Seven Videos Of Caribbean Stilt Walking (Moko Jumbies)

Edited by Azizi Powell

This post provides information and comments about stilt walking and stilt dancing (Moko Jumbies) in the Caribbean* and showcases seven video examples of stilt walking and stilt dancing in that region.

An alphabetical list of the nations showcased in this post are Guyana, St. Kitts, Trinidad & Tobago, and the Virgin Islands.

Disclaimer: This post isn't meant to be comprehensive depiction of Caribbean stilt walking traditions. A number of other Caribbean stilt walking videos can be found on YouTube.

*Note that one of these videos is of stilt walking in Guyana. Guyana is a South American nation which is also considered part of the Caribbean. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guyana

Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2015/11/stilt-walking-in-africa-information.html for a pancocojams post on traditional African stilt walking.

Also, click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2015/11/caribbean-influenced-moko-jumbies-in.html for a post on Caribbean influenced moko jumbies (stilt dancing) in the United States.

The content of this post is presented for cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

Thanks to all those who are featured in this post and thanks to all those who are quoted in this post. Thanks also to the publishers of these examples on YouTube.

****
INFORMATION ABOUT MOKO JUMBIES
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moko_jumbie
"A moko jumbie (also known as "moko jumbi" or "mocko jumbie") is a stilts walker or dancer. The origin of the term may come from "Moko" (a possible reference to an African god) and "jumbi", a West Indian term for a ghost or spirit that may have been derived from the Kongo language word zumbi. The Moko Jumbies are thought to originate from West African tradition brought to the Caribbean.

...Moko, in the traditional sense, is a god. He watches over his village, and due to his towering height, he is able to foresee danger and evil. His name, Moko, literally means the “diviner” and he would be represented by men on towering stilts and performs acts that were unexplainable to the human eye. In one remote tribe, the Moko rises from a regular mans’ height to the skies fluidly with no help and descends similarly to leave others to wonder how he performed such an act.

The Moko arrived in Trinidad by “walking all the way across the Atlantic Ocean from the West coast of Africa, laden with many, many centuries of experience, and, in spite of all inhuman attacks and encounters, yet still walks tall, tall, tall. (John Cupid, Caribbean Beat)” The idea of the Moko survived by living in the hearts of African descendants during slavery and colonial life to eventually walk the streets of Trinidad in a celebration of freedom, Carnival. While this figure was rooted in African heritage, Trinidad adapted the figure, notably by adding on Jumbie or ghost to the name. The by the early 1900s Moko Jumbies had become an element of Trinidad’s Carnival. This figure would walk the streets of Port of Spain and other cities protecting the city and revelers from evil. As part of his role in Carnival the Moko Jumbie would accept donations from onlookers in upper floors of buildings. However, his notable figure of Carnival slowly faded until a drastic revival.

By the early 1990s Moko Jumbies were essentially non-existent in Carnival, until two men brought this tradition back. These men, namely Moose and Dragon, have brought the Moko Jumbie back to a place of prominence in Carnival and created a new kind of Moko Jumbie. One man originally brought the idea to them as well as the knowledge of how to make stilts. The style of stilts they walked was very similar to the modern day ones but with one main difference, they had no front leg brace. This changed when a man named Ben Block from Canada, a random traveler, came to Trinidad with a pair of stilts. He had a frontal brace on the upper leg and the Trinidadians took inspiration from this design and used it in their own. Now there are two main Moko Jumbie bands in Trinidad, Watusi and Kilimanjaro, as well as several smaller ones. So while the idea of the Moko came from Africa, Trinidad has made it its own."...

****
SHOWCASE EXAMPLES
These examples are given in chronological order according to their publishing dates on YouTube with the oldest dated example given first.

Example #1: Moko Jumbies -- Trinidad Kids Carnival



IsDePanInMe, Uploaded on Dec 13, 2007

The beauty and splendor of Trinidad Carnival. Street Theater at its best.

****
Example #2: Zanqueros Team extreme Guayana



Erickolivero, Uploaded on Apr 10, 2008

team extreme guayana... demostrando puro talento..
No hay imposibles, Solo mentes incapaces.
no hay limites, el limite lo pones tu.

