Meditations "Woman Piabba"

[Stickyboy]

I've always wondered what the lyrics to the song "Woman Piabba" were,
and what the tile means. I believe there is a Calypso song that Harry
Belafonte did called "Man Piabba" back in the '50's. Anyone shed light
on this? Thanks,
Andy

[traderootsreggae]

From: "Stickyboy" <***@yahoo.com>
Subject: Meditations "Woman Piabba"
Date: Sunday, February 05, 2006 10:27 AM

I've always wondered what the lyrics to the song "Woman Piabba" were,
and what the tile means. I believe there is a Calypso song that Harry
Belafonte did called "Man Piabba" back in the '50's. Anyone shed light
on this? Thanks,
Andy


Here it is courtesy of
http://sniff.numachi.com/~rickheit/dtrad/pages/tiMNPIABBA.html
Man Piabba

Man Piabba

The other day I saw a lady was selling,
And I wanted something to eat;
I thought she'd have a banana, a bulla and pea
But I step back when I meet her,
She have a basket full of different weed,
She was crying out like she mad.

cho: She have a man piabba, a woman piabba,
Downtown crawling and a lemon grass;
Mumu root, gully root, granny backbone,
Dead man get up and live on to morn;
Corailla bush, deevy-deevy granchon,
And the old compellance weed;
But the only bush she never have,
Was my colly weed.

That old lady was so plainly,
Trying to let me understand;
Man piabba bush can really full your belly,
But you have to cook it in a black pan;
A little sugar, little salt, little nutmeg,
A little tovch of everything.

cho: She have a man piabba, a woman piabba,
Jacob ladder and a duppy krutchit;
Mumu root, gully root, granny backbone,
Dead man get up and live on to morn;
Corailla bush, deevy-deevy granchon,
And the old compellance weed;
But the only bush she never have,
Was my colly weed.

That old lady was so plainly,
Trying to let me understand
Man piabba bush can really full your belly,
But you have to cook it in a black pan;
A little sugar, little salt, little deadnut milk,
A little touch of everything.

ch: She have a man piabba, a woman piabba,
Sweet sweet munu wan a granny cratch-cratch
A belly full and the kusum weed,
Dead man get up and live on to morn;
Corailla bush, deevy-deevy granchon,
And the old compellance weed;
But the only bush she never have,
Was my colly weed.

Note: The pre-Bellafonte version. A Jamaican bandleader, passing
through Hawaii on the way to Japan helped me to write them
out. There are a few words of whose spelling he was
uncertain. DL

[Stickyboy]

Thanks, this is great!

[s***@gmail.com]

I still understand what a "piabba" is though :(

Post by traderootsreggae
Subject: Meditations "Woman Piabba"
Date: Sunday, February 05, 2006 10:27 AM
I've always wondered what the lyrics to the song "Woman Piabba" were,
and what the tile means. I believe there is a Calypso song that Harry
Belafonte did called "Man Piabba" back in the '50's. Anyone shed light
on this? Thanks,
Andy
Here it is courtesy of
http://sniff.numachi.com/~rickheit/dtrad/pages/tiMNPIABBA.html
Man Piabba
Man Piabba
The other day I saw a lady was selling,
And I wanted something to eat;
I thought she'd have a banana, a bulla and pea
But I step back when I meet her,
She have a basket full of different weed,
She was crying out like she mad.
cho: She have a man piabba, a woman piabba,
Downtown crawling and a lemon grass;
Mumu root, gully root, granny backbone,
Dead man get up and live on to morn;
Corailla bush, deevy-deevy granchon,
And the old compellance weed;
But the only bush she never have,
Was my colly weed.
That old lady was so plainly,
Trying to let me understand;
Man piabba bush can really full your belly,
But you have to cook it in a black pan;
A little sugar, little salt, little nutmeg,
A little tovch of everything.
cho: She have a man piabba, a woman piabba,
Jacob ladder and a duppy krutchit;
Mumu root, gully root, granny backbone,
Dead man get up and live on to morn;
Corailla bush, deevy-deevy granchon,
And the old compellance weed;
But the only bush she never have,
Was my colly weed.
That old lady was so plainly,
Trying to let me understand
Man piabba bush can really full your belly,
But you have to cook it in a black pan;
A little sugar, little salt, little deadnut milk,
A little touch of everything.
ch: She have a man piabba, a woman piabba,
Sweet sweet munu wan a granny cratch-cratch
A belly full and the kusum weed,
Dead man get up and live on to morn;
Corailla bush, deevy-deevy granchon,
And the old compellance weed;
But the only bush she never have,
Was my colly weed.
Note: The pre-Bellafonte version. A Jamaican bandleader, passing
through Hawaii on the way to Japan helped me to write them
out. There are a few words of whose spelling he was
uncertain. DL

