Jamaican Kids Songs, Dec 6, 2018
-snip-
This animated video has a Christmas theme. However, this Jamaican game can be played at anytime and actually has nothing to do with Christmas.
****
Edited by Azizi Powell
This pancocojams post showcases a YouTube video of the Jamaican children's ring (circle) game song "Skipping In Di Ring", also known as "Yes Barrister", "Yes Balinda", and "Yes Bawlinda".
Three lyrics for this Jamaican ring game are included in this post along with performance directions for this game.
The content of this post is presented for cultural and recreational purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to the unknown composer of the "Skipping In Di Ring" song and thanks to the person or persons who created this children's game. Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post and thanks to all those who produced this video and published it on YouTube.
-snip-
This is part of an ongoing pancocojams post about Jamaican children's play. Click the "Jamaican children's play" tag and other tags below for other pancocojams posts in this series.
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EXAMPLES OF THE JAMAICAN CHILDREN'S RING GAME "YES BARRISTER" (AND OTHER TITLES)
These examples are given in no particular order and are numbered for referencing purposes only.
EXAMPLE #1:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BH4sJ7kRNKw [This is the lyrics for the example that is sung in the video that is embedded in this pancocojams post.]
SKIPPING IN DI RING
Skipping in di ring (Yes Bawlinda)
Skipping in di Ring (Yes Bawlinda)
choose di one yuh love (Yes Bawlinda)
Bring him come to judge (Yes Bawlinda)
Skipping in di ring (Yes Bawlinda)
Skipping in di Ring (Yes Bawlinda)
A dis yah mawga bwoy yuh love (Yes Bawlinda)
A dis yah mawga bwoy yuh love (Yes Bawlinda)
Skipping in di ring (Yes Bawlinda)
Skipping in di Ring (Yes Bawlinda)
choose di one yuh love (Yes Bawlinda)
Bring har come to judge (Yes Bawlinda)
Skipping in di ring (Yes Bawlinda)
Skipping in di Ring (Yes Bawlinda)
A dis yah fat girl yuh love (Yes Bawlinda)
A dis yah fat girl yuh love (Yes Bawlinda)
Skipping in di ring (Yes Bawlinda)
Skipping in di Ring (Yes Bawlinda)
choose di one yuh love (Yes Bawlinda)
Bring him come to judge (Yes Bawlinda)
Skipping in di ring (Yes Bawlinda)
Skipping in di Ring (Yes Bawlinda)
A dis yah hansome bwoy yuh love (Yes Bawlinda)
A dis yah hansome bwoy yuh love (Yes Bawlinda)
Skipping in di ring (Yes Bawlinda)
Skipping in di Ring (Yes Bawlinda)
choose di one yuh love (Yes Bawlinda)
Bring har come to judge (Yes Bawlinda)
Skipping in di ring (Yes Bawlinda)
Skipping in di Ring (Yes Bawlinda)
A dis yah pretty girl yuh love (Yes Bawlinda)
A dis yah pretty girl yuh love (Yes Bawlinda)
-snip-
From https://jamaicanpatwah.com/term/Mawga/1178magwa = Skinny
****
EXAMPLE #2
Fromhttps://www.my-island-jamaica.com/jamaican_ring_games.html10
Timeless Jamaican Ring Games: This is how we do it Punchinello! [No author or publishing date given; retrieved on Bov.24, 2023]
...."8. Yes, Barrister (Skipping in the Ring)
I was introduced to this one when I came to St. Elizabeth.
The participants select a ‘judge” who occupies a position just away from the
ring.
Everyone sings a song, “Skipping in the ring”. The judge
invites a selected person to “choose the one yu love” and bring to the judge.
The ring goes silent as judge asks a series of questions to
which the person who made the selection must respond such as:
Judge: A dis ya man yu love?
Participant: Yes Barrister!
Judge: A tall man (or any other adjective describing the
person) yu love?
Participant: Yes Barrister!
At this point the judge may ask additional questions to
amuse the audience at the expense of the ‘loved one’ and may finally decide to
keep them in the ring or kick them out.
If the love one was kicked out a new round of selection
begins. Both adults and children play this game. Warning: you may not find all
the judge’s adjectives complementary. It’s all in good fun though."... -snip- From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Elizabeth_Parish "Saint Elizabeth, one of Jamaica's largest
parishes, is located in the southwest of the island, in the county of Cornwall."...