****
Example #3: Trinidad Moko Jumbies - Carnival 2011



Pradeep Latchman, Uploaded on Mar 3, 2011

Trinidad & Tobago Carnival 2011 - Moko Jumbies
Music: "Advantage" by Machel Montano

****
Example #4: Keylemanjahro Moko Jumbies at 2011 Point Fortin Borough Day, Trinidad



Maria Nunes, Uploaded on Aug 26, 2011
-snip-
"Keylemanjahro" is a updated way of writing “Kilimanjaro”. Since Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, East Africa is the highest mountain in Africa, selecting that name for a Moko Jumbie school and group implies excellence.

Here's a link to information about Keylemanjahro Moko Jumbie School of Art & Culture in Trinidad: http://stefanfalke-archive.photoshelter.com/gallery/Keylemanjahro-Moko-Jumbie-School-in-Trinidad/G00004plQ3zQwdXc/.

****
Example #5: Mini-Ritual Dancers Moko Jumbie WUK UP in Post Office Square! TUN UP! [Virgin Islands]



Chantel Hoheb, Published on May 2, 2013
2013 St. Thomas Children's Parade.

Follow the Caribbean Ritual Dancers! http://www.facebook.com/CaribbeanRitu...

2013 Winners of the "50 and Under" troupe category!

****
Example #6: New Lands Point Fortin Moko Jumbies



point fortin moko jumbies Published on Nov 13, 2013
-snip-
Here's a comment from this video's discussion thread:
Ali Sylvester, 2014
"New lands jumbies are the best jumbies out of trinidad cause i feel they change the game with new moves i have never see this before on stilts im the ceo of brooklyn jumbies just want to give respect where its do bless up to the team keep keep jumbies alive"

****
Example #7: Sugar Mass 42 St. Kitts Parade Day 2013/2014: Moko Jumbies



Livingston Huggins, Published on Jan 2, 2014

****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

Machel Montano - "Ministry Of The Road" (videos & lyrics) (Trinidad & Tobago)

Edited by Azizi Powell

This post showcases three videos of and lyrics for Machel Montano's song "Ministry Of The Road". "Ministry Of The Road" (M.O.R) is the 2014 Trinidad & Tobago Carnival's Soca Road March Song.

The content of this post is presented for cultural, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to the composers of this song. Thanks also to Machel Montano for performing this song and thanks to the publishers of these videos on YouTube.

****
FEATURED VIDEOS
Video #1: Machel Montano: Ministry Of The Road”

Machel Montano - Ministry Of Road (M.O.R.) | Official Music Video | Soca 2014| Trinidad Carnival


Machelmontanomusic Published on Feb 21, 2014

Song Written by Jelani "Pops" Shaw, Kasey Phillips, Nikholai Greene & Machel Montano
Produced & Mixed by P.A.G.E., Precision Productions & Machel Montano
Background Vocals by Nikita Browne, Jenna De Leon & Jelani Shaw
Mastered by Mike Wells, CA

****
Video #2: MACHEL MONTANO | MINISTRY OF ROAD (M.O.R) | LYRICS



MrCaribKaraoke, Published on Jan 20, 2014

Lyrics video for Machel Montano's MOR ( Ministry of Work ), written by Jelani Shaw, Machel Montano and Kasey Phillips, produced by Precision Productions

****
Video #3: Machel Montano - "Ministry of Roads" Winning Performance Power Soca Monarch 2014 [HD]



Mike Sam, Published on Mar 1, 2014

Power Soca Monarch Results
1. Machel Montano - "Ministry Of The Road"
2. Hollice "Mr Kill@" Mapp - "Rolly Polly"
2. Neil Iwer George - "Mama Oye"
2. Destra Garcia - "Mash Up"

2014 International Soca Monarch Finals (Power & Groovy Categories) at Haseley Crawford Stadium
-snip-
Notice the three way tie for second place.
****
LYRICS*
(Jelani "Pops" Shaw, Kasey Phillips, Nikholai Greene & Machel Montano)

Work! Work! Work Work!
Down on de ground (3x)
So giwwe more
We wa more
Giwwe more
We wa more!
And giwwe stage
We wa staaaage
Down on de ground (3x)
We wa staaaage
Down on de ground (4x)

