]



JEREMIAHONTIRI, Uploaded on Dec 26, 2009

Iringo sda musoma

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Example #2: Kurasini SDA- OLE OLE [Tanzania]



naomyatom, Uploaded on Jul 3, 2010
-snip-
Here's an explanation of the lyrics of the song from a commenter to that video's viewer comment thread: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AoCZA8401Mk

msaniiTZ, 2011
"Ole Ole ( Pity Pity),

Nimesimama njia panda mnisikie (I Pity You, That's Is Why I am standing at a busy cross-road to spread message of Salvation)
Kama Yohana alivyopiga kelele watu wakamsikia ( Like John the way he raised his voice to air the message of Salvation and people listened to him)"

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Example #3: Oh Bwana Wangu, Amazing SDA Church, Kitale Kenya [Kenya]



atotinc, Uploaded on Feb 1, 2011
-snip-
According to Google Translate, the English translation for the Swahili words "Bwana Wangu" is "My Lord"

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Example #4: Kizingo SDA Choir Mombasa - Mambo Ni Shwari [Kenya]



Calvince Ochar, Published on Aug 22, 2012

Mambo ni shwari Yesu akiwa Nahodha wa maisha yetu.
-snip-
According to Google Translate, the English translation for the Swahili words "Mambo Ni Shwari" is "Things are calm"

From Google Translate, the English translation for "Mambo ni shwari Yesu akiwa Nahodha wa maisha yetu" is "Things are calm him being captain of our lives."

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Example #5: Victory SDA Church Kisumu,Kenya (Sambaza)[Kenya]

.

Augustine Nyamita, Published on Oct 29, 2012

CHURCH CHOIR BACKGROUND
Victory SDA church was established in April, 1996 as a Sabbath school of Kisumu central SDA church. The venue of worship was 'OFAFA MEMORIAL HALL' Kisumu-between 1996-2003
The establishment of the church saw the inception of victory SDA church choir. Thus Victory SDA church choir is as old as the church itself.

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Example #6: Nifanye Chombo Chako - Amazing Discovery SDA Choir - Kitale, Kenya [Kenya]



GEOFFREY WAFULA, Published on May 17, 2012

AMAZING DISCOVERY SDA CHOIR - KITALE, KENYA

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Example #7: Kinondoni Sda Choir - Agape [Tanzania]



kinondoni SDA, Published on Jun 18, 2012

Kinondoni SDA Chir sings Agape - Gideon Kasozi at the solo....

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Thanks to the composers of these featured songs. Thanks also to those who are quoted in this post, thanks to those choir members and musicians who appeared in these videos and thanks to the publisher of these featured videos.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

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Caribbean Folk Song "Everytime Ah Pass" (with lyrics & video)

Edited by Azizi Powell

This post showcases a version of the Caribbean song "Everytime Ah Pass (You look at me)".

This serves as a companion piece to this earlier pancocojams post about a version of that song:
http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/03/bajan-folk-song-every-time-she-pass.html. The comment given under a video of that song which is included in that post identifies that song as "Sweet Bajan Folk music from the 60's and 70's."

I've seen this song credited online as a Bajan song, a song from Monserrat, and a song from Trinidad & Tobago*

*These nations are given in alphabetical order).

Of course, anybody anywhere can sing any folk song. But from which nation did "Everytime Ah Pass" originate?

Also, is there a known composer for this song? Or does "Everytime Ah Pass" have a known composer, but people still
(erroneously or not) consider it as a folk song (erroneouly if you the definition of folk songs as "old" songs without any known composers).

A commenter on this Caribbean blog http://www.islandmix.com/backchat/f6/whey-de-island-folk-songs-dem-222598/index3.html wrote that this song is "ah trini folk classic"

A commenter on this website http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/limers/message/7748 "[Limers] every time I pass" credits this song to "Olive Walke" and I've seen that same credit given on another Caribbean song website whose link I didn't document.

Another commenter on that same website gives this source for the lyrics that are given above: "Source is from Folk Songs of Trinidad & Tobago by Boosey & Hawkes". The comments to that post make for interesting reading.

**
Here's a comment about Olive Walke from another website http://www.ecaroh.com/folk/la_petite_musicale.htm
"La Petite Musicale is a Caribbean institution. Founded in Trinidad in 1940 by Olive Walke, the choir has defined a style of performance that has become almost inseparable from the music itself. This is a collection of folk numbers ranging from the very familiar (Every Time Ah Pass, Après Carnival La, O Belem, Boykin) to the (to me, at least) more obscure — testimony to the extensive research carried out by the group over the years"...
-snip-
From reading that comment, I'm unsure if the commenter meant that Olive Walke collected those songs or composed those songs.

If you know any information about this song please share it. Thanks in advance.

****
The content of this post is presented for folkloric, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

****
LYRICS: EVERYTIME AH PASS (EVERYTIME I PASS)
Every time ah pass You look at me

Every time ah pass You look at me

Ah gonna tell mah mama do' sen me down dey
You better tell yo' mama do' sen yo' down here
Ah gonna tell me mama do'sen me down dey
You better tell yo' mama do' sen yo ' down here.

