Tired and dusty
She sat by the road
Her green spotted uniform
And her sneakers
Outworn
Rebel woman, yeah
She took off her hat
And leaned against a tree
Her rifle by her side
Rough, worn hands
Upon her knee
Rebel woman, yeah
There will be no compensation
It was of your free will
Oh, that you stood on the frontline
Rebel woman
These are the rules of war
Remember that you fought for your people
I know the freedom’s been hard won
It’s been so hard won
But as you weep rebel woman
Remember you were strong
Her corner pocket
Hid a pack of cigars
She took on out and lit lt
And threw the rest into the grass
Rebel woman, yeah
Oh, oh, oh
The bush grew around her
Dense, hot and green
Over the place where once
Her home
Her husband
Her children
Where once they'd been
Rebel woman
Rebel woman, yeah
She sat by the road
Her green spotted uniform
And her sneakers
Outworn
Rebel woman, yeah
She took off her hat
And leaned against a tree
Her rifle by her side
Rough, worn hands
Upon her knee
Rebel woman, yeah
There will be no compensation
It was of your free will
Oh, that you stood on the frontline
Rebel woman
These are the rules of war
Remember that you fought for your people
I know the freedom’s been hard won
It’s been so hard won
But as you weep rebel woman
Remember you were strong
Her corner pocket
Hid a pack of cigars
She took on out and lit lt
And threw the rest into the grass
Rebel woman, yeah
Oh, oh, oh
The bush grew around her
Dense, hot and green
Over the place where once
Her home
Her husband
Her children
Where once they'd been
Rebel woman
Rebel woman, yeah
Contributed by Bernart - 2013/11/7 - 10:20
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Parole e musica di Chiwoniso Maraire
Nell’album intitolato “Rebel Woman”
Una canzone che trae ispirazione da una poesia sul ruolo delle donne durante la guerra d’indipendenza della Zimbabwe, ex Rhodesia, un conflitto feroce e sanguinoso che per 15 anni, dal 1965 al 1979, vide contrapporsi il regime razzista bianco di Ian Smith alle organizzazioni armate guidate da Joshua Nkomo e Robert Mugabe, poi trasformatosi nel padre padrone del paese…
Le condizioni in cui vivevano i combattenti in quegli anni erano davvero difficili, e tanto più per le donne che avevano fatto quella scelta, perché dovevano combattere non solo contro il nemico bianco ma anche contro le restrizioni mentali e culturali della loro stessa società, essendo costrette spesso a perdere tutto, casa, famiglia e affetti…
Chiwoniso Maraire (1976-2013) è stata un’importante cantautrice della sua terra e – come suo padre, l’etnomusicologo Dumisani Maraire – una virtuosa della mbira, un vibrafono o, meglio, un lamellofono che, in diverse varianti, è tipico di molti paesi africani…
Chiwoniso – che in lingua shona vuol dire “Luce” – è stata brava ma sfortunata: l’anno scorso è morto il suo compagno, il musicista Andy Brown, e nel luglio di quest’anno anche lei è mancata a soli 37 anni in seguito ad una probabile infezione polmonare. La coppia ha lasciato orfane le loro due figliolette…