See for dis carnival
Nobody waiting long
Cya stay in a traffic jam
Or wait by de hospital
We ready to make a mas
Trucks dem line up in town
People ready to run
One million coming down
Or wait by de hospital
We ready to make a mas
Trucks dem line up in town
People ready to run
One million coming down
Ah say

On de road or in a party
We come to work!
When you jamming on somebody
Ah say
On de road or in a party
We come to work!
When you jamming on somebody
We come to work!
Make a decision
Work!
To mash up every ground
Work!
When yuhsee carnival come

Giwwe a Ministry a’ Rooooad
More road
To build when we mash up on de road
More road.
Fix up when we movin to de stage
More stage
Nobody cya stop we
If iz lock up, charge or pay money

Giwwe road
We have authority now to…
Work! [3x]
We have authority now to…
Work [4x]
Down on de ground! [4x]
Jump on de ground now
Work!
Mash up de ground now
Work!
Jump on de ground now
Work!
Mash up de ground now
Work!
Say, mash it up now
Work!
Yah, mash it up now
Work!
Hey, mash it up now
Work!
Say, mash it up now
Work!

Say giwwe more
We wa more
Giwwe more
We wa more!
And giwwe stage
We wa stage
Down on de ground [3x]
We wa stage
Down on de ground [4x]
As we come off de stage
Dey say dat we break it down
Yes, we mash up d place
To build it back up in town.

Coming round de savannah
Heading down by de square
We building up everything
When we done mash up everywhere
To build it back up in town
Ah saaaay-aaa

Look at all the 18-wheelers rollin’
We come to work!
Watch material they totin’
We come to work!
Make a decision
Work!
To mash up every ground
Work!
When you see carnival come

Giwwe a Ministry a' Roooad
More road
To build when we mash up on de road
More road.
Fix up when we movin to de stage
More stage
Nobody cya stop we
If iz lock up, charge or pay money
Giwwe road
We have authority now to…
Work! [4x]
Down on de ground! [4x]
Jump on de ground now [etc]
[repeat “We want more etc]

We want more! [7x]
Giwwe a Minstry a’ Road
More road
To build when we mash up on de road
We want more!
Giwwe a Minstry a’ Road
More road
To build when we mash up on de road
We want more!
Fix up when we moving to de stage
More stage
More road
Fix up when we moving to de stage
More stage
Nobody cya stop we [etc]
[continue repeating previous lyrics]

*These are partial lyrics that I transcribed from the words given in the video that is presented above as Example #2.
-snip-
One of the reasons why the song "Ministry Of The Road" is so creative is the dual meanings for certain of its words. Besides it's standard English meaning, in this song the word "work" and the phrase "work it" means "to do something (such as dance) very well".

The word "mash up" in this song is another example of the songwriters' creativity. I'm presuming that "mash up" has the same meaning in this Trini song as it does in the definition given in this online Jamaican dictionary: http://niceup.com/patois.html "Mash up"/"Mash down" means "destroy" and "Mash it up" means "a huge success". "Destroy" here probably has the same meaning as "killed it" in African American slang (to do something exceptionally well, in this case, performing very well.) Notice that "Mash Up" is the title for one of the three songs that tied for second place in the Soca Monarch Finals given above.
-snip-
Here are standard English words for a few other words from the "Ministry Of The Road" song:
giwwe - give us
wa - want
cya - can't

****
RELATED LINK
http://everybodysmag.com/trinidad-tobago-carnival-results/

****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

Mighty Sparrow - Yankees Gone (Jean & Dinah) sound files, lyrics, & comments

CanchozI, Uploaded on Sep 14, 2008

****
Edited by Azizi Powell

Latest Revision -May 20, 2023

This pancocojams post showcases Mighty Sparrow's Calypso song "Yankee Gone ("Jean And Dinah"). This post also includes information about Mighty Sparrow, information & comments about that now classic Calypso song, as well as portion of that song's lyrics & a link to the song's full lyrics.

The content of this post is presented for folkloric, historical, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to Slinger Franscico (Mighty Sparrow) for his musical legacy. Thanks also to all those who I quoted in this post and thanks to the publishers of these sound files on YouTube.
-snip-
Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/11/caribbean-patois-in-youtube-video.html for a clip of a video that includes an interview with Mighty Sparrow about "Jean And Dinah" and an early film clip of Sparrow singing portions of "Jean And Dinah". That post focuses on the use of Caribbean Patois in some viewer comments about that video.

