Illusion

Transcribed by ear; all errors or omissions are mine. I’d love to continue building this data base of Antiguan and Barbudan song lyrics; anyone who wants to help with this (teachers? students? can anyone say research project?) welcome to do so.

Song: Illusion
The artist: King Short Shirt

You told the youths that they were free
And slavery has lost its sting
But they’re not foolish they can see
You’re lying deep within
Slavery has not left our doors not yet I’m sure
We have got to fight the battle some more
The time has come for every man in the Caribbean
To forge one common destiny
Designed to make our people free
We have got to stand up for the rights to lead the lives we choose
To change, enhance, or to refuse

Cho.
If you think the battle is done
My brethren you are riding
an illusion, an illusion
You talk of progress, love and justice, peace and unity
all illusion
We have no hold on these our native islands
Our hands are tied, we don’t control our actions
Come le we forward together in a social endeavor
our goal: social control
We slave no more
We’ll slave no more
only then we’ll slave no more
We’ll beg no more
We’ll stoop no more
Only then, we’ll be no …(?)

 

We cannot live forever more
Subjected from shore to shore
Reflecting cowardice and shame
Against our ancestral name
Are there no warriors left among us to rise and shine
No heroes left to rise up on to the shrine
No martyrs in our history for the youths to know
Scallas (?) died to make us free
Cuffy died to make us free
Garvey died to make us free
Must all these warriors die in vain
While we go back to slavery once again

Cho.

The struggle has only just begun
We’ve got to carry on
Uniting these West Indian lands
May take us generations
But independent in this region don’t mean one damn
If we can’t be independent as one
The economical policies are disheartening
The people voices are ringing
We are tired of living
A life of total subjection
Told what to spend
And what to keep
God knows sometimes we ain’t even have enough to eat

Cho.

This is transcribed by me (blogger and Wadadli Pen founder and coordinator) Joanne C. Hillhouse for educational purposes; no profit is being made.