Unknown, October 12, 2015 "can some one please remind me how Yes Balinda plays? doing
characterization with my grade seven children and want to use it to get them in
the mood"
**
Reply
Cassius October 14, 2015
"The game is played with the ring (R) responding to things
the (RL) says with "Yes Balinda!"
(RL) Skipping in the ring
(R) "Yes Balinda!"
(RL) Skipping in the ring
(R)"Yes Balinda!"
(RL) Choose the girl/boy you love
(R)"Yes Balinda!"
(RL) Choose the girl/boy you love
(R)"Yes Balinda!"
(RL) Bring her/him come to judge
(R)"Yes Balinda!"
(RL) Bring her/him come to judge
(R)"Yes Balinda!"
(RL) Is this the boy/girl you love?
(R)"Yes Balinda!"
Usually (RL) dishes out insults and (R) responds with yes
balinda. The (RL) can say kick him/her out the ring or keep her/him in the ring
and then the song begins again.
Traditional Jamaica ring game called Brown Girl In the Ring, performed in Westmoreland Jamaica.
****
Edited by Azizi Powell
This pancocojams post presents a YouTube video of the Jamaican circle game "Brown Girl In The Ring" with selected comments from some of these videos' discussion threads.
This post also includes lyrics for an example of a 1904 version of "There's A Brown Girl In The Ring" as well as lyrics for Lord Invader's 1946/1947 Calypso version of this game song.
This pancocojams post also presents information about the meaning of skin color meaning of "brown" and "browning" in Jamaica and includes my editorial comments about whether "Brown Girl In The Ring" is racist and/or promotes colorism. . . The content of this post is presented for folkloric and socio-cultural purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to the unknown composer/s of this song. Thanks to Lord Invader for his musical legacy and thanks to all those who are featured in this showcase video. Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post. Thanks also to the publisher of this video on YouTube. -snip- This post is a copy of a pancocojams post http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2017/03/is-caribbean-game-song-brown-girl-in.html that was published in 2017: That post has been extensively revised since its initial publication on pancocojams in 2017 and has 11 comments as of January 13, 2023.
I decided to revisit that 2017 post on the game song "Thee's A Black Girl In The Ring" because I happened to come across this statement about the song "Brown Girl in the Ring" in this Wikipedia page "Colorism" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorism_in_the_Caribbean#Jamaica
n Jamaica was perpetuated through social and cultural institutions such as music, social games, sports, and school [28] For example, in one particular school-yard game, Jamaican children have been heard chanting "Brown girl in the ring." According to Dr. Petra Robinson, in her dissertation, the game promotes a preference for 'brown skin girls' over dark-skinned ones.[28] -snip- I still don't know that it's true that the "There's A Brown Girl In The Ring" game "promotes a preference for 'brown skin girls' over dark-skinned ones." in Jamaica or elsewhee/
I'd love to know how Dr. Petra Robinson reached those conclusions.
****
IS THE CARIBBEAN GAME SONG "BROWN GIRL IN THE RING RACIST?
My answer- No. maybe, and yes.
A number of people have asked online about whether the Jamaican children's song is racist, including a concerned White parent who wrote on July 7, 2008 on the now deleted blog [blog no longer available] asking whether the game song "Brown Girl In The Ring" is racist. Tami Winfrey Harris, the Black blogger who is/was the editor of that site, concluded that this song isn't racist.
I agree with Tami Winfrey Harris that "Brown Girl In The Ring" isn't intrinsically racist. However, "Brown Girl In The Ring is racial as it refers to the race (skin color) of children who are playing a game.
The sections in this post help suss out why I don't have a clear cut answer to the question of whether "Brown Girl In The Ring " is racist.
**** WHAT DOES "BROWN" MEAN IN THE SONG "BROWN GIRL IN THE RING" The word "brown" in the song "Brown Girl In The Ring" refers to the skin color of children who are playing a circle game (ring game). The girl (or boy) "in the ring" is standing in the middle of the circle.
I believe that "brown" in the Jamaican singing game "Brown Girl In the Ring" is a color reference that described who was playing that game. The earliest version of that singing game that I have come across 'There's A Black Boy In The Ring" ("Ring" here means the the circle that is formed by the game's players.
**** A 1904 VERSION OF THIS GAME SONG "There's A Black Boy In The Ring" singing game is included in a 1904 collection entitled "Jamaican Song and Story: Annancy stories, digging sings, ring tunes, and dancing tunes" by Walter Jekyll. A digital version of this book can be found at https://www.gutenberg.org/files/35410/35410-h/35410-h.htm#Page_207. [This singing game is actually on page 208]
There's a black boy in a ring, tra la la la la, There's a black boy in a ring, tra la la la la, There's a black boy in a ring, tra la la la la, He like sugar an' I like plum. Wheel an' take you pardner, jump shamador! Wheel an' take you pardner, jump shamador! Wheel an' take you pardner, jump shamador! For he like sugar an' I like plum.
