Bans a Killin - Louise Bennett

So yuh a de man me hear bout! Ah yuh dem seh dah teck Whole heap a English oat seh datyuh gwine kill dialec! Meck me get it straight, mas Charlie, For me no quite understand – Yuh gwine kill all English dialec Or jus Jamaica one? Ef yuh dah equal up wid English Language, den wha meck Yuh gwine go feel inferior when It come to dialec? Ef yuh cyaan sing 'Linstead Market' An 'Water come a me yeye’ Yuh wi haffi tap sing 'Auld lang syne’ An ‘Comin through de rye'. Dah language weh yuh proud a, Weh yuh honour an respec – Po Mas Charlie, yuh no know se Dat it spring from dialec! Dat dem start fi try tun language From de fourteen century - Five hundred years gawn an dem got More dialec dan we! Yuh wi haffi kill de Lancashire, De Yorkshire, de Cockney, De broad Scotch and de Irish brogue Before yuh start kill me! Yuh wi haffi get de Oxford Book A English Verse, an tear Out Chaucer, Burns, Lady Grizelle An plenty a Shakespeare! When yuh done kill 'wit' an 'humour', When yuh kill 'variety', Yuh wi haffi fine a way fi kill Originality! An mine how yuh dah read dem English Book deh pon yuh shelf, For ef yuh drop a 'h' yuh mighta Haffi kill yuhself!

 Sonny's Lettah
By: Linton Kwesi Johnson 

From Brixton Prison, Jebb Avenue London S.W. 2 Inglan

Dear mama

good day

I hope that when these few lines reach you they may

find you in the best of health

I doun know how to tell ya dis

for I did mek a solemn promise

to tek care a lickle Jim

an try mi bes fi look out fi him 

mama, I really did try mi bes

but none a di less

sorry fi tell ya seh, poor lickle Jim get arres 

it was de miggle a di rush hour

hevrybody jus a hustle and a bustle

to go home fi dem evenin shower

mi an Jim stan up waitin pon a bus

not causin no fuss

when all of a sudden a police van pull up

out jump tree policemen

de whole a dem carryin baton

dem walk straight up to me and Jim

one a dem hold on to Jim

seh dem tekin him in

Jim tell him fi leggo a him

for him nah do nutt'n

and 'im nah t'ief, not even a but'n

Jim start to wriggle

de police start to giggle 

mama, mek I tell you wa dem do to Jim?

mek I tell you wa dem do to 'im? 

Dem thump him him in him belly and it turn to jelly

Dem lick 'im pon 'im back and 'im rib get pop

Dem thump him pon him head but it tough like lead

Dem kick 'im in 'im seed and it started to bleed 

Mama, I jus couldn't stan up deh, nah do nuttin' 

So mi jook one in him eye and him started fi cry

me thump him pon him mout and him started fi shout

me kick him pon him shin so him started fi spin

me hit him pon him chin an him drop pon a bin

- an crash, an dead 

More policman come dung

dem beat me to the grung

dem charge Jim fi sus 

dem charge mi fi murdah 

mama, doan fret

doan get depress an downhearted

be of good courage

till I hear from you

I remain

Your son,
Sonny

From Brixton Prison

Jamaican Poems

Social Climbing- by Louise Bennett

Shet up yuh mout an tap de nize!
Yu tink yuh grievance strong
Because yuh never get de chance
Fi jine de dress-puss gang?

Stop jump an kick an bawl an gwaan
Like Chigger-fly dah bite yuh
Yuh hooda tun big poppy show
Ef dem did go invite yuh!

For yuh no got no scissors-tail-
Coat an top hat fi wear,
An de waistcoat grampa dead lef
Nyamy-nyamy up an tear!

Moresoever, koo yuh head top
How it shape like big seed pear!
Wha yu tink yuh hooda favour
Eena dem-deh kine a gear?
A no piaw-piaw tings did outa
Big church Sunday mawnin gawn.
Me never see more nose-veil
An han-stockin from me bawn!

Church yard wasa play dress circle.
It was jus like dress parade --
More plastic boot an jersey frock!
More embroidery an braid!

All de mout-dem dah put awn de
scritchy-scrutchy high class walk!
All de foot-dem dah try out de
Scripsy-scroopsy high class walk!

When de breeze dah meck fi blow weh hat,
Gloves han pon head dah cotch it;
Nose veil dah tickle up nose, an
Glove finger-dem dah scratch it!

Yuh waan see Matty Walla-lef
An Mary Halfa-brick
Wid Sweetie Charles dah roll him eye
An wheel him walkin stick!

