Exploiting [Song]

King Selewa's version uploaded by mistou98

EXPLOITING
Performed by King Selewa
Originally by Lord Caresser (Rufus Callender) (1938)

Buy me a Zeppelin, dou-dou darling,
Buy me a Zeppelin
A steamboat and then I must,
Be an exploiter like Columbus, oh baby.

Buy me a Zeppelin, dou-dou darling,
Buy me a Zeppelin, you could believe,
A steamboat and then I must,
Be an exploiter like Columbus.

I want to go roaming around the world,
Touching all seas from north to south pole,
To Greenland, Finland, Iceland and all,
Then to the Niagara water fall, oh baby.

Buy me a Zeppelin, dou-dou darling,
Buy me a Zeppelin
A steamboat and then I must,
Be an exploiter like Columbus, oh baby.

Yes, to every isthmus, to every lake, you could believe,
 I want to be like Sir Francis Drake,
Vasco Nunez, Vasco De Gama,
And Columbus who discovered America, oh baby.

Buy me a Zeppelin, dou-dou darling,
Buy me a Zeppelin
A steamboat and then I must,
Be an exploiter like Columbus.

Even like Lord Nelson, I’d like to be,
I mean the ruler of the air, the land and the sea,
To acquire power wherever I go, 
Like Don Antonio de Berrio, oh baby.

Buy me a Zeppelin, dou-dou darling,
Buy me a Zeppelin
A steamboat and then I must,
Be an exploiter like Columbus.

Then I’ll be famous like Wellington,
Our first Governor, the great Chacon,
I mean the Himalayan mountains, I’ll even score,
Then see the Nawab of Singapore, oh babe.

Buy me a Zeppelin, dou-dou darling,
Buy me a Zeppelin
A steamboat and then I must,
Be an exploiter like Columbus.

I don’t mind if I'm all alone
I'm gonna take a chance to the Canal Zone
Then to the deserts of Sahara
See my grandparents in Africa, oh babe.

Buy me a Zeppelin, dou-dou darling,
Buy me a Zeppelin
A steamboat and then I must,
Be an exploiter like Columbus.

Then every school child will be told the name 
Selewa, who acquired unrivaled fame
Even bold and more courageous
The old man Christopher Columbus, oh babe.

Buy me a Zeppelin, dou-dou darling,
Buy me a Zeppelin, you could believe
A steamboat and then I must,
Be an exploiter like Columbus, oh babe.

Buy me a Zeppelin, dou-dou darling,
Buy me a Zeppelin
A steamboat and then I must,
Be an exploiter like Columbus, oh babe.

Buy me a Zeppelin,
Buy me a Zeppelin
A steamboat and then I must,
Be an exploiter like Columbus, oh babe.

Buy me a Zeppelin,
Buy me a Zeppelin
A steamboat and then I must,
Be an exploiter like Columbus.

..............................................................................................................................
       

 A Note From The Gull
 

Thank you, King Selewa! I absolutely love your rendition of this classic by Caresser. Something about that seductive violin weaving its way in the background throughout the song, and as if down to us through time, introduces a note that borders on tragedy. "What is joke for schoolboy is death for crapaud." What will be the impact of Caresser's exploits? What are the consequences of exploration for both the explorer and the explored? For me the song suggests something beyond nostalgia - a mix of fantasy, hubris, a restriction/limitation that must be escaped, a fate that cannot be avoided. He, like Columbus, is asking another person to buy him the zeppelin which will allow him to make his dream a reality. Catherine of Aragon must have heard a similar whining in her ear. That repetition of "Buy me a zeppelin, buy me a zeppelin" adds another plaintive layer. I associate this song not simply with wanderlust or healthy interest in exploring the world. I wonder also about the use of the word 'exploiter'. Is he using it in the sense of someone who performs many heroic exploits or someone who explores in order to exploit. When you hear these words, it is clear that he is very interested in winning fame and power through these "exploits":

"Even like Lord Nelson, I’d like to be, I mean the ruler of the air, the land and the sea, To acquire power wherever I go, Like Don Antonio de Berrio, so darling," "Then I’ll be famous like Wellington, Or our first Governor, the great Chacon, I mean the Himalayan mountains, I’ll even score, Then see the Nawab of Singapore, so baby," "Then every school child will be taught the name Selewa, who acquired unrivalled fame Even bolder and more courageous Than the old man Christopher Columbus, so darling,"

Just beautiful, King Selewa! I love hearing your interpretations. Because you approach this music as someone from outside of our way of seeing and hearing, you allow us to uncover additional facets.

"Patria est communis omnium parens" - Our native land is the common parent of us all. Keep it beautiful, make it even more so.

Blessed is all of creation
Blessed be my beautiful people
Blessed be the day of our awakening
Blessed is my country
Blessed are her patient hills.

Mweh ka allay!
Guanaguanare