McKay moved to New York City at the age of 17 to study architecture. In 1969 McKay launched the group "Exuma" with his then-partner and lifelong friend Sally O'Brien. He enlisted several musician friends, forming his backup band, the Junk Band. The band included O'Brien (as Princess Sally), Bogie, Lord Wellington, Villy, Spy Boy Thielheim, Mildred Vaney, Frankie Gearing, Diana Claudia Bunea (as Princess Diana), and his good friend Peppy Castro (Emil Thielhelm, lead singer of the Blues Magoos).
By the 1980s McKay had moved to New Orleans and was a regular at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival.
Over the years the group Exuma played and / or toured with Patti LaBelle, Curtis Mayfield, Rita Marley, Peter Tosh, Toots & the Maytals, Sly and the Family Stone, Steppenwolf, Black Flag and the Neville Brothers. Numerous artists performed on his recordings and in his stage shows.
After growing up on Cat Island, Tony McKay moved to New York City at the age of 17 to study architecture. However, he did not complete his studies and soon entered the music industry in a group called Tony McKay and the Islanders. In New York's 1960s Greenwich Village folk scene McKay often found himself performing with such greats as Bob Dylan, Richie Havens, Jimi Hendrix, and Barbra Streisand among others.
He soon gained the attention of Blues Magoos manager Bob Wyld. Wyld brought McKay to Mercury Records and convinced them to sign him. In 1970 McKay, now redubbed Exuma, released the albums Exuma and Exuma II. From those albums he released the singles "Exuma, The Obeah Man", "Junkanoo", "Damn Fool", and "Zandoo". Exuma also garnered recognition for his song "You Don't Know What's Going On", which was featured on the soundtrack to John G. Avilsen's 1970 film Joe starring Peter Boyle, Susan Sarandon, and Dennis Patrick.
Exuma left Mercury in 1971 to sign with the Kama Sutra label, where he released the albums Do Wah Nanny (1971), Snake (1972), Reincarnation (1972), and Life (1973). From these albums he released the singles "Do Wah Nanny", "The Bowery", "Brown Girl", "Rushing Through the Crowd", and a cover of Paul McCartney's "Monkberry Moon Delight". After low sales and seeking the freedom of independence, Exuma was no longer featured on a major record label for the rest of his career. He released Penny Sausage, Going to Cat Island, Universal Exuma and Street Life in the early 1980s, but none of these albums received much exposure.By this time, Exuma was enjoying his greatest recognition. In the Bahamas, he even scored two hit singles, "Shirlene" and "Rose Mary Smith." He had moved to New Orleans and was a regular at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage festival. He performed regularly at the Old Absinthe Bar. These nights could become jam sessions, as he had a habit of starting songs that were not in the set list and he still attracted great musicians, such as Bill Wyman and Bob Dylan's backing band. In 1986 under the ROIR label, Exuma released Rude Boy, which garnered slightly more attention and featured songs from some of his previous 1980s releases.
Over the years Exuma has played and/or toured with Patti LaBelle, Curtis Mayfield, Rita Marley, Peter Tosh, Toots & the Maytals, Sly and the Family Stone, Steppenwolf, Black Flag and the Neville Brothers. Exuma was even recognised by Queen Elizabeth II in 1978 when she awarded him the British Empire Medal for his contributions to Bahamian culture.
In the late 1980s, Exuma suffered a mild heart attack, and thus devoted much more of his time to painting, his other great talent. His paintings have been exhibited several times and collected by many art lovers. Never abandoning his music however, he still wrote and performed his original music. He continued to perform at the New Orleans Jazz Festival until 1991. The last years of his life saw him splitting his time between Miami, Florida and Nassau, in a house that his mother had left him. He died in his sleep in 1997.
Professor and fellow Bahamian Alfred M. Sears stated that Exuma was "A Bahamian visionary, humanistic philosopher and people's poet. Exuma gives expression to the beauty and power of the cultural life of the Bahamas - the people's every day experiences, folklore, myths, stories, junkanoo, rake and scrape, pain, joy, struggle and survival. His life and art reflect the wonderful cultural heritage and personality of Bahamians, drawing on the roots of Africa and the branches of the Amerindians, Europeans and Americans."[2]
Tony McKay had many children including Gavin, Kenyatta, Acklins and Jahleena. His first son, Shaw and his mother, "Sammy" were murdered in the early 1970s in New York's Lower East Side. Both Acklins and Kenyatta Alisha are vocal artists, carrying on the tradition of their father through their individual genres.