So stop shoot off yuh mout bout bout how
Parson did out fi spite yuh,
An calm yuhself an praise de Lawd
Dem never did invite yuh!
Ay ya yie!

Patois Thursdays

Back to Africa - By Louise Bennett

Back to Africa, Miss Mattie?
You no know wha you dah seh?
You haf fe come from somewhe fus
Before you go back deh!

Me know say dat you great great great
Granma was African,
But Mattie, doan you great great great
Granpa was Englishman?

Den you great granmader fader
By you fader side was Jew?
An you granpa by you mader side
Was Frenchie parlez-vous?

But de balance a you family,
You whole generation,
Oonoo all barn dung a Bun Grung-
Oonoo all is Jamaican!

Den is weh you gwine, Miss Mattie?
Oh, you view de countenance,
An between you an de Africans
Is great resemblance!

Ascorden to dat, all dem blue-yeye
White American
Who-fa great granpa was Englishman
Mus go back a Englan!

What a debil of a bump-an-bore,
Rig-jig an palam-pam
Ef de whole worl start fe go back
Whe dem great granpa come from!

Ef a hard time you dah run from
Tek you chance! But Mattie, do
Sure a whe you come from so you got
Somewhe fe come back to!

Go a foreign, seek you fortune,
But no tell nobody say
You dah go fe seek you homelan,
For a right deh so you deh!

Patois Thursdays.

Original: Trench Town Shock
By: Valerie Bloom

Waia, Miss May, trouble dey yah,
Ban yuh belly, Missis, do.
Mi Ha' one terrible piece o' news
An mi sarry fi sey it consarn yuh.

Yuh know yuh secon' or t'ird cousin?
Yuh great-aunt Edith Fred?
Im pick up imse'f gawn a pickcha show,
An police shoot im dead.

But a di bwoy own fault yah mah,
For im go out o' in way
Fi gawn fas' wid police-man,
At leas' a soh dem sey.

Dem sey im a creep oba di teata fence,
Dem halla 'who go deh?'
De bwoy dis chap one bad wud mah,
At leas' a soh dem sey.

De police sey 'tap or we opin fiah'.
But yuh know ow di bwoy stay,
Im gallop back come attack dem,
At leas' a soh dem sey.

Still, nutten woulda come from ee,
But what yuh tink, Miss May?
Di bwoy no pull out lang knife mah!
At leas' a soh dem sey.

Dem try fi aim afta im foot
But im head get een di way,
Di bullit go 'traight through im brain,
At leas' a soh dem sey.

Dry yuh yeye, mah, mi know ee hat,
But ee happen ebery day,
Knife-man always attack armed police
At leas' a soh dem sey

About Valerie Bloom

Valerie was born and grew up in Clarendon, Jamaica. Caribbean life and culture have shaped or influenced a great deal of her writing.

She was enchanted with literature from a very early age; her work first entered the public arena when she won a national competition, and as a result saw her poem 'Mek ah ketch har' form part of the national festival.

Valerie moved to England in 1979. Here she began writing and performing regularly, having tried her hand as a librarian, arts officer and even steel band instructor! Her work has been published in over 200 anthologies, including GCSE and A-Level syllabi. She has several poetry books and two novels for young people, 'Surprising Joy' and 'The Tribe', which was published in 2007.

As well as running writing workshops and courses in schools and elsewhere, Valerie performs across the country and internationally; she has appeared everywhere from local libraries to the Royal Albert Hall. She is also a familiar voice on television and radio - she recently produced a three part documentary, 'Island Voices' for BBC Radio 4.

Valerie lives with her family in Kent, and is inspired by everything around her, from the late September sunshine to the antics of her husband and children.

http://www.valbloom.info/page2.htm

De Jamaican Pilot

All passengers are in the gate area waiting anxiously to
board their
Air Jamaica flight to the UK . The flight crew are now
about to
board, with the Co-pilot arriving. He is impeccably dressed
in his uniform,
wearing dark glasses and with a white cane finding his way
to the
gate. The airline flight attendants explain to the
passengers, that
although he is blind, he is one of the best co-pilots in
the
company. A few moments later, the Pilot arrives. He
too is impeccably dressed in his uniform, dark glasses
and a white cane, and he is being assisted by two
flight attendants. The Representative in charge at the

waiting area assures the passengers that
although the Pilot is blind, he is the best pilot in
the company, and together with the Co-pilot, they are the
most experienced team in the cockpit.
With everyone on board, the plane is now ready to take
to the runway, ready to take its turn. Now on the
runway, the Air Jamaica flight increases its
speed ready for take off...more and more the speed is
increasing. Still continuing down the runway the plane does
not take
off; it continues to run but stays on the ground.
By this time the passengers are terrified as they all
realize that the end of the runway is getting
closer and closer, and in an explosion of general
hysteria, all of the passengers start screaming
as if they are possessed. At that very moment the
plane miraculously
lifts off..
The Pilot calmly turns to the Co-pilot and says:
"Any day de passenger dem no scream....we salt to
rass!!!