Repeat as above, but substitute the following after “Every time ah pass”:
2. You smile at me
3. You wink at me
4. You whistle me
5. You sutin me
6. You teasin me

Source http://silvertorch.com/trinisongs.html Some folk songs of Trinidad & Tobago
-snip-
What does "sutin" mean?

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FEATURED VIDEO: Voices Concert 3 (The Journey of Life, Caribbean Style)



Tavez Aymer, Uploaded on Apr 16, 2009
Songs- Everytime I Pass, Run Buddy Run, Blow Sweet West Indian Breeze & Poor Me
-snip-
In response to a question about where this song is from, the publisher of this video wrote “Montserrat”.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iIqr5Rb_M-Q.

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EDITOR'S COMMENT
This song takes a lighthearted look at what can be a troubling and dangerous experience- males oogling and "cat calling" and/or "wolf whistling" at females at females as those females walk pass by them. It's more the norm than the exception that females don't interpret that attention as compliments.

Click http://www.npr.org/2013/06/12/190993438/catcalling-ignore-it-or-enjoy-it for a discussion that aired on NPR radio about this phenomenon.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT AND THANKS
Thanks to the composer of this song, and thanks to the vocalists and musicians who are featured in this video. My thanks also to those who I quoted and thanks to publisher of this video.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

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Black (Race) Markers In Irving Berlin's "Alexander's Ragtime Band"

Edited by Azizi Powell

This post presents comments about Black* (race) markers in Irving Berlin's 1911 composition "Alexander's Ragtime Band". In the context of this post, by "Black (race) markers" or "code for Black people" I mean songs by White lyricists or other non-Black lyricists which by their title, lyrics, and/or grammar signal that the songs are about Black Americans. Those Black (race) markers include Black vernacular, references to aspects of Black life & culture, use of what is (or what was) considered to be Black grammar, and/or the use of what are (or were) considered to be "Black" names (personal names which are/were associated with Black people).

In and of itself, the use of a particular genre of music that is (or was) considered to be a genre of "Black music" -in this case Irving Berlin's "Alexander's Ragtime Band" - is another way in which that composer, and others, used/use Black (race) code or markers for their [and in their] compositions.

*"Black" here refers to African Americans.

The content of this post is presented for folkloric, historical, sociological, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

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LYRICS: ALEXANDER'S RAGTIME BAND"
(Irving Berlin)

Come on and hear, come on and hear,
It's the best band in the land.
They can play a bugle call like you never heard before,
So natural that you wanna go to war,
That's just the bestest band what am,
Honey lamb.
Come on along, come on along,
Let me take you by the hand
Up to the man, up to the man
Who's the leader of the band.
And if you care to hear the "Swanee River"
Played in ragtime,
Come on and hear, come on and hear,
Alexander's Ragtime Band.

Verse Two:
Oh ma honey, oh ma honey,
There's a fiddle with notes that screeches
Like a chicken, like a chicken,
And the clarinet is a colored pet;
Come and listen, come and listen
To a classical band what's peaches
Come now, somehow,
Better hurry along!

Source: http://www.benandbrad.com/alexander.html

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COMMENTS ABOUT THE USE OF BLACK MARKERS IN "ALEXANDER'S RAGTIME BAND"
From http://www.benandbrad.com/alexander.html "Alexander's Ragtime Band" at One Hundred by Benjamin Sears & Bradford Conner
"March 18, 2011 will be the one hundredth anniversary of Irving Berlin's hit song "Alexander's Ragtime Band." The song's immediate and enduring popularity are now legendary...

Piano rags and the songs called ragtime feature a rhythmic pattern of an accented weak beat, along with a regular short-long-short pattern of notes. Both had their roots in the cakewalk popular in the late nineteenth century. Generally, in the early twentieth century the term "ragtime" covered a wide range of "songs and pieces for instrumental ensembles, particularly marching or concert bands."

One simple definition of "ragtime" was music that "has to do with the Negro."10 Music having "to do with the Negro" is another aspect of how "Alexander's Ragtime Band" was perceived by contemporaries. One genre of popular song in the early twentieth century was the "coon song," a term fortunately now lost.11 Songs dealing with various ethnicities – in particular Irish, Asians, Jews, Negroes, all usually in a derogatory fashion – were common currency in that era. "Alexander's Ragtime Band" has been considered by many to be a coon song, and arguments have been made that 1911 audiences perceived it as such.

"Alexander, Don't You Love Your Baby No More?"