The boy inside the ring chooses his partner, whom he leaves there after the dance. She obtains release by choosing another partner, whom she leaves behind. So there is alternately a boy and a girl in the ring.
"Shamador" is possibly a corruption of "camerado." -end of quote-
I don't know when or why the color referent in this game song changed from "Black" to "Brown"
Was a version of this song that used the "brown girl" rather than the "black boy" words so popular that people sang those words and by force of repetition, that wording became the sandard?
Did people change the color referent in this song from "Black" to "Brown" because the population of Jamaica was becoming more brown than black? I don't know.
. However, by 1946/1947 the eminent Trinidadian Calypsonian Lord Invader's recording of this game song was titled "Brown Girl In A Ring". Maybe that was the song that was so popular that the wording changed from black to brown. (Although in his lyrics to that song, Lord Invader says that he sung this song when he was a child).
***
Since at least the 19th century in Jamaica, the skin color referent "brown" refers to light skin Black people and mixed race people. (These two terms sometimes refer to different populations.)
The next sections provide some historical and current usages of the word "brown" in Jamaica when it is used to refer to certain populations.
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19th CENTURY MEANINGS OF THE WORD "BROWN" IN JAMICA Judging by Jamaican sea chanties, since at least the 19th century in Jamaica, the word "brown" used as a skin color referent means "light skinned" and/or mixed race (i.e.Black mixed with White and/or another race.
Here's some information about Sally Brown shanties from my 2012 pancocojams post with that title: " "Sally Brown" is a Jamaican sea shanty about a mixed race (mulatto; Creole) woman. Like all shanties, there are multiple versions of "Sally Brown". In addition to the song titled "Sally Brown", there are many other shanties that mention "Sally" and "Sally Brown".
The surname (last name) "Brown" may have referred to Sally's mixed race ancestry. Note that the word "shallow" (challow) in the song "Shallow Brown" means a person of mixed race." -end of quote- In the Jamaican sea shantie "Roll And Go", Sally Brown is referred to as a "bright mulatto". In those lyrics "bright" very light and "mulatto" is a person who has one Black birth parent and one White birth parent. (The term "mulatto" has been retired from formal usage in the United States since around the mid 1960s). "Bright mulatto" means the same thing as the United States term "high yellow". That term has also been retired from formal usage since at least the mid 20th century.
**** EARLY 20th CENTURY EXAMPLES OF THE WORD "BROWN" IN JAMAICAN SONGS There are numerous other Jamaican examples of folk songs which feature a person whose last name is "Brown". One example that interested me was
**** JAMAICAN PATOIS DEFINITIONS FOR "BROWN" AND "BROWNING"
posted by alicia.dean.7940 on March 22, 2017 -snip- Dancehall star Buju Banton had a smash hit called "Love My Browning" in 1992. In that song he may have been referring to mixed race women or to light skin women whether they be mixed race or not. He later recorded a song about how he loves "all Black women". https://genius.com/Buju-banton-love-black-woman-lyric
**** WHY DO PEOPLE THINK THAT "BROWN GIRL IN THE RING" IS RACIST 1. I believe that some people think that "Brown Girl In The Ring" is racist because they believe that any mention of race or skin color is racist.
For what it's worth, I don't agree with that.
Under some circumstances, I believe that it is appropriate and perhaps even necessary to use racial or skin color references- for instance for descriptive purposes that don't have or imply a positive or negative valuation.
I believe that the words "There's a brown girl in the ring" (with its earlier words "There's a Black boy in the ring" was written to describe who was playing that game. Given the oppression and prejudice that children of African descent or some African descent live/d under, my guess is that that skin color reference was purposely used to boost up the self-esteem and the group esteem of those children.
** 2. Some people think that "brown" in the song "Brown Girl In The Ring" means a light skinned Black person, some other light skinned person who isn't White, and/or a mixed race person.
Those people who think that might also believe that the song (or people who play that game) encourages children to favor light skinned/mixed race people over other people. Doing so would be an example of colorism. Colorism means the preference of one skin color over others, for instance favoring light skin Black people over dark skin Black people.
For what it's worth, I don't agree that this song encourages children to favor light skinned/mixed race people over other people. Besides its descriptive purpose (to point out who was playing that game), I believe that that song may have been compose to boost the self-concept and group concept of Black (Brown skinned ) children regardless of whether their skin color was light, "medium brown, or dark.
