The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #17191   Message #165138
Posted By: Metchosin
19-Jan-00 - 03:51 AM
Thread Name: Lyr ADD: Volga Boatman
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: Volga Boatman
Here are the lyrics to the Russian folksong Dubinushka as well, with thanks to Alexander Balaeff. Had it here so I thought I might as well add it

Here is the song in transliterated Russian:

Mnogo pesen slyhal ya v rodnoj storone,
V nih o gore i radosti peli,
No iz vsex lish' odna v pamyat' vrezalas' mne -
E`to pesnya rabochej arteli:
Chorus> Ex, dubinushka, uhnem!
Ex, zelyonaya, sama pojdyot, sama poydot!
Podyornem, podyornem,
Da uhnem!

Anglichanin, xitrec, chtob rabote pomoch',
Izobryol za mashinoj mashinu.
A rossijskij muzhik, kol' rabotat' nevmoch',
Tak zatyanet rodnuyu "Dubinu".
Chorus>
Ex, dubinushka, uhnem!
Ex, zelyonaya, sama pojdyot, sama poydot!
Podyornem, podyornem,
Da uhnem!

No nastanet pora, i prosnyotsya narod,
Razognyot on moguchuyu spinu.
I na bar, na boyar i na prochix gospod
On podnimet rodnuyu dubinu!
Chorus
Ex, dubinushka, uhnem!
Ex, zelyonaya, sama pojdyot, sama poydot!
Podyornem, podyornem,
Da uhnem!
This can be more or less freely trasnslated as:

I have heard many songs all around the land
They have told me of blithe and of woe.
But my memory holds just one song of them all:
That's the song of the body of workers.

Hey, Dubina, the green one!
Hey, you, help us do the labor hard, the labor hard!
We pull it, and pull it,
And move it!!

Canny Englishmen did tons of gadgets invent
As to do all the labors routinely.
Russian men strive with hands till they're tired to death
Then they sing their hearts with "Dubina"!

Hey, Dubina, the green one!
Hey, you, help us do the labor hard, the labor hard!
We pull it, and pull it,
And move it!!

Oh, new times, come to us! When the workers wake up,
When they straighten the backs from the labor!
When they crush all who suck their strength, their blood,
Crush with their beloved Dubina!

Hey, Dubina, the green one!
Hey, you, help us do the labor hard, the labor hard!
We pull it, and pull it,
And move it!!

"Dubina" (pronounced doo-bee-nah) means "the wooden club". "Dubinushka" (pronounced doo-bee-noosh-kah) is a diminutive form of the same word (note the suffix "-ushk-"). The song is a work song, been sung by the workers doing a hard manual labor, so as to help them to keep the rythm of their collective efforts. Like, the Steveson's "Yo-ho-ho, and the bottle of rum", sung by the seamen moving the capstan.