This pancocojams post showcases the song "Rivers Of Babylon" that was composed in 1970 by two members of the Jamaican Rastafarian Reggae trio The Melodians.
Information about and lyrics for that song are included in this post along with a sound file of The Melodians performing "Rivers Of Babylon" and a video of the German based group "Boney M" performing a cover of that song.
The content of this post is presented for cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to The Melodians for their musical legacy. Thanks also to Boney M for their musical legacy and thanks to all those who are quoted in this post. Thanks also to the publishers of these examples on YouTube.
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Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/02/jamaican-songs-about-river-jordan-part-i.html for this closely related 2013 pancocojams post entitled "Jamaican Songs About The River Jordan (Part I)". The link to Part II of that pancocojams series is found near the beginning of that post.
Also, click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2020/01/why-zion-and-mt-zion-are-frequently.html for a 2020 pancocojams post entitled "Why "Zion" And "Mt. Zion" Are Frequently Used In Names Of Black (African American) Churches".
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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SONG "RIVERS OF BABYLON"
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rivers_of_Babylon
"Rivers of Babylon" is a Rastafari song written and recorded by Brent Dowe and Trevor McNaughton of the Jamaican reggae group The Melodians in 1970. The lyrics are adapted from the texts of Psalms 19 and 137 in the Hebrew Bible. The Melodians' original version of the song appeared on the soundtrack album for the 1972 movie The Harder They Come, which made it internationally known.
The song was popularized in Europe by the 1978 Boney M. cover version, which was awarded a platinum disc and is one of the top-ten all-time best-selling singles in the UK. The B-side of the single, "Brown Girl in the Ring", also became a hit.
Background
Biblical psalms
The song is based on the Biblical Psalm 137:1-4, a hymn expressing the lamentations of the Jewish people in exile following the Babylonian conquest of Jerusalem in 586 BC:[1] Previously the Kingdom of Judah, after being united under Kings David and Solomon, had been split in two, with the Kingdom of Israel in the north, conquered by the Assyrians in 722 BC which caused the dispersion of 10 of the 12 tribes of Israel. The southern Kingdom of Judah (hence the name Jews), home of the tribe of Judah and part of the tribe of Levi, was free from foreign domination until the Babylonian conquest to which Rivers of Babylon refers.
By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion ... They carried us away in captivity requiring of us a song ... Now how shall we sing the LORD's song in a strange land?
The namesake rivers of Babylon (in present-day Iraq) are the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. The song also has words from Psalm 19:14:[2]
Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight...
[...]
Rastafari
In the Rastafarian faith, the term "Babylon" is used for any governmental system which is either oppressive or unjust. In Jamaica, Rastafarians also use "Babylon" to refer to the police, often seen as a source of oppression because they arrest members for the use of marijuana (which is sacramental for Rastafarians). Therefore, "By the rivers of Babylon" refers to living in a repressive society and the longing for freedom, just like the Israelites in captivity. Rastafarians also identify themselves as belonging to the Twelve Tribes of Israel. The original version specifically refers to Rastafarian belief in Haile Selassie, by changing references to "the Lord" in the Biblical text to "Far-I" and "King Alpha". Both terms refer to Selassie (Selassie's wife Menen Asfaw is known as Queen Omega).[3] In addition, the term "the wicked" replaces the neutral "they" of Psalm 137 in the line "they that carried us away captive required of us a song...".[4] According to David Stowe,
Brent Dowe, the lead singer of the Melodians, told Kenneth Bilby that he had adapted Psalm 137 to the new reggae style because he wanted to increase the public's consciousness of the growing Rastafarian movement and its calls for black liberation and social justice. Like the Afro-Protestant Revival services, traditional Rastafarian worship often included psalm singing and hymn singing, and Rastas typically modified the words to fit their own spiritual conceptions; Psalm 137 was among their sacred chants.[4]
Melodians version
After its release in 1970, the song quickly became well known in Jamaica"....
Boney M. version
"Rivers of Babylon" was covered in 1978 by Germany-based disco band Boney M., with a version that was released as a single. Boney M.'s release stayed at the no. 1 position in the UK for five weeks and was also the group's only significant US chart entry, peaking at no. 30 in the Pop charts. Boney M.'s version of the song remains one of the top ten all-time best-selling singles in the UK, where it is one of only seven songs to have sold over 2 million copies.[6] In Canada, the song was a top 25 hit on the RPM magazine's Top 100 singles chart and reached no. 9 on the Adult Contemporary chart. The song also reached No. 1 on the South African Springbok chart, where it remained for a total of 11 weeks, making it the No. 1 song on that country's year end charts. The song was the first single from the band's equally successful 1978 album, Nightflight to Venus. Some controversy arose when the first single pressings only credited Frank Farian and Reyam (aka Hans-Jörg Mayer) of Boney M.; after an agreement with Dowe and McNaughton, these two were also credited on later pressings.
The Rastafarian language was excised from the lyrics for the Boney M. version. Although the group performed an early mix of the song on a German TV show and sang "How can we sing King Alpha's song" as in the Melodians version, it was changed to "the Lord's song", restoring the original, biblical words, in the versions that were to be released.[3] To fit the meter, "O Far-I" became "here tonight" rather than the original, biblical "O Lord"."....
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SHOWCASE SOUND FILE - The Melodians - "Rivers Of Babylon" (Official Audio)
Trojan Records Official, May 9, 2014
Original 1970 version by leading Jamaican vocal trio, the Melodians.
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SHOWCASE VIDEO - [Boney M] Rivers of Babylon (1978)
E M.G.M, Jan 23, 2013
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LYRICS - RIVER OF BABYLON
(The Melodians)
By the rivers of Babylon
Where he sat down
And there he wept
When he remembered Zion
Cause the wicked carried us away in captivity
Required from us a song
How can we sing King Alpha's song
In a strange land?
Cause the wicked carried us away in captivity
Required from us a song
How can we sing King Alpha's song
In a strange land?
Sing it out loud
Sing a song of freedom, sister
Sing a song of freedom, brother (sister)
We gotta sing and shout it!
We gotta jump and shout it!
Shout the song of freedom now, oh
So, let the words of our mouth
And the meditation of our heart
Be acceptable in Thy sight
Oh, Fari
So, let the words of our mouth
And the meditation of our heart
Be acceptable in Thy sight
Oh, Fari
Sing it again!
We've got to sing it together
Everyone (we've got to shout it together)
La la la la la, oh
By the rivers of Babylon
Where he sat down
And there he wept
When he remembered Zion
Cause the wicked carried us away in captivity
Required from us a song
How can we sing King Alpha's song
In a strange land?
Cause the wicked carried us away in captivity
Required from us a song
How can we sing King Alpha's song
In a strange land?
Sing it, sing it, sing it
See you got to sing it, brother
You got to sing it, sing sisters, yeah
Source: https://genius.com/The-melodians-rivers-of-babylon-lyrics
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