Rastafarians borrow the idea of the 12 Tribes from Judaism, hence the liberal application of the "Israelites" to refer to fellow devout Rastafarians, and sometimes also to poor suffering Jamaicans in general. the popularity of Rastafarianism among poor Jamaicans picked up in the mid-late 60's - contrary to the romanticized images, it was BY NO MEANS an acceptable appearance in anywhere but the very poorest, neglected neighborhoods in Kingston, or in Rastafarian settlements up in the hills our out in the country. to wear your locks out in the open walking through the city was to invite yourself to judgemental looks from church-going folk (many Jamaicans are quite conservative and religious) and occaisional police harrassment (especially when walking through not-so-poor parts of Kingston). when i was a kid, Rastas were looked upon almost like crazy people - a somewhat popular insult at the time was "comb your head, nasty dread!"..... unfortunately, that type of persecution was relatively common, and the attitude extended somewhat to very poor Jamaicans as well. the government(s) typically did very little to help poor people, so starving to death was not out of the question for someone who couldn't hustle up some kind of working situation. and there was little work to be had.
many, many people at the time were (and probably still are) desperately poor in the most literal sense.
that's pretty much the crux of "Israelites". Desmond Dekker said he wrote the song while walking home as he overheard a couple arguing about money, the man couldn't make enough money to provide for his wife and kids. DD probably saw some really destitute people walking around with little more than rags for clothes (a not uncommon sight in parts of Kingston), and there's your song - everyday life in Jamaica: corrupt government/police/establishment.. aka "Babylon" ... keeping poor people poor, while they struggle just to survive doing whatever menial work they can find.
"Israelites" might seem to imply that it's about Rastafarians, but in reality it's a song about the precarious situation of poor Jamaicans in general.
Rastafarians borrow the idea of the 12 Tribes from Judaism, hence the liberal application of the "Israelites" to refer to fellow devout Rastafarians, and sometimes also to poor suffering Jamaicans in general. the popularity of Rastafarianism among poor Jamaicans picked up in the mid-late 60's - contrary to the romanticized images, it was BY NO MEANS an acceptable appearance in anywhere but the very poorest, neglected neighborhoods in Kingston, or in Rastafarian settlements up in the hills our out in the country. to wear your locks out in the open walking through the city was to invite yourself to judgemental looks from church-going folk (many Jamaicans are quite conservative and religious) and occaisional police harrassment (especially when walking through not-so-poor parts of Kingston). when i was a kid, Rastas were looked upon almost like crazy people - a somewhat popular insult at the time was "comb your head, nasty dread!"..... unfortunately, that type of persecution was relatively common, and the attitude extended somewhat to very poor Jamaicans as well. the government(s) typically did very little to help poor people, so starving to death was not out of the question for someone who couldn't hustle up some kind of working situation. and there was little work to be had.
many, many people at the time were (and probably still are) desperately poor in the most literal sense.
that's pretty much the crux of "Israelites". Desmond Dekker said he wrote the song while walking home as he overheard a couple arguing about money, the man couldn't make enough money to provide for his wife and kids. DD probably saw some really destitute people walking around with little more than rags for clothes (a not uncommon sight in parts of Kingston), and there's your song - everyday life in Jamaica: corrupt government/police/establishment.. aka "Babylon" ... keeping poor people poor, while they struggle just to survive doing whatever menial work they can find.
"Israelites" might seem to imply that it's about Rastafarians, but in reality it's a song about the precarious situation of poor Jamaicans in general.
Excellent. Thanks
Excellent. Thanks
Nice to know that a fellow Israelite can find brothers in Kingston. -L'chaim
Nice to know that a fellow Israelite can find brothers in Kingston. -L'chaim