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Length: 4:11
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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, brother
Sing a song of freedom, sister
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
We got to sing it together
Everyone
La la la la la
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?
The last verse is about revenge. The New Testament calls us to a higher standard......
The last verse is about asking God to send his revenge. New Testament doesn't back away from that an inch. "Vengeance is mine, I will repay," says the Lord. And then there's the book of Revelation.
A shrewd observation! Makes for a great song, but religious texts provide a lot of flexibility for their followers....
The last verse is about revenge. The New Testament calls us to a higher standard......
Psalm 137. Notice they don't sing the last verse about dashing the Babylonian infants against the rocks.
A shrewd observation! Makes for a great song, but religious texts provide a lot of flexibility for their followers....
I didn't see anyone claiming that any Germans claimed writing any psalms.
The issue here is "intellectual property" (IP), not authorship of lyrics. The Melodians took some ancient texts, which are in the public domain, put them to a melody that *they* created. The association of the lyrics with their original melody becomes their IP and is protected by copyright law. Boney-M/Farian used it without attribution and were rightly challenged.
For the record, I love this track! Boney-M's is certainly dance-able, but this one appeals more to the soul.
If there's any beef with the lyrics sue Nebuchadnezzar
How wet I'll be
If I don't find
The bathroom key
(my youth)
[ . . . ]
Neither Melodians nor Germans can claim authorship of these timeless lyrics.
I didn't see anyone claiming that any Germans claimed writing any psalms.
The issue here is "intellectual property" (IP), not authorship of lyrics. The Melodians took some ancient texts, which are in the public domain, put them to a melody that *they* created. The association of the lyrics with their original melody becomes their IP and is protected by copyright law. Boney-M/Farian used it without attribution and were rightly challenged.
For the record, I love this track! Boney-M's is certainly dance-able, but this one appeals more to the soul.
what a drag
א עַל נַהֲרוֹת, בָּבֶל—שָׁם יָשַׁבְנוּ, גַּם-בָּכִינוּ: בְּזָכְרֵנוּ, אֶת-צִיּוֹן.1 By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion.
Sorry, it's inseparably connected with my youth
Wait.... no! seriously? The you prefer the disco remake?
I grew up with that version so that's what always runs through my head even when I hear the original. BUT I probably would have preferred this version if I had grown up with it instead.
Great song, and same for me - the Boney M cover gets the edge.
Even when you know it is one German guy doing all the vocals?
https://mars.nasa.gov/resource...
....
ahem, sorry, carry on.
the harder they come is OK, the movie rockers well... ROCKS
Great song, and same for me - the Boney M cover gets the edge.
Wait.... no! seriously? The you prefer the disco remake?
It's funny, there's a guy in town who walks around
with this guys final facial expression constantly on his face.
It's funny, there's a guy in town who walks around
with this guys final facial expression constantly on his face.
Everytime I hear this song I remember a car trip to Spain with 4 friends in the summer of 1978. When the Boney M.-Cassette of the driver ran through the umpteenth time, I let him give it to me during exactly this song and threw it out of the window without any comment. Not nice, I know, but from that moment on the vacation was saved.
Reminds me of a similar road trip with ABBA on the umpteenth time.
123K
Everytime I hear this song I remember a car trip to Spain with 4 friends in the summer of 1978. When the Boney M.-Cassette of the driver ran through the umpteenth time, I let him give it to me during exactly this song and threw it out of the window without any comment. Not nice, I know, but from that moment on the vacation was saved.
You've got the wrong image wit this song. It shows Jimmy Cliff's "The Harder They Come".
First time I've seen this.
Great song, btw!
um, no he hasn't.
ah.. I sit corrected.
Good grief... Germans claiming they wrote Psalm 137 is beyond belief - thus nonsense. THE song is almost a verbatim copy of the King James translation What on earth were you smoking when you wrote this? Neither Melodians nor Germans can claim authorship of these timeless lyrics.
Me too! and their Christmas album was popular in our house too! :) 123K
123K
Good grief... Germans claiming they wrote Psalm 137 is beyond belief - thus nonsense. THE song is almost a verbatim copy of the King James translation What on earth were you smoking when you wrote this? Neither Melodians nor Germans can claim authorship of these timeless lyrics.
Rastafari
re: not hearing the other version, I was born in '77 and was pretty content to listen to my folks' choice of classic rock stations until my late teens.
It's horrible!!!
I'm surprised you hadn't heard that version before; it seemed unavoidable in the late '70s and early '80s.