Dry-Foot Bwoy, by Miss Lou

Wha wrong wid Mary dry-foot bwoy?
Dem gal got him fi mock,
An when me meet him tarra night
De bwoy gi me a shock!
Me tell him seh him auntie an
Him cousin dem sen howdy
An ask him how him getting awn.
Him seh, 'Oh, jolley,jolleyl'

Me start fi feel so sorry fi
De po bad-lucky soul,
Me tink him come a foreign lan
Come ketch bad foreign cole!
Me tink him got a bad sore-troat,
But as him chat-chat gwan

Me fine out seh is foreign twang
De bwoy wasa put awn!
For me notice dat him answer
To nearly all me seh
Was 'Actually', 'What', 'Oh deah!'
An all dem sinting deh.

Me gi a joker de gal dem laugh;
But hear de bwoy, 'Haw-haw!
I'm sure you got that bally-dash
Out of the cinema!'

Same time me laas me temper, an
Me holler, 'Bwoy, kirout!
No chat to me wid no hot pittata
Eena yuh mout!'

Him tan up like him stunted, den
Hear him no, 'How siiley!
I don't think that I really
Understand you, actually.'

Me seh, 'Yuh understan me, yaw!
No yuh name Cudjoe Scoop?
Always visit Nana kitchen an
Gi laugh fi gungoo soup!

'An now all yuh can seh is "actually"?
Bwoy, but tap!
Wha happen to dem sweet Jamaica
joke yuh use fi pop?'
Him get bex and walk tru de door,
Him head eena de air;

De gal-dem bawl out affa him,
'Not going? What! Oh deah!'
An from dat night till tedeh, mah,
Dem all got him fi mock.
Miss Mary dry-foot bwoy!
Cyaan get over de shock!

 

No Lickle Twang - Louise Bennett

Me glad fi see yuh come back, bwoy,

But lawd, yuh let me dung

Me shame a yuh so till all a

Me proudness drop a grung.

Yuh mean yuh go dah Merica

An spen six whole mont deh,

An come back not a piece better

Dan how yuh did go weh?

Bwoy, yuh no shame? Is so yuh come?

After yuh tan so lang!

Not even lickle language, bwoy?

Not even lickle twang?

An yuh sister what work ongle

One week wid Merican

She talk so nice now dat we have

De jooce fi understan?

Bwoy, yuh couldn improve yuhself!

An yuh get so much pay?

Yuh spen six mont a foreign, an

Come back ugly same way?

Not even a drapes trousiz, or

A pass de riddim coat?

Bwoy, not even a gole teet or

A gole chain roun yuh troat?

Suppose me laas me pass go introjooce

Yuh to a stranger

As me lamented son what lately

Come from Merica!

Dem hooda laugh after me, bwoy!

Me couldn tell dem so!

Dem hooda seh me lie, yuh wasa

Spen time back a Mocho!

No back-answer me, bwoy - yuh talk

Too bad! Shet up yuh mout!

Ah doan know how yuh an yuh puppa

Gwine to meck it out.

Ef yuh waan please him, meck him tink

Yuh bring back someting new.

Yuh always call him 'Pa' - dis evenin

When him comes seh 'Poo’.

Cuss Cuss

CUSS-CUSS by LOUISE BENNETT COVERLY


Gwan gal yuh fava teggereg,
Ah wey yuh gwine goh do?
Yuh an yuh boogooyagga fren
Dem tink me fraid o' yuh?

Goh wey, yuh fava heng-pon-nail,
Is me yuh want fe trace?
Me is jus de one fi teck me han
An leggo pon yuh face.

Fe me han noh jine chuch an me naw
Pay licen fe me mout',
Me wi tell yuh bout yuh--se yah
Gal noh badda get me out.

Me noh know is wat kine o' chu'ch
Fe yuh mout' coulda jine,
Yuh lip dem heng dung lacka wen
Mule kean meck up him mine.