****
INFORMATION ABOUT MIGHTY SPARROW
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mighty_Sparrow
"Slinger Francisco CMT (born July 9, 1935), better known as Mighty Sparrow, is a calypso singer, songwriter, and guitarist of Trinidadian citizenship. Known as the "Calypso King of the World", he is one of the best-known and most successful calypsonians. He has won Trinidad's Carnival Road March competition eight times, Calypso King/Monarch eight times, and has twice won the Calypso King of Kings title...

Slinger Francisco was born in the fishing village of Grand Roy, Grenada, West Indies on July 9, 1935. He moved to Trinidad with his mother, his father having relocated there in 1937.[1][2] He grew up in Port of Spain.[citation needed] He began singing as a small child, but his love of calpyso was discouraged while at Newton Boys Catholic School, where he sang in the choir.[1][2] At the age of 14 he joined a steel band comprising neighborhood boys, and performed with the band at Carnival.[1]
He received his performing name 'Little Sparrow' during his early career, as a result of his energetic stage performances:

Your calypso name is given to you by your peers, based on your style. In the old days they tried to emulate British royalty. There was Lord Kitchener, Lord Nelson, Duke. When I started singing, the bands were still using acoustic instruments and the singers would stand flat footed, making a point or accusing someone in the crowd with the pointing of a finger, but mostly they stood motionless. When I sing, I get excited and move around, much like James Brown, and this was new to them. The older singers said "Why don't you just sing instead of moving around like a little Sparrow." It was said as a joke, but the name stuck. [3]
—Mighty Sparrow

After a couple of years he changed his stage name to 'Mighty Sparrow'. His first performance as a carnival singer came in 1954 with "The Parrot and the Monkey", and in 1956, Sparrow won Trinidad's Carnival Road March and Calypso King competitions with his most famous song, "Jean and Dinah" (aka "Yankees Gone", a song celebrating the departure of US troops from Trinidad).[5] Sparrow made his recording debut in 1956, with a live performance of "Yankees Gone" which was included in the album Jump Up Carnival in Trinidad.[5] His prize for winning the Calypso King title was $40.[ In protest of the small sum (the winner of the Carnival Queen beauty contest won $7,500), he wrote the song "Carnival Boycott" and attempted to organize other singers to boycott the competition.[5] About half of the singers followed, including Lord Melody.[3] Sparrow claims credit for succeeding improvements in the conditions of calypso and steelband musicians in Trinidad, as well as the formation of the Carnival Development Committee, a musicians' assistance organization.[6] Sparrow refused to officially participate in the competition for the next three years, but he continued to perform unofficially, even winning another Road March title in 1958 with "P.A.Y.E...

****
SHOWCASE VIDEO #2 - Yankees Gone"(Jean and Dinah) The Mighty Sparrow
(Calypso Crown winner-Dimanche Gras 1956)



Glenroy Joseph, Published on Sep 14, 2012

In 1956 a young newcomer to the calypso scene won the calypso crown in his first appearance on the big stage.

From the 1956 Emory Cook album, Jump Up Carnival, here is the actual Dimanche Gras performance by the Mighty Sparrow of his winning calypso, "Yankees Gone."
-snip-
From http://www.africasounds.com/trinidad_calypso.htm
"Dimanche Gras is the Sunday before Carnival day and the official beginning to the carnival season which has been in full swing for days....

The [year's] King and Queen of Carnival and the Calypso Monarch are to be chosen on this night in Queen's Park. The event includes a pan competition as well but it is an opportunity to see the great practitioners of Calypso music in dramatic confrontation that is the draw that fills the stands."