Here's a comment exchange from the discussion thread for the YouTube video of Jamaican school girls playing "Brown Girl In The Ring" that is embedded at the top of this pancocojams post. That comment exchange includes a comment that I wrote:
(Numbers are added for referencing purposes only.)
1. Phillip M. Ranglin, 2021 "Did someone stop a girl at the start, saying that she’s not brown?"
** Reply 2. JAFSProject, 2021 "Yes. Right around 6 seconds. I never noticed it before. I can't say that I'm surprised. Unfortunately there is quite a bit of colorism in the schools, and in society here."
** Reply 3. Lael Wildgoose, 2021 "I definitely didnt see or hear it...
** Reply 4. Ms Sophia Ffrench, 2022 "Yes that's what I hear🤣🤣
** Reply Azizi Powell, 2023 "@JAFSProject ,I revisited this video because I read a comment in the Wikipedia page about colorism in Jamaica that states that "Colorism in Jamaica was perpetuated through social and cultural institutions such as music, social games, sports, and school [28] For example, in one particular school-yard game, Jamaican children have been heard chanting "Brown girl in the ring." According to Dr. Petra Robinson, in her dissertation, the game promotes a preference for 'brown skin girls' over dark-skinned ones,"
I assume that Dr. Robinson meant "lighter brown skinned girls over "darker" brown skinned girls. I'd like to read her dissertation to see how she arrived at that conclusion instead of interpreting "brown" as a group referent for all Black people in Jamaica (as well as as a group referent for other non-White girls in that nation).
With regard to this video, It appears to me that all but one of the girls in this video are the same brown skin color. The girl who appears to be a little lighter than the others isn't the one who is addressed (at .06 in this video). I believe that one girl told the other something like "You're not brown". I think this comment might have meant something innocuous like "You already had a turn being the brown girl in the ring" or "It's not your turn to be the brown girl in the ring".
As such, I don't think this particular video is an example of colorism."
****
SOME CIRCUMSTANCES WHERE "BROWN GIRL IN THE RING" COULD BE PROBLEMATIC The singing game "Brown Girl In The Ring" could be problematic if children sing this song in a majority White setting where there is only one or only a few children of color (meaning "children of some black African descent and/or other children whose skin complexion is brown). I've read comments about brown skinned girls who were given “the honor” or the responsibility of playing the role of the "brown girl in the ring". Even if other people thought/think that this is an honor, it may not be considered that way by those "brown skinned girls" or "brown skinned boys" (when the song is sung to reflect the gender of the child who happens to be in the middle).
Read the comments that are quoted in the Addendum below.
The "Brown Girl In A Ring" game song can be problematic if the words are adapted to reflect the races/ethnicities of children playing that game. People usually use visual clues such as skin color, facial features, and hair texture to guess what race/ethnicity a person is part of. Those visual clues may be wrong, the person could be of ambiguous ethnicity, and/or the person may consider themselves to be a member of more than one racial/ethnic group.
I cringe at the thought of children changing the words to "Brown Girl In The Ring" when a girl who looks "White" is in the middle of the ring or when a girl who is Asian in the middle of the ring: i. e, "There's a White girl in the ring tra la la la la" and "There's an Asian girl in the ring tra la la la la." And what of children who are first generation mixed race? Having other people decide which race/ethnicity a mixed racial person is a part of can exacerbate the issues many mixed race people have with the racial identity.
I also cringe at the thought of children changing the words to "Brown Girl In The Ring" using other skin color references such as "yellow" for Asians and "red" for Native Americans, etc..
**** MY RECOMMENDATIONS ABOUT THE GAME SONG "THERE'S A BROWN GIRL IN THE RING" Despite what I consider its pleasant, catchy tune, and its creative lyrics, and more positive attributes, given the racial (and sometimes racist) environment that children still have to navigate in the 2000s, my recommendation is to err on the side of caution and NOT include the game song "There's A Brown Girl In The Ring" in children's music curriculum, unless this song is part of the curriculum for older children who are studying the history of folk songs or the history of Jamaican and/or Caribbean children's game songs and/or folk songs.
**** ADDENDUM: SELECTED COMMENTS FROM A BONEY M VIDEO OF "BROWN GIRL IN THE RING"
Here are some comments from a Boney M video's discussion thread in which the commenters mention racism:
(Numbers are added for referencing purposes only.)