The Vision
Exuma Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I saw fire in the sky
Yeah last night I had a vision
I saw men that once had died
There were seven angels
You know they said that my time had come
Yes those seven angels
The first angel, the very first angel
You know he looked at me, he looked at me and he said to me
He told me that he put the fire in the sky
And the second angel he started to cry
And he said that all the evil men must die
And the third angel
He said he brought a plague that for three months would torment man
And he said
He said that man would pray to die
But that death would be just out of the reach of his hand
And the fourth angel
He had a great big urn
And when he poured
All the waters of the earth turned to blood
And he said that man didn′t learn
Man didn't learn
Man didn′t learn from the great big flood
Last night I had a vision
Oh I saw fire in the sky
Last night I had a vision
I saw men that once had died
The fifth and sixth angel said they'd come to help man
But man, being the fool that he is
Turned his back and he ran
Hey hey
Hey hey hey hey
All of, all of the good people have won
Hey hey
Hey hey hey hey
My my my my
My time has come
The seventh angel
He raised his hand
And not a word, not a word did he say
And all the dead walk throughout the land
Whispering, whispering, "It was judgement day"
Hey
I'll be gone
I saw fire in the sky
Last night I had a vision
I saw men that once had died
Hey
Hey hey
Oh no
My time has come
Exuma's song "The Vision" speaks about a spiritual experience that the singer had in his sleep. He saw a vision of seven angels who had the power to determine the fate of humanity. The singer saw fire in the sky, and then he saw men who had died before walking in the land. The seven angels told him that all the good people had won and that his time had come.
Each angel had a specific message for humanity. The first angel claimed to have put the fire in the sky, while the second angel cried for the destruction of evil men. The third angel brought a plague which would torment men for three months, and the fourth angel had a great urn that contained the waters of the earth, which he poured out, causing all the waters of the earth to turn into blood. The fifth and sixth angel wanted to help mankind, but the foolish man turned his back and ran. The seventh angel raised his hand, but he didn't utter any words. All the dead walked throughout the land whispering that it was the day of judgment.
The song seems to foretell the end of humanity according to the writer's understanding of religious and spiritual beliefs. The seven angels represent the seven seals and trumpets mentioned in the book of Revelation. The song is trying to pass a warning message to people to seek goodness and refrain from evil. In general, the song is ambiguous, and the interpretation can vary according to one's religious and spiritual beliefs. However, it captures the inevitability of death and the importance of living a good life.
Line by Line Meaning
Last night I had a vision
The singer had an intuitive experience
I saw fire in the sky
The singer saw fiery signs in the sky
Yeah last night I had a vision
The singer reiterates his intuition
I saw men that once had died
The artist saw formerly deceased men
There were seven angels
There were seven heavenly messengers present
You know they said that my time had come
The angels told the singer that his time had arrived
Yes those seven angels
The singer reminds the listener of the seven angels present
You know they said that all the good people have won
The angels said that the virtuous people had succeeded
The first angel, the very first angel
The artist introduces the first angel
You know he looked at me, he looked at me and he said to me
The first angel made eye contact with the artist and spoke to him
He told me that he put the fire in the sky
The first angel claimed responsibility for the fiery signs
And the second angel he started to cry
The second angel became emotional
And he said that all the evil men must die
The second angel said that wicked men must perish
And the third angel
The singer introduces the third angel
He said he brought a plague that for three months would torment man
The third angel caused a sickness to afflict man for three months
And he said
The third angel spoke again
He said that man would pray to die
The plague would cause people to wish for death
But that death would be just out of the reach of his hand
However, death would be unattanable
And the fourth angel
The singer introduces the fourth angel
He had a great big urn
The fourth angel carried a large pot
And when he poured
When he spilled the contents
All the waters of the earth turned to blood
All the bodies of water on earth transformed into blood
And he said that man didn′t learn
The fourth angel commented on mankind's failure to learn
Man didn't learn
Mankind failed to learn
Man didn′t learn from the great big flood
Humans didn't learn from the previous watery disaster
The fifth and sixth angel said they'd come to help man
The singer introduces the fifth and sixth angels who offered assistance
But man, being the fool that he is
However, humans are foolish
Turned his back and he ran
People ignored the angels and fled
All of, all of the good people have won
All the righteous individuals were favored
My time has come
The singer's time is up
The seventh angel
The singer introduces the seventh angel
He raised his hand
The seventh angel lifted his hand
And not a word, not a word did he say
The seventh angel remained silent
And all the dead walk throughout the land
The deceased rose from their graves and walked the earth
Whispering, whispering, "It was judgement day"
The resurrected corpses whispered that it was the day of reckoning
Hey
Interjection/Calling
I'll be gone
The singer will soon leave
Oh no
Surprise/Interjection
Writer(s): Exuma
Contributed by Eli Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.