My oh my, this really *is* the original version. This song is so tied to Boney M it's almost unthinkable it is not theirs. I like both versions.
Also this one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JsqSNIR5DsU (not sure if it even is a (loose) cover or a different song.... seems to be the latter though)
You've got the wrong image wit this song. It shows Jimmy Cliff's "The Harder They Come".
First time I've seen this.
Great song, btw!
um, no he hasn't.
You've got the wrong image wit this song. It shows Jimmy Cliff's "The Harder They Come".
First time I've seen this.
Great song, btw!
My oh my, this really *is* the original version. This song is so tied to Boney M it's almost unthinkable it is not theirs. I like both versions.
Also this one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JsqSNIR5DsU (not sure if it even is a (loose) cover or a different song.... seems to be the latter though)
It's horrible!!!
Try watching them on video. Hilarious.
It's horrible!!!
it's way better and I love it
there is your source
mread wrote:
I can't find anything to back this up. It's apparently more about Black liberation in the context of the Rastafarian movement, not the context of slavery. Related, yes. But anyway, the appeal is broader and resonates with anyone who longs for a former time/place of peace and comfort. Great song. 8.
This is the original version, not a cover.
Thank God for the best cover version. ;-)
All those years and i never knew it was a cover.
This is the original version, not a cover.
I can't find anything to back this up. It's apparently more about Black liberation in the context of the Rastafarian movement, not the context of slavery. Related, yes. But anyway, the appeal is broader and resonates with anyone who longs for a former time/place of peace and comfort. Great song. 8.
Boney M, oh sweet bird of youth.
~ 1015 BC, if anyone has/will beat that, they'll probably be in a Mandopop song.
I'd never heard it before either. Turns out it is "original."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rivers_of_Babylon
"Rivers of Babylon" is a rastafarian 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 Bible. ...
Could have sworn it was a traditional (and therefore anonymous) folk song. Thank you.
Original? Are you kiddin'?
I'd never heard it before either. Turns out it is "original."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rivers_of_Babylon
"Rivers of Babylon" is a rastafarian 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 Bible. ...
My thoughts entirely.
way cool brotha
Original? Are you kiddin'?
(edit) when you said "everything", did you mean an "everything" that includes commercial rap, hiphop, RnB, urban, or whatever that garbage is called nowadays? No? Thought so ;-)
... I sometimes fear I am a musical racist. Then, I quickly play some Youssou N'Dour :-)
People accuse me of being a musical racist, but I do like the Beastie Boys!
Delightful rendition, never did like the Boney M version
Help me, I can't stop bobbing my head.
And even though, I obviously have the Boney M version engraved in my brain, this one has genuine musical qualities of its own.
P.S. My 2 cents on reggae as a genre: I'm sure others have stated the same: I'm not excited by reggae... but I worship Marley.
I wish they'd carry neither of them :-)
I'm geographically a bit further from Jamaica, but I share with you an irrational irritation when it comes to reggae. A rationalization. I think reggae is a truly boring, overly self-similar, sluggish genre.
Then again, when you said "everything", did you mean an "everything" that includes commercial rap, hiphop, RnB, urban, or whatever that garbage is called nowadays? No? Thought so ;-)
... I sometimes fear I am a musical racist. Then, I quickly play some Youssou N'Dour :-)
Luthien wrote:
and the Caribbean and Latin America (esp since this is is a Jamaican, not American group...).
Geographically, Jamaica and the Caribbean are within North America. This is the best version of this tune - to me, that is.
fuzzy wrote:
and the Caribbean and Latin America (esp since this is is a Jamaican, not American group...).
I'm probably being a philistine here, but I'll take the Boney M cover over this every day of the week...
Great song, and same for me - the Boney M cover gets the edge.
ONE LOVE EVERYONE!
We just introduced this album to our 6 and 8 yr old kids a few days ago on a car trip, and when we got home we had to google the lyrics. I always throught "strange land" was "Australia."
Sigh. Decades later, the crack babies have had babies.
it's about being an exile, which must be an awful experience, and sadly an experience that many people live through today. Timeless song.
Amen.
Oh dear - what a pity - it's such a beautiful lyric - taken from the Bible
it's not supposed to be funny.
it's about being an exile, which must be an awful experience, and sadly an experience that many people live through today. Timeless song.
jesus, don't be that guy then
plus 20 here, so we balance to 10 apiece, as it should be
wtf man