1. mr y mysterious video, 2009
"true story....
when i was about 6, there was only one black girl in our whole school in wales.
they played this song at our xmas party, we all sat in a circle while she danced for our entertainment - it wasn't a racist thing though - we were being literal and she seemed to enjoy herself."
**
2. Becca Secret, 2009 "funny, my aunt thought this song was rascist xxx"
11. mr y mysterious video
"i was 7, at school in ely, cardiff, wales.
it was christmas, the entire school gathered in a big circle while the sole black girl in school stood in the middle and danced with all her heart to this song - a true story.
and yet... it was all so innocent, nobody had any malice but they wouldn't try that these days!"
** 3. mr y mysterious video, 2012
"i was 7, at school in ely, cardiff, wales.
it was christmas, the entire school gathered in a big circle while the sole black girl in school stood in the middle and danced with all her heart to this song - a true story.
and yet... it was all so innocent, nobody had any malice but they wouldn't try that these days!"
** 4. RichXboxOne, 2015 "This is an excellent song, but if it was released now, the PC Brigade and the Loony left would complain about it being racist. "
"How beautiful are the brown skins, and how much they have been battered by the "white man" (and they are still, more subtly, perhaps). In a distant time, we were all black, or a dark color. They are the origins of all humanity. In the US, for example, there is still a lot of racism, and sometimes they do not bother or disguise it (also in Spain, of course). Well, the video is charming, and the music very contagious. I just hope they do not shoot me for expressing certain ideas, and that the USA Air Force did not bomb me."
** 6. Ravneet Bains, 2018 "My mum just told me thought this song was about Asian girls back in the 1980's and she felt very offended at the time because she thought they where being racist. Now she has got over once I told her that the song is light skin black women."
This pancocojams post provides play instructions for the children's singing game song "Brown Girl In The Ring" and showcases several YouTube examples of that song. Most of these videos show adults playing this game. Selected comments from the discussion threads of some of these YouTube examples are also included in this post. Lyrics for some versions of this song are also included in this post.
The content of this post is presented for folkloric and socio-cultural purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to the unknown composer/s of "Brown Girl In The Ring" and thanks to the known composer/s of the Calypso and the Pop examples of this song. -snip- Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2023/01/revisiting-questions-about-whether.html for a closely related post entitled "Revisiting Questions About Whether The"Brown Girl In the Ring" Game Song Is Racist And/Or Promotes Colorism."
Here's my concluding statement in that post: "Despite what I consider its pleasant, catchy tune, and its creative lyrics, and more positive attributes, given the racial (and sometimes racist) environment that children still have to navigate in the 2000s, my recommendation is to err on the side of caution and NOT include the game song "There's A Brown Girl In The Ring" in children's music curriculum, unless this song is part of the curriculum for older children who are studying the history of folk songs or the history of Jamaican and/or Caribbean children's game songs and/or folk songs.
**** PLAY INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE GAME SONG "THERE'S A BROWN GIRL IN THE RING" Excerpt from the 1997 book Brown Girl In The Ring: An Anthology Of Song Games from the Eastern Caribbean, editors Alan Lomax, J.D. Elders, and Bess Lomax Hawes
"Brown Girl In The Ring" [page] 7
"TO PLAY Players form a ring of clappers and singers facing the center, where a sing child dances about during the first verse. During the second, she "makes her motion", which may consist of "winding" or any other dance step she elects. During the third verse she stands in front of a child in the ring and the two hug or dance together. The "partner" becomes the "brown girl" for the next run through of the game, which continues till every child has had a turn at the center role.
Anguillan children play the game approximately the same way but to a variant of the Trinidadian tune and with more direction from the lead singer. "Crossing the ocean" means dancing back and forth across the ring; "work up your calabash" means to move belly and pelvis. In St Kitts, children sing "Now make up your cat backs,", and the dancer arches her back like a cat. Other dance steps may be called for as desired.
[...]
[page] 8 Whenever and however played, this song game epitomizes the classic and essential form of Caribbean ring play, in which a single dancers occupies the center of the circle, "shows her [or his] motion, and then selects a partner and who hares the dance briefly and ultimately takes over the central role. Such dances serve in part as preparation for later courtship experiences; indeed, Caribbean parents encourage their children to participate in such games, to "hug and kiss" their partners and to demonstrate their physical skills in the art of "winding" a sinuous movement of the trunk, an act which might well be disapproved of if the child were not dancing. This dance became a theater in which children can rehearse adult behavior in a socially approved situation." -end of quote- Pancocojams Editor's Notes:
Anguilla, Trinidad, and St. Kitts are names of three Caribbean nations.