Lawrence Bergreen gives a short history of the name "Alexander" as an ethnic marker (as opposed to the villainous connection made by Woollcott). "The idea behind the song derived from a long line of 'Alexander' songs instigated by Harry Von Tilzer in 1902, and he, in turn, had borrowed the Alexander character from a popular turn-of-the-century minstrel act, Montgomery and Stone. The two white entertainers, who performed in blackface, were sure to get a laugh whenever they started calling each other 'Alexander,' a name their audiences considered too grand for a black man."12
…By Bergreen's definition, audiences in 1911 automatically understood that "Alexander's Ragtime Band" was a coon song by simple virtue of the name Alexander in the title. Berlin had already used that name as a racial marker, in keeping with that cultural norm, when he wrote "Alexander and His Clarinet" in May, 1910, a song clearly about a black protagonist. As Bergreen explains it, "When Berlin and Snyder sat down to write a raunchy 'coon' number entitled 'Alexander and His Clarinet,' they were describing, with the help of numerous double entendres, yet another highly sexed 'coon”"...
-snip-
I consider that entire article to be a very interesting read. Were it not for the limitations imposed by this blog format & the fair market guidelines (which I hope that I've not exceeded), I would have quoted more of that article. Note, for example, that Irving Berlin & other composers - presumably with Berlin's permission, capitolized on the tremendous popularity of "Alexander's Ragtime Band" and composed a number of other "Alexander" songs. Two examples of those songs are "When Alexander Takes His Ragtime Band to France" and "Alexander’s Band Is Back In Dixieland".
-snip-
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander's_Ragtime_Band
"The opening lines establish the African-American context:
Oh ma honey . . . ain't you goin' to the leaderman, the ragged meter man
and:
If you care to hear the Swanee River played in ragtime

The new style included new ways of playing traditional instruments as well:
There's a fiddle with notes that screeches

Like a chicken

And the clarinet is a colored pet"

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A LIST OF & MY COMMENTS ABOUT BLACK MARKERS "ALEXANDER'S RAGTIME BAND"
1. The use of the genre name "Ragtime" [Read comments in the Ben & Brad article whose link is above.]

2. The purposeful use of the name "Alexander"
From the Ben & Brad article quoted above "The two white entertainers, who performed in blackface, were sure to get a laugh whenever they started calling each other 'Alexander,' a name their audiences considered too grand for a black man."

Prior to reading that article by Benjamin Sears & Bradford Conner, I wasn't aware that the name "Alexander" was once considered to be a Black marker. That quote connects the name "Alexander" to the "Zip Coon" trope. The minstrel characteer "Zip Coon" is a Black dandy who was considered laughable because he unsuccessfully tried to imitate "his betters" (meaning White middle class & upper class men) by putting on citified airs. Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2011/10/deconstructing-caricature-of-zip-coon.html for a pancocojams post about Zip Coon.

3. The use of the colloquial "wanna" instead of "want to" in the line "So natural that you wanna go to war"

4 & 5. The use of African American Vernacular English grammar & African American Vernacular English phrasing in the line "That's just the bestest band what am, Honey lamb.

6. The use of the phrase "ma [my] honey

7. The repetition of "ma honey" and other phrases...
It's not just the use of certain phrases, but also the repetition of those phrases in "Alexander's Ragtime Band" which mark those phrases as referring to and being spoken by Black people. The repeated words in that song are "Oh ma honey, oh ma honey", "Come on and hear, come on and hear", "Come on along", "come on along", "Up to the man, up to the man", "Like a chicken, like a chicken" and "Come and listen, come and listen".

Besides being a rhythmic device, it seems to me that the use of repeateed phrases served to reinforce the belittling perceptions that many White folks of that time had about Black people - that they (we) were so simple minded that we needed to repeat what we said.

8. The reference to the song "Swanee River"
This song envokes Southern culture, and Southern culture envokes Black folks. The addition that "Swanee River" was "Played in ragtime", reinforces that Black marker.

9. Using "country" terms and comparisons: "There's a fiddle with notes that screeches Like a chicken, like a chicken,

10. Referring to "the clarinet" as a "colored pet" [Note that "Colored people" was a referent for Black Americans. A "colored pet" can be an oblique way of saying a favorite musical instrument of Colored people.]

11. The use of African American Vernacular English grammar in the line "To a classical band what's peaches". [meaning "that preaches"; that has as much intensity as a Black sermon.]

12. The use of the internal rhyme "Come now, somehow"

13. The use of the colloquial phrase "Better hurry along!"
-snip-
The reference to the bugle call being "so natural" may also be a Black marker in that some White folks considered/consider Black artistic expertise to be the result of natural talent alone and not talent plus skill that comes from wood shedding (diligent practicing).

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FEATURED VIDEO: Alice Faye sings Alexander's Ragtime Band



joehb123, Uploaded on Jan 13, 2012
Check out the shoes she is wearing !!!!!!

Movie by Fox is Alexander's Ragtime Band
and music is by Irving Berlin.

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RELATED LINKS
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Alexanders-Back-From-Dixie-RAG-1917-Black-Americana-/370370978022 "Alexander's Back From Dixie"
This link leads to a drawing of Black drum major marching in front of a large Black brass band which is parading down an American street.

**
http://www.mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=151811&messages=72 "Folklore: Pickaninny in closet"
Hat tip to MorwenEdhelwen1 for providing a link in one of her comments in that discussion thread to the above mentioned article by Benjamin Sears & Bradford Conner about Irving Berlin's "Alexander's Ragtime Band".

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Thanks to the composer of this featured song. Thanks also to those who are quoted in this post, thanks to those performers who appeared in the video and thanks to the publisher of the featured video.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

Read More