The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #138570 Message #3172113
Posted By: Q (Frank Staplin)
17-Jun-11 - 08:27 PM
Thread Name: Lyr Add: Songs from Barbados
Subject: Lyr Add: CONRAD (trad Barbados)
Lyr. Add: CONRAD
Traditional
De mother-in-law said to de son-in-law,
'Wha' de hell it could be
Dat ev'ry fo'day mornin'
A man in Della Belly'.
Chorus:-
Oh Conrad! Oh Conrad!
Conrad come out de woman belly an' he gone to Trinidad.
Tra la-la-la-la, Tra la-la-la,
Conrad come out de woman belly an' he gone to Trinidad.
Lyr. Add: CONRAD
Merrymen version.
Chorus:-
Oh me mama, Oh me papa,
Big confusion down dey,
Conrad find heself in Paynes Bay.
1
Conrad lan' in Paynes Bay
Not a boat bring him dey, O Lawd!
Conrad come by duppy air-plane
Flyin' 'bout in de air.
One bright Friday mornin',
Three days after he la', O yes,
Conrad said 'I come from Woodstock,
Sent by the obeah man.'
2
Somebody swear to me,
A 'duppy crab' look like he,
Conrad is a duppy,
Fright'nin' ev'ry body.
Conrad is a coolie,
A good lookin' man is he,
Conrad is a coolie,
Foolin' ev'ry body.
3
Angie she ask Byron,
'What de hell dis could be
Ev'ry fo'-day mornin'
A man inside Doris Belly'.
Conrad called fuh cou-cou,
with Indian dressing they say,
An' a pint of strong white rum
Dat Phillips sell in Paynes Bay.
4
Took Doris to the X-ray
To see what happen wid she-
When de doctor went to examine
Conrad peep out at he.
Duppy- evil spirit which inhabits bellies.
Duppy crab- white land crab.
Coolie- applied to Asiatic immigrants, often a term of contempt. Some more recent East Indian immigrants are itinerant traders in cloth and clothing. The term also used to describe black people with jet-black curly hair ('good hair') rather than the normal kinky hair ('bad' hair).
Cou-cou- cornmeal and okra
Indian dressing- curry?
Musical score with chords.
The original song is believed to date from the 1935-1940 era. The Merrymen version from around 1966 and is more calypso in form.
T. Marshall, P. McGeary, Grace Thompson, 1981 and reprints, Folk Songs of Barbados, Ian Randle Publishers, Kingston, Jamaica.