****
"STANDARD LYRICS" FOR THE SINGING GAME VERSION OF "BROWN GIRL IN THE RHYME"
There's a brown girl in the ring Tra la la la la There's a brown girl in the ring Tra la la la la la Brown girl in the ring Tra la la la la She likes sugar and I like plum.
Now show me your motion Tra la la la la Show me your motion Tra la la la la la Show me your motion Tra la la la la la She likes sugar and I like plum.
Skip across the ocean Tra la la la la Skip across the ocean Tra la la la la Skip across the ocean Tra la la la la She likes sugar and I like plum -snip- These lyrics appear to be the standard words to this song in the United States.
Another verse "Stand and face your partner". After that verse, the one who the middle person is standing in front of becomes the new middle person and the game immediately begins from the beginning.
Click ___ for the Boney M lyrics for "Brown Girl In The Ring"
Selected comments from this video's discussion thread
(Numbers are given for referencing purposes only)
2009
1. mr y mysterious video "true story....
when i was about 6, there was only one black girl in our
whole school in wales.
they played this song at our xmas party, we all sat in a
circle while she danced for our entertainment - it wasn't a racist thing though
- we were being literal and she seemed to enjoy herself."
**
2. Becca Secret "funny, my aunt thought this song was rascist xxx"
**
3. feinferno "i wish we still had music like dis reminds me of the
old days back in guyana sitting on my uncles front porch with a coconut cutting
it to get coconut water"
****
2010
4. BLACK.LIKE. ME "Does N E one knows where this group's from?"
**
Reply 5. toe luutaga "the group was put together in West Germany by Frank
Farian the original four memebers line-up were 2 Jamaican Liz Mitchell and
Marcia Barrett ,1 Montserratian Maizie Williams and 1 Aruban Bobby Farell there
was a change times later. This group was well known in my island country Samoa
in the South Pacific and all their songs were heard on the radio and all local
bands play them at fiafia night. One of the best in their time ..... always
remember."
****
2011
6. Trelli28 "I remember this song growing up! The ring game we used
to play in Jamaica :-)"
**
Reply
7. asomra "@Trelli28 A lot of Islands had this song in school.
I'm Guyanese , my mom was listening to this growing too. This song will never
die, people from the whole world will be singing and playing to this at some
part."
**
8. Charms434 "All I think of is the movie touching the void and when
the guy was deliriously close to death this song was stuck in his head, and
he's praying he doesn't die to this song LOL" -snip- Click https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Touching_the_Void for
information about Joe Simpson's 1988 book "Touching The Void" and the
2003 documentary film that is based on that book. Cainefan, a commenter in that
Boney M discussion thread wrote in 2009 "... Someone analyzed that it may
have to do with the lines from the song "show me your motion" and it
was his brain telling him to keep moving."
**
9. locorojo25 "anyone tell me wot the song is about? brown girl in
the ring? boxing or wrestling? she looks like a sugar in a plum. wot does that
mean. catchy tune but wots it about?"
**
Reply
10. mjaooajm "@locorojo25
Neither one. She is in a dancing ring." -snip- "ring play" = circle game songs
****
2012
11. mr y mysterious video "i was 7, at school in ely, cardiff, wales.
it was christmas, the entire school gathered in a big circle
while the sole black girl in school stood in the middle and danced with all her
heart to this song - a true story.
and yet... it was all so innocent, nobody had any malice but
they wouldn't try that these days!"
****
2013
12. Doris Smith "For West Indian Brown Girls Everywhere!"
**
13. RichXboxOne "This is an excellent song, but if it was released now,
the PC Brigade and the Loony left would complain about it being racist. "
****
2014
14. havaiianteine u "I heard this song when I was little, n my words were
totally different :) Brown Girl, Brown n Proud."
"How beautiful are the brown skins, and how much they
have been battered by the "white man" (and they are still, more
subtly, perhaps). In a distant time, we were all black, or a dark color. They
are the origins of all humanity. In the US, for example, there is still a lot
of racism, and sometimes they do not bother or disguise it (also in Spain, of
course). Well, the video is charming, and the music very contagious. I just
hope they do not shoot me for expressing certain ideas, and that the USA Air
Force did not bomb me."
****
2018
16. Ravneet Bains "My mum just told me thought this song was about Asian
girls back in the 1980's and she felt very offended at the time because she
thought they where being racist. Now she has got over once I told her that the
song is light skin black women." -snip- I believe that the color "brown" in this singing
game originally referred to all Black girls regardless of whether their skin
color was light brown, darker brown, or very dark brown.
