Say, darkies, hab you seen de massa, wid de muffstash (1) on his face,
Go long de road some time dis mornin', like he gwine to leab de place?
He seen a smoke way up de ribber, whar de Lincoln gunboats lay;
He took his hat, and lef' berry sudden, and I spec' he's run away!
De massa run, Ha, Ha! De darkey stay, Ho, Ho!
It mus' be now de kindom coming, an' de year ob Jubilo!
He six foot one way, two foot tudder, and he weigh tree hundred pound,
His coat so big, he couldn't pay the tailor, an' it won't go halfway round.
He drill so much dey call him Captain, an' he got so drefful tanned,
I spec' he try an' fool dem Yankees for to tink he's contraband.
De massa run, Ha, Ha! De darkey stay, Ho, Ho!
It mus' be now de kindom coming, an' de year ob Jubilo!
De darkeys feel so lonesome libbing in de loghouse on de lawn,
Dey move dar tings into massa's parlor for to keep it while he's gone.
Dar's wine an' cider in de kitchen, an' de darkeys dey'll have some;
I s'pose dey'll all be cornfiscated when de Lincoln soldiers come.
De massa run, Ha, Ha! De darkey stay, Ho, Ho!
It mus' be now de kindom coming, an' de year ob Jubilo!
De obserseer he make us trouble, an' he dribe us round a spell;
We lock him up in de smokehouse cellar, wid de key trown in de well.
De whip is lost, de han'cuff broken, but de massa'll hab his pay;
He's ole enough, big enough, ought to known better dan to went an' run away.
De massa run, Ha, Ha! De darkey stay, Ho, Ho!
It mus' be now de kindom coming, an' de year ob Jubilo!
Go long de road some time dis mornin', like he gwine to leab de place?
He seen a smoke way up de ribber, whar de Lincoln gunboats lay;
He took his hat, and lef' berry sudden, and I spec' he's run away!
De massa run, Ha, Ha! De darkey stay, Ho, Ho!
It mus' be now de kindom coming, an' de year ob Jubilo!
He six foot one way, two foot tudder, and he weigh tree hundred pound,
His coat so big, he couldn't pay the tailor, an' it won't go halfway round.
He drill so much dey call him Captain, an' he got so drefful tanned,
I spec' he try an' fool dem Yankees for to tink he's contraband.
De massa run, Ha, Ha! De darkey stay, Ho, Ho!
It mus' be now de kindom coming, an' de year ob Jubilo!
De darkeys feel so lonesome libbing in de loghouse on de lawn,
Dey move dar tings into massa's parlor for to keep it while he's gone.
Dar's wine an' cider in de kitchen, an' de darkeys dey'll have some;
I s'pose dey'll all be cornfiscated when de Lincoln soldiers come.
De massa run, Ha, Ha! De darkey stay, Ho, Ho!
It mus' be now de kindom coming, an' de year ob Jubilo!
De obserseer he make us trouble, an' he dribe us round a spell;
We lock him up in de smokehouse cellar, wid de key trown in de well.
De whip is lost, de han'cuff broken, but de massa'll hab his pay;
He's ole enough, big enough, ought to known better dan to went an' run away.
De massa run, Ha, Ha! De darkey stay, Ho, Ho!
It mus' be now de kindom coming, an' de year ob Jubilo!
Notes
(1) the "Muffstash" (mustache) was an attempt by "ol' Massa to disguise himself in order to escape the "yankee" soldiers.
(1) the "Muffstash" (mustache) was an attempt by "ol' Massa to disguise himself in order to escape the "yankee" soldiers.
inviata da giorgio - 12/12/2010 - 15:14
Aggiornata la pagina con l'introduzione di Bartleby visto che la canzone era già stata inviata da Giorgio.
CCG/AWS Staff - 4/5/2011 - 22:29
Alla luce della nota di Giorgio, vedo che nel mio tentativo di traduzione di una strofa della canzone c'è un errore: "preoccupato" era assolutamente arbitrario, non avevo capito il senso... Allora tradurrei:
"Dite, negri, avete visto il padrone? Si è fatto crescere i baffi
E va su e giù per la strada questa mattina, come se avesse intenzione di squagliarsela..."
"Dite, negri, avete visto il padrone? Si è fatto crescere i baffi
E va su e giù per la strada questa mattina, come se avesse intenzione di squagliarsela..."
Bartleby - 5/5/2011 - 10:35
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Lyrics & Music by Henry Clay Work
"Let me refer you to the song, "KINGDOM COMING, The year of the Jubilo", written by Henry Clay Work whose father spent some time in prison for helping thousands, YES THOUSANDS of slaves to freedom on the underground railway. Mr. Clay was a "fire-breathing dragon" of an abolitionist. As far as I can remember them, the words to "Kingdom Coming", which he deliberately wrote in "Darky dialect".
By the way, he was from Hartford, born in Middletown, Connecticut.."
Non ci si lasci ingannare dall’uso da parte dell’autore di un ridicolo inglese “da negri”: Henry Clay Work era – come tutta la sua famiglia – un fervente abolizionista. La sua casa nel Connecticut divenne una tappa sull’Underground Railroad, il cammino segreto lungo il quale gli schiavi neri fuggivano verso gli stati del nord e verso il Canada. Il padre di Henry Clay Work fu anche imprigionato per aver nascosto ed aiutato neri in fuga dalla schiavitù.
In questa canzone – nota anche con il titolo “Year of Jubilo” – un nero racconta del giorno più bello della sua vita, quello in cui il padrone schiavista, alla vista delle navi da guerra di Lincoln (i cosiddetti “river monitors” impiegati dagli Stati Uniti nelle prime fasi della Mississippi River Campaign), fuggì di corsa:
“Dite, negri, avete visto il padrone preoccupato
Andare su e giù per la strada questa mattina, come se avesse intenzione di squagliarsela?
Ha visto del fumo alzarsi verso il fiume, là dove stanno le navi da guerra di Lincoln;
Poi ha preso il cappello e se n’è andato di gran corsa, e credo proprio che sia scappato!
Il padrone che scappa via, ah-ah! E il negro che rimane, oh-oh!
Deve essere l’avvento del Regno, l’Anno Santo!”