****
INFORMATION ABOUT THE SONG "JEAN AND DINAH"
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_and_Dinah
" 'Jean and Dinah' (When The Yankees Gon)is a calypso from Trinidad and Tobago in the Caribbean sung by calypsonian Mighty Sparrow that became an international hit in 1956. It was also his first of eight roadmarches. This calypso, Sparrow's first hit, commented on the large-scale prostitution that the bases once supported and the desperation of these prostitutes following the closure of many American military bases in Trinidad in the post-war period.[1]
-snip-
"Jean And Dinah" (1956)was the first of Mighty Sparrow’s eight road wins marches.
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roadmarch
"The Carnival Road March is the musical composition played most often at the "judging points" along the parade route during Carnival. Originating as part of Trinidad and Tobago Carnival, the term has been applied to other Caribbean carnivals."

****
From https://genius.com/Mighty-sparrow-jean-and-dinah-lyrics Genius Annotation

MCSmarties, 2020
"Jean and Dinah, originally known as “Yankees Gone” was Mighty Sparrow’s first international hit and won him the first of eight Carnival Road Marches in 1956. The song comments on the large-scale prostitution that the American military bases in Trinidad once supported and the desperation of these prostitutes following the closure of many of these bases in the post-war period."

****
COMMENTS ABOUT THE SONG "JEAN AND DINAH"
From http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20021127/ent/ent1.html
"Sparrow, the concerned Caribbean villager"
November 27, 2002 By Mel Cooke
..."Sparrow integrated concerns of nationalism into his music from the beginning of his recording career, which started with the immortal Jean And Dinah. He had 'words but no song' and, hearing jingles by other calypsonians on the airwaves, he was determined to do one himself. So the ambitious young lyrical Slinger did one and approached the largest company, as each jingle was sponsored by a particular business.

"I thought it was good, but after five attempts the owner of the place said 'no thanks', but we will give you two dollars for your trouble," Sparrow recalled.

However, Sparrow was totally entranced by the tune and when the Americans left the military base in Chaguaramas some time later, it was the foundation of Jean and Dinah.

"When they were here we could not get any girls. The girls were always meeting 'Joe' (as the US soldiers were called). Then when they decided to leave I wrote a song, Jean and Dinah," Sparrow said, going back in time musically and vocally, his voice going high and youthful as he sang, ending with:
'De Yankee gone
Sparrow take over now'"

****
From http://www.ecaroh.com/bmp/think/jeananddinah50.htm "'Jean and Dinah' turning 50" by Keith Smith
..."In July 2004 Keith Smith published ‘Jean and Dinah’ turning 50 “to acclaim not simply the singer [The Mighty Sparrow] but the song”. In this 2006 carnival season, we join in that acclaim to the calypsonian of the century.

...since the day following the night Sparrow sang "Jean and Dinah'' on that Savannah stage, calypso was never to be the same again, Sparrow remembering:
"I can see it as if it happening now. I got up there the night and I started to sing, the crowd, man, the crowd. From the first verse the stands were in an uproar...'', the good Dr Rohlehr, (Gordon, of course) writing for history (Calypso and Society in Pre-Independence Trinidad) that the topic (the Yankee withdrawal) "had been explored ad nauseam in the post-1945 period by Kitchener, Invader, Lion, Growler, Beginner and others. It was therefore remarkable that Sparrow was able to resuscitate it ten years later. It may be that the bitterness evoked by the presence of American soldiers as wealthier competitors in the skin-trade had outlasted them by a decade. It is, however, more likely that the calypso made its impact through the personality of Sparrow: his youth, vigour, confidence and the sense that he represented the newness of the time...Another reason for the popularity of "Jean and Dinah'' was the vitality and biting cynicism with which Sparrow was able to invest a worn-out theme. Consider the final stanza:
It's the glamour boys again
We are going to rule Port of Spain
No more Yankees to spoil the fete
Dorothy have to take what she get
All of them who used to make style
Taking their two shillings with a smile
No more hotel and Simmons bed*
By the sweat of thy brow shall thou eat bread.....
-snip-
“Simmons bed” a high quality type of mattress; From http://www.simmons.com/about “For over 140 years, Simmons has been introducing technological innovations to help the world sleep better… Today Simmons is one of the world’s leading names in bedding”…

I find this transcription interesting as that line is usually given as "No more hotel to rest your head".

Click http://www.elyrics.net/read/c/calypso-lyrics/jean-and-dinah-mighty-sparrow-lyrics.html for the complete lyrics to Mighty Sparrow's song "Yankee Gone" ("Jean And Dinah") that include that ending.

****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.