Pancocojams Editor's Note: These examples are given in no particular order. The examples & their comments are numbered for referencing purposes only.
VIDEO #2 - Brown Girl In The Ring: Bahamian Expats In Los Angeles"
The Coconut Channel, Uploaded on Jul 24, 2008
At the July 2008 picnic celebration in Los Angeles' Griffith
Park of the Bahamas' 35th anniversary of independence from England, a group of
exuberant adults burst into the ring games of their childhood. -snip- This video documents performances of various "ring
plays" (circle game songs) that people from the Bahamas living in the
United States played. "Brown Girl In The Ring" begins at 5:19 and
continues to the end of that video.
I wrote a comment on this video's discussion thread asking about the name of the game that was
played before "Brown Girl In The Ring" and the words to the second
and third verses of that song. Here are the responses to my question:
1. dakingofhearts91 (2012) "The Game played before brown girl in the ring was red
rover. The lyrics to the other song goes like this "blue hill water dry no
where to wash my clothes, I remember that saturday night we had fried fish and
johnny cake. Man take one to satisfy woman take two she make a moo (move)" -end of quote- After thanking "dakingofheart" I asked if that
version that the people in the video sang was traditional. Here is her response
to that question:
2. Dannie (2012) "Brown girl in the ring was not played properly. In
Blue hill water dry, they had "boil" fish and johnny cake."Fried
fish and johnny cake is not a Bahamian dish.Are any of them actually
Bahamians.Once the get all the lyrics and someone to teach them the melodies,
they'll be straight. Yes
I am 100% Bahamian -snip- Pancocojams Editor- "They'll be straight" = They'll sing the song right. (the right way). ** Here are some other responses to Dannie's comment: 3. donald duncombe, 2017 "Dannie Fried fish and Johnny cake is true true Bahamain in
every respect. What you are experiencing is the difference in how cwertain
cultural expression even in The Bahamas had diversity since each commnity or
island may have had there own variation."
** 4. donald duncombe, 2017 "Boil fish was normally breakfast for some while fired fish
would have been dinner. Soif its Saturday night then it most like fired fish."
** 5. Kimberly King-Burns, 2021 "they're singing boiled fish and johnny cake, and yes ... all
were born bahamian.
**** VIDEO #3 - brown girl in the ring (guyanese reception )
SuperBollywoodboy, Published on May 22, 2013
Guyanese reception fun fun fun -snip- This wedding reception is from Guyana, Although Guyana is located in the northern coast of South America, it is considered part of the Caribbean.
Haiti-Trouin kids from St. Anne...schoolyard song &
dance #1
**** Edited by Azizi Powell
Latest revision: April 4, 2021
This pancocojams post showcases two YouTube video of Haitain children's singing games and provides some information about what these singing games are about.
The content of this post is presented for folkloric, cultural, and entertainment purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to all those who are featured in these videos and thanks to the Joylin Clark, the publisher of these videos on YouTube. Thanks also to Lesly and margine louis who shared information online about these singing games. -snip- Although I refer to these games as children's singing games, the videos show that women and men played both of these Haitian singing games along with children of multiple ages. .
**** PANCOCOJAMS EDITOR'S NOTE In August 2013 I published a pancocojams post about these singing games. That post was entitled "What Are The Names Of These Singing Games".[I deleted that post so that there wouldn't be any confusion between that post and this one that has updated information,]
Here's what I wrote in 2013: "I'm hoping that someone recognizes these games and can post their names & their words in English. (Unfortunately, I only speak & read English, but I can use Google translate if you write in French.)
Thanks in advance!"
**** UPDATE: September 9, 2013 A big THANKS to Lesly, one of the men participating in these video taped games for sending the words to these games to the videographer Joylin Clark. THANKS also to Joylin for sharing them with us!! **** UPDATE: April 1, 2021 I wasn't aware that in 2019 margine louis wrote this response to this request that I had written in 2013 in that YouTube video's discussion thread:
Azizi Powell, 2014 "Hi joylin Clark!
I posted three years ago and haven't yet found any information about this song. I REALLY like this song and wish I knew what they are singing.
I showcased this video and another one that you shared on a post on my cultural blog. Google Pancocojams What Are The Names Of These Haitian Singing Games?
Doesn't anyone recognize these games?
Reply margine louis, 2019 "talking about, "you have a beautiful friend, (name), advance, advance" "give her a little kiss" "take hold her by the hand?"."