Gwan, me an yuh noh combolo,
Yuh foot shapeless an lang
Like smaddy stan far fiing dem awn
An meck dem heng awn wrang.

Fe yuh foot fava capital K,
Koo pon yuh two nose-hole!
Dem dis big an open out like
Miss Tane outsize fish bowl.

Goh wey, yuh kean bwile sof egg
But still yuh want get ring,
Noh man na gwine fe married yuh
Wen yuh kean do a ting.

Is grudge yuh grudgeful, me kean cook
But me ben goh dah good school,
Me got intelligency yuh
Illiterated fool !

Me sorry fe de man yuh get
De po' ting hooden nyam
When you ackebus him salt-fish
An bwilivous him yam.

Dutty Tough - Louise Bennett

Sun a shine but tings no bright;
Doah pot a bwile, bickle no nuff;
River flood but water scarce, yawl
Rain a fall but dutty tough.

Tings so bad dat nowadays when
Yuh ask smaddy how dem do
Dem fraid yuh tek it tell dem back,
So dem no answer yuh.

No care omuch we dah work fa
Hard-time still een we shut;
We dah fight, Hard-time a beat we,
Dem might raise we wages, but

One poun gawn awn pon we pay, an
We no feel no merriment
For ten poun gawn pon we food
An ten pound pon we rent!

Saltfish gawn up, mackerel gawn up.
Pork en beef gawn up,
An when rice and butter ready
Dem just go pon holiday!

Claht, boot, pin an needle gawn up'
Ice, bread, taxes, water-rate
Kersene ile, gasolene, gawn up;
An de poun devaluate.

De price of bread gawn up so high
Dat we haffi agree
Fi cut we yeye pon bred an all
Tun dumplin refugee

An all dem marga smaddy weh
Dah gwan like fat is sin
All dem-deh weh dah fas wid me
Ah lef dem to dumpling!

Sun a shine an pot a bwile, but
Things no bright, bickle no nuff
Rain a fall, river dah flood, but,
Water scarce and dutty tough

Anancy and the lion

Bredda Lion had a new bad habit that he felt was his right an privilege, being the most feared in the village. He developed the biggest belch in the whole village. Every time he ate and went to sleep at night, he would belch really loud all night and wake up the rest of the village.
Anancy loved to sleep. Next to food sleep was the next thing he loved in the whole world. Since Lion had developed this habit he has not gotten one night's sleep. Last night was the worst. Lion had belched every hour on the hour, since 8 pm that night. Anancy’s eyes were blood shot red and he was angry.

He visited Bredda Rabbit and Bredda Snake to see how they were holding up. "Bredda Rabbit, how yuh doing man?" asked Anancy, as he approached Bredda Rabbit outside his home.
"Mi doing just fine." replied Bredda Rabbit.
"Yuh getting any sleep since Lion start dem big belchin?" asked Bredda Anancy.
"Yeah man, nuff sleep since mi buy dem ear muffs whey Bredda Snake tell me bout down a shop." he replied.
"Ear muffs!" Anancy exclamated.
"Yes dem block out every sound, whey yuh nuh go buy some?" Bredda Rabbit explained.
"Is true." Anancy replied.
So he set off down to Mr. Lee's shop and bought him some ear muffs.
That night around 7:45 pm he put on the ear muffs and went to bed.A large "Buuuurrrrrrrrrrp" sound awoke Anancy.

"But wait," he thought to himself "dem ear muffs nah work." You see, his spider senses were just as sensitive as his ears and could pick up the sound. The others in the village did not have this type of sense so the earmuff worked for them. So again Anancy had a sleepless night.
The next morning he was very angry. He was so angry he walked over to Bredda Lion’s home to talk to him.

Anancy pleaded "Bredda Lion, Mi a beg yuh please stop de all nite belching. Mi cyaan get nuh sleep a nite."
"Yuh mad Anancy? A mi run tings in dis village, an mi will stop when mi feel like." Bredda Lion replied.
"But how yuh so bad mind. Nobady cyaan sleep wid all dat noise yuh a mek." said Anancy.
"Is ongle yuh cyaan sleep. No one else is complaining." replied Bredda Lion.
Anancy was getting really upset.
"Mind yuh belch out all the food you eat for the day while you sleeping." Anancy said in anger.
"Nuh mek me dead wid laff. Mi neva hear nuttin go suh before in my life. Gwan yuh way, Anancy" Bredda Lion replied with a big smile.