[Filthy Rich]

Post by Stickyboy
I've always wondered what the lyrics to the song "Woman Piabba" were,
and what the tile means. I believe there is a Calypso song that Harry
Belafonte did called "Man Piabba" back in the '50's. Anyone shed light
on this? Thanks,
Andy

A plant highly flavoured as a 'tea bush', 'fever bush', and for cuts
and sores is that known as piaba throughout the island [Jamaica}.

The above is from Frederick G Cassidy's excellent book 'Jamaica Talk'.

Lyrics:

When I was a lad of three-foot-three
Certain questions occurred to me,
So I asked me father quite seriously
To tell me the story 'bout the bird and bee.
He stammered and he stuttered pathetically
And this is what he said to me.

He said, "The woman piaba and the man piaba
and the Ton Ton call baka lemon grass,
The lily root, gully root, belly root uhmm,
And the famous grandy scratch scratch.

It was clear as mud but it covered the ground
And the confusion made the brain go 'round.
I went and ask a good friend of mine,
Known to the world as Albert Einstein.
He said "Son, from the beginning of time and creativity
There existed the force of relativity
Pi r square and a minus ten means a routine only when
The solar system in one light year
Make the Hayden planetarium disappear
So if Mt Everest doesn't move
I am positive that it will prove

That the woman piaba and the man piaba
And the Ton Ton call baka lemon grass,
The lily root, gully root, belly root uhmm,
And the famous grandy scratch scratch.

It was clear as mud but it covered the ground
And the confusion made the brain go 'round.
I grabbed a boat and went abroad
In Baden Baden asked Sigmund Freud
He said "Son, from your sad face remove the grouch
Put the body down up on the couch
I can see from your frustration a neurotic sublimation
Hey love and hate is psychosomatic
Your Rorsach shows that you're a peri pathetic
It all started with a broken sibling
In the words of the famous Rudyard Kipling

That the woman piaba and the man piaba
And the Ton Ton call baka lemon grass,
The lily root, gully root, belly root uhmm,
And the famous grandy scratch scratch.

Well I traveled far and I traveled wide
And I don't even have me self a bride
All the great men upon this earth
Have confused me since my birth
I've been over land and been over sea
Trying to find answer 'bout the bird and bee
But now that I am ninety three
I don't give a darn you see

If the woman piaba and the man piaba
And the Ton Ton call baka lemon grass,
The lily root, gully root, belly root uhmm,
And the famous grandy scratch scratch.


Copyright © Åke Holm 2006

[b***@gmail.com]

Post by Stickyboy
I've always wondered what the lyrics to the song "Woman Piabba" were,
and what the tile means. I believe there is a Calypso song that Harry
Belafonte did called "Man Piabba" back in the '50's. Anyone shed light
on this? Thanks,
Andy

http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/westernnews/Get-a--woman-piaba--bath-to-relieve-stress_7693980
This article should tell you what you need to know.

[s***@gmail.com]

Who.is the lead vocal on man peyabba