-snip-
Thanks margine louis!
****
PERFORMANCE INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE SINGING GAME THAT IS FEATURED IN THE FIRST EMBEDDED VIDEO
(from my observations of this video:
People form a large circle (ring), stand in the circle without holding hands, and sing & clap their own hands in accompaniment. Persons forming the circle may also move rhythmically or dance to the beat while they are singing and clapping their hands.
A center person moves around the inside of the circle. At a certain part of the song, the center person walks up to a person (of the other gender) forming the ring and escorts that person into the center of the ring.
The two center people dance. Center person #1 then rubs center person #2 head, gives that person a kiss on the cheek, then leaves the center and rejoins the others forming the circle. The game then immediately begins from the beginning. -snip- I particularly like this song. It's very catchy. I really wish I knew what they are singing.
**** SHOW US YOUR FRIEND* (words and performance information for this song from Lesly) "Show us your friend-
Show us your friend
Show us your friend He is there He is there
Pass your hand over his head Give him a kiss. (By example: i am inner the circle,i will show them my friend.everybody sing together
"Lesly,show us your friend Lesly,show us you friend.
She is there She is there" (while we sing this part" she is there,she is there".i am taking my my friend in the circle dance with her, pass my hand over his heard,give her a kiss).
Then i let her inside the circle and go to show his friend. Until everyone passes through inside the circle." -snip- *In response to my questions about the words to this song (and a second Haitian singing game that is found below), Joylin Clark wrote "I have sent questions to one of the children in video---he knows english as I have sent him to Haitian/American Instutute the past 2 years. I think he will respond. I believe that Lesly was that student.
Lesly didn't write down the title for this game. However, given its words, it seems to me that a good title for this game would be "Show Us Your Friend".
Thanks, Lesly!
****
VIDEO #2 : YA SO *
joylin clark, April 6, 2010
The Foot Dance..Sponsor child, Lesly plays the bongo...
**** PERFORMANCE INSTRUCTIONS (from my observations of the video)
People form a large circle (ring), stand in the circle without holding hands, and sing & clap their own hands in accompaniment. Persons forming the circle may also move rhythmically or dance to the beat while they are singing and clapping their hands.
Two people (hereafter known as "the center people") move around the inside of the circle. One moves clockwise and the other moves counterclockwise.
At a certain part of the song, each of the center people stand in front of two people forming the ring. Each of the center people move their feet between the legs of their designated person. Those persons then do the same to their center person, and then change places with the center persons. The game then begins again from the beginning.
This game reminds me of "Little Sally Walker (Walking Down The Street), a contemporary version of "Little Sally Walker". As is the case in that Haitian "foot dance" singing game, in "Little Sally Walker (was walking down the streett)", a person in the center of the circle (the ring) moves around the ring, then picks a person standing in the ring and then does some motion in front of that person. That person then does the same motion, and then the two people exchange places. That person becomes the new center person and the game immediately begins from the beginning.
* UPDATE: September 7, 2013 Here are the words & performance instructions to this song from Lesly, a Haitian male who participated in this videoed game. Thanks Lesly!! Also, thanks to Joylin Clark for sending me these words from Lesly via iPhone.
"Ya so- Ya so,ya so oo oo oo
Ya so,ya so oo oo oo
Ya so,ya so. I would look at you
I would yas,i 'd yas
I would look at you
I woud yas,i' d yas
(you see the video,there is a circle,inside the circle there is someone. The inner circle will choose someone he wants to dance with her feet while everyone is singing together"
Ya so,ya so oo oo oo
Ya so,ya so oo oo oo
Ya so,ya so" (here, he will stand before his anointed.
" i would look at you
I would yas,i'd yas
I would look at you
I would yas,i'd yas"
(As we sing this part, the inner circle will hit His left foot from the right foot of the others three times,right to the left foot in others three times. Subsequently quitting inside the circle for the people he selected.
Until everyone passes trough the circle.
Lesly" -snip- *Lesly didn't write down the name of this game. However, given its words and performance activity, it seems to me that a good title for this game would be "Ya So" (The foot dance).
In a March 2021 pancocojams post entitled "A Children's Circle Game From Ghana, West Africa Whose Movements Are Similar To Two African American Circle Games: "Ride The Pony " & "Little Sally Walker Was Walking Down The Street" https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2021/03/a-childrens-circle-game-from-ghana-west.html I noted that, along with the singing games that are the focus of that post, this Haitian children's singing game is an example of a sub-set of show me your motion children's games that I call "stand in front of" games.