At that very moment Anancy had a plan. He secretly started to follow Bredda Lion for the whole day, watching what he was eating. He took a big bag with some containers with him. Every meal that Bredda Lion had, he collected some of the same thing in a container.
That night at 8:00pm, Bredda Anancy snuck into Bredda Lion's house under the bed. He waited to hear the first burp.
"Burrrrrrp"
He snuck from under the bed and quietly placed a mixture of all the meals beside Bredda Lion’s mouth.

Bredda Lion had a sensitive nose. The smell of the food mixture awoke him. He jumped out of the bed and screamed, "Lawd have mercy, all de food me eat come right back up. Whey me ago do? If this continue me will not be able to full mi stomach. I know what I will do. I will eat this mixture." So he ate the food and went back to sleep.
" Buuurrrp"

Again Anancy put some more food by his mouth. And again Lion woke up and ate the food.
This continued four times. On the fourth time he put food by his mouth, Anancy snuck out of Bredda Lion’s bedroom window. He crawled under the cellar to listen.
Bredda Lion ate the food but this time did not go back to sleep.
"Lawd mi belly a hat mi. Mi nuh know ef I can continue this belching business, cah mi cyaan sleep." Bredda Lion whispered under his breath. He had eaten so much food that he was in pain. He was unable to go back to sleep.
Anancy smiled and walked back home.
This is why lions eat big meals but less frequently. Jack Mandora, mi tell yuh no lie.

http://www.jamaicans.com/culture/anansi/anancy_intro.shtml

PATOIS THURSDAYS.....Jamaican poems, stories and phrases

Mout-amassi - Louise Bennett

Mout-amassi Liza, yuh no
Hear yuh mumma dah call yuh?
Meck yuh mout so galang plang?
Hear yuh mumma duh call yuh!
Yuh mout so fly, yuh mils tell lie.
So member seh me dah warn yuh:
Liza, kibba yuh mout!

De way people wash dem mout pon yuh
Yuh naw go strive, missis;
Far everywhe yuh tun yuh hear
Seh Liza do dat an dis.
Yuh hear dat Liza chat to much,
Yuh hear dat Liza seh,
Yuh hear seh dat is Liza meck
Mass Tom black puss run weh.
Liza, kibba yuh mout!

Yuh meck Miss hlattie husban put
Har sinting outa door,
Yuh meck Sam do fi purpose
An hat up Jem sore toe.
Yuh can gwan chat, but doan figat
Yuh gwine reap what yuh sow.
Liza, kibba yuh mout!

Counta yuh, Dan set him grampa
Duppy pon Sta Rose,
An counta yuh Jane teck grudgeful
An pwile up Fan new clothes;
De way yuh chat yuh meck Jinat
Go obeah Laura nose.
Liza, kibba yuh mout!

Yuh meck dem lock up Tayma fi
So sen her bwoy a school;
Yuh meck dem lock up Geral,
an It tun him mumma fool!
Yuh meck dem bring up Dora,
seh She overwork her mule.
Liza, kibba yuh mout!

Dem mussa put yuh so, missis-
Is weh yuh dah go do?
From me bawn me never see
Nobody chat lacka yuh.
Me hear Miss Della she dah swear
Fi tun yuh mout backa yuh.
Liza Kiba yuh mout!


Interpretation of the poem:

"Mout -amassi" is basically about a girl name Liza who cannot seem to keep her mouth shut. Chatter is the order of her day and anything that happens she informs. She is disgustingly rude and pushes her nose in things that really does not concern her at all.

About Louise Bennett

Louise Bennett was a Jamaican poet and cultural icon. She was born on September 7, 1919, and has been described by many as Jamaica's leading comedienne and the "only poet who has really hit the truth about her society through its own language".

Through her poems in Jamaican patois, she not only raised the dialect of the Jamaican folk to an art level but also captured all the spontaneity of the expression of Jamaicans' joys and sorrows, their ready, poignant and even wicked wit, their religion and their philosophy of life.

Her first dialect poem was written when she was fourteen years old. A British Council Scholarship took her to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, where she studied in the late 1940s. After graduation, she worked with repertory companies in Coventry, Huddersfield and Amersham as well as in intimate revues all over England

In 1974, she was awarded the Order of Jamaica. She also received the Norman Manley Award for Excellence in the arts and a honorary Doctor of Letters degree from the University of West Indies. In 2001, she was made a Member of the Order of Merit for her contribution to the development of Jamaican Arts and Culture. She died on July 26, 2006, in Toronto, Canada.



http://www.loiusebennett.com/