I love this. I wish it were longer.
But you see, being Israelite means my wife and my kids they packed up and leave me. "Darling", she said, "I was yours to be seen." Poor me, the Israelite.
Oh, oh, the Israelites.
Is is facing the facts of life as they are. Not complaining. No. Describing. And that is why I like this so much. I want him to tell more of his story.
5 comments:
The lyrics. Add you own Ska improvising.
Get up in the morning, slaving for bread, sir,
so that every mouth can be fed.
Poor me, the Israelite. Aah.
Get up in the morning, slaving for bread, sir,
So that every mouth can be fed.
Poor me, the Israelite. Aah.
My wife and my kids, they are packed up and leave me.
Darling, she said, I was yours to receive.
Poor me, the Israelite. Aah.
Shirt them a-tear up, trousers are gone.
I don't want to end up like Bonnie and Clyde.
Poor me, the Israelite. Aah.
After a storm there must be a calm.
They catch me in the farm. You sound the alarm.
Poor me, the Israelite. Aah.
Poor me, the Israelite.
I wonder who I'm working for.
Poor me, Israelite,
I look a-down and out, sir
Desmond Dekker's Wiki bio is an interesting read, mon.
A man ahead of his time..
I'm quite fond of that song, as well, but I hear it as a musical expression of a set of grievances, or perhaps a single, overarching grievance, if you'd prefer. We can agree to disagree about whether there's an important difference between a complaint and a lament.
I listened to a fair amount of reggae back in the day. There was a quasi-biblical overlay to much of it. Bunny Wailer made it pretty express and here is just one EXAMPLE of many.
Doctrinally impecceble? Hardly. But I think it safe to say that they thought of themselves as put upon more-or-less the same as the ancient Hebrews of the Old Testament.
That said, I make no claim to being an expert on the subject. And as proof of the limits of my knowledge of the union of reggae and the Old Testament, I can recall no catchy dance tune whatsoever about slaughtering all of the Midianites and taking their virgins for sex slaves.
I think they regard themselves the actual real descendants of authentic Israelites. The original Jews. From a slave-mentality, I think.
I get this from comments on YouTube.
And I get it from some black perception of Egyptian history. I have no idea where they get such certainties. There actually were Egyptian pharaohs from Kush. Their features are quite clearly depicted on their statuary and in their art. But Cleopatra was obviously Greek. Yet I still hear insistences that Cleopatra was black. There were several Cleopatras, all Greek. And I think, when I hear that, "whatever makes you feel good."
And I also knew personally a black woman with a perfect Egyptian profile, and I mean perfect.
Ethiopians believe they are keepers of ark of covenant.
There were twelve Jewish tribes. I imagine they could have been distinguished somewhat by race. I know there is a real connection somehow, but I haven't studied the subject.
@Chip Ahoy:
The Rastafarians (also from Jamaica) also claim an Ethiopian - Hebrew background.
Wiki article.
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