“Bellamina” is a song about the Bahamanian crews of rum running ships trying to avoid the U.S. Coast Guard. In the case of the Bellamina they paint the white boat black so it will be less easily detected at night. Author Zora Neale Hurston heard “Belllamina” when she first arrived in the Bahamas, incorporated it into one of her plays and even made a recording of the song in the ’30s. “Bellamina, Bellamina, Bellamina’s in the harbor, Bellamina, Bellamina, Bellamina’s in the harbor, Put Bellamina on de dock and paint Bellamina black black black, put Bellamina on de dock and paint Bellamina black.” In our version we don’t worry about being sneaky. We take scarves, put them on our kids’ heads and “paint” them many colors.
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Goombay Fete #1
Bahamian Goombay gets us all to party.
Goombay is a Bahamian folk music similar to Calypso in Trinidad or Mento in Jamaica, in which musicians sing about daily life using clever, melodic songs. A traditional goombay drum has a goatskin head. Drummers hold the drum between the legs and hit it with their hands. Using just one drum, the most adept goombay drummers can make an impressive array of sounds, creating tones that defy transcription using standard musical notation. This video is a beautiful blast from a Bahamian goombay-inspired band rather than a performance by one goombay virtuoso — hence the video’s title, “Goombay Fete #1.”
