Edimge tugai naiser,
Me nebawam norem,
Warrem pe tugai naiser
No merbim-im-naiser.
This song is notated in Ron Edwards' collection, "The Big Book of Australian Folk Song" (1976, Rigby Ltd, Adelaide). This is what he wrote about it:
"EDIMGE was taught to me by Thomas Lowah, a Torres Straits Islander friend, who told me that it was composed by Fred Ware... Like most songs in Island language this one has a dance to it, and this particular dance was created by Thomas, himself a noted dancer. Later, Elsie Smith, who comes from Murray Island, wrote it out for me in the Eastern Island language.
"There is a lot more to island songs than first meets the eye, there is for instance quite often an underlying emotion behind them, which cannot be discovered in the actual words of the song. Thomas once explained to me that besides the literal translation, this song has also another layer of understanding which would perhaps be explained as:
"Come brother, let us fish
While we delay the tide recedes
See now the distant reef emerges
Do not delay, for others go
And remember brother that all your life
The tide is going out.."
lyrics
Lyrics, as sung in English:
Morning, and the tide is low.
Let's go out to the reef.
Come on brother, we must go,
For the fish await in the deep.
credits
from To Lawsons Joy,
released January 26, 2014
Engineered by Bryce Moorhead.
Produced by Bryce Moorhead and Steve Towson.
Steve Towson (vocals, guitar), Kimbeaux Dawson (flute), Ness Glenn (cello).
Profile photo by Staples. Banner art by TB (Mr. T + MC.T + WHO).
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