Juba Dis an' Juba Dat
Juba is a sort of "dance" described as a "thigh slapping art form". It came from West Africa and was performed by African American slaves. It involves slapping various parts of the body - especially the hips, thighs, chest and arms - and also stomping. The noise of the slapping and stomping plays the role of percussion in the song, keeping the beat.
This is chanted as a call-and-response song.
Juba Dis an' Juba Dat
Juba This and Juba That
Dance Song
Dance Song
(Historical Black American English)
(English)
Juba dis an' Juba dat,
Juba kill* a yaller cat;
Juba up an' Juba down,
Juba running all around.
Juba this and Juba that,
Juba killed* a yellow cat;
Juba up and Juba down,
Juba running all around.
Notes
*or "killed" or "chased".
Comments
Learn a Long Version of Juba here.
Thanks!
Thanks and Acknowledgements
This version of Juba can be found in "On the Trail of Negro Folk-Songs" (1925) by Dorothy Scarborough.
