Smart Bajan
Mighty Sparrow Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

A Barbadian engineer by the name of Cephas
Got to know that Trinidadians were superstitious
This Bajan smart man by the name of Cephas
Got to know that Trinidadians were superstitious
So he buy a piece a land up Hololo Mountain
Put concrete ′round a spring and open a fountain
Well in less than no time, if you hear the shout
Stupid people coming from all about

Throwing coins in the fountain
Each one seeking happiness
Thrown by hopeful lovers
Tell me, which one will the fountain bless?

And by the time they pull out, the Bajan dive in
Taking all the money from the fountain
And hear him singing:
"All is mine, all is mine, all is mine!"

I am sure that you would be surprised to know
How much big shots does go to Mount Hololo
All kind of people believe in this thing
If you see so many old maids in search of a ring
Throwin' coins in the fountain like they feeding fish
Kneeling down on their knees making a wish
Thousands of people were going up there daily
Trinidad was coming just like Italy

So many coins in the fountain
Each one longing for a home
There they lie in the fountain
Just like in the heart of Rome

And is to see the Barbadian with he swimming trunk on
Waiting patiently ′til all the fools gone
To sing:
"All is mine, all is mine, all is mine!"

Four o'clock one morning meh girlfriend waking me
Telling me come go up to the fountain with she
Ah say "Well me ain't walking twelve miles up no mountain!"
She say "Well if it′s twelve thousand we still going"
"Darlin′", she say, "we living too long in sin
We have a right to go and fix it by the fountain"
Ah had some money in meh house to pay meh rent
In the fountain the girl throw every cent

And hear she singing:

Which one will the fountain bless?
Which one will the fountain bless?

But all the time the stupid woman making she wish
Is the smart Barbadian that is getting rich
The vagabond singing:
"All is mine, all is mine, all is mine!"

Ah don't know how the news reach the F.B.I.
But the police decide to arrest the guy
An inspector by the name of Duntin
Disguise himself, so he went up to the fountain
Take out three gold coins and throw it inside
Pretend he′s making a wish, but he went and hide
When the Barbadian see the gold like if he went crazy
So in the fountain he jumping immediately
And hear him singing:

Three coins in the fountain
Through the ripples how they shine
"All is mine, all is mine, all is mine!"

But as the vagabond come out from the fountain




The Inspector arrest him and start to sing:
"Not this time, not this time, not this time!"

Overall Meaning

The song "Smart Bajan" by Mighty Sparrow tells the story of a Barbadian engineer named Cephas who discovers that Trinidadians are superstitious. He buys a piece of land up Hololo Mountain and builds a fountain that becomes a popular spot for Trinidadian people to visit and throw coins in, each seeking happiness and the blessing of the fountain. However, Cephas is the one who ends up reaping the rewards, as he goes diving into the fountain to take all the coins once the visitors have left.


The lyrics highlight the power of superstition and the tendency for people to believe in luck, even to the point of going to extreme lengths such as travelling miles and throwing all their savings into a fountain in the hope of being blessed. It also exposes the greed of some individuals who take advantage of people's superstitions for personal gain.


Overall, the song is a humorous yet insightful commentary on human behavior, superstition, and the greed that can sometimes accompany it.


Line by Line Meaning

A Barbadian engineer by the name of Cephas
Introduces the character Cephas, a smart man from Barbados who is an engineer


Got to know that Trinidadians were superstitious
Cephas learned that people from Trinidad believe in superstitions


This Bajan smart man by the name of Cephas
Reiterates that Cephas is a smart man from Barbados


Got to know that Trinidadians were superstitious
Reiterates that Cephas learned that people from Trinidad believe in superstitions


So he buy a piece a land up Hololo Mountain
Cephas purchased some land on Hololo Mountain


Put concrete ′round a spring and open a fountain
Cephas built a fountain by surrounding a spring with concrete


Well in less than no time, if you hear the shout
People started coming to the fountain very quickly


Stupid people coming from all about
Insults the people who believe in the superstition and were going to the fountain


Throwing coins in the fountain
People throw coins in the fountain as part of their superstition


Each one seeking happiness
People throw coins hoping to find happiness


Thrown by hopeful lovers
The coins are thrown by people who are in love and hoping for blessings


Tell me, which one will the fountain bless?
Asks a rhetorical question about which person/coin the fountain will bless


And by the time they pull out, the Bajan dive in
While the people are leaving the fountain, Cephas quickly goes in


Taking all the money from the fountain
Cephas steals all the money from the fountain


And hear him singing:
Indicates that Cephas is singing a song


"All is mine, all is mine, all is mine!"
The lyrics to Cephas' song, indicating that he believes he has taken all the blessings from the fountain for himself


I am sure that you would be surprised to know
Introduces a new idea that the listeners/readers may be surprised to learn


How much big shots does go to Mount Hololo
Many important people visit Mount Hololo


All kind of people believe in this thing
Explains that people of all kinds believe in the superstition of the fountain


If you see so many old maids in search of a ring
Older, unmarried women are especially visible among fountain visitors


Throwin' coins in the fountain like they feeding fish
Older women throw coins into the fountain as if feeding fish


Kneeling down on their knees making a wish
Describes the posture of the people making wishes at the fountain


Thousands of people were going up there daily
Lots of people are going to the fountain every day


Trinidad was coming just like Italy
Many people from Trinidad visit the fountain, similar to the number of visitors to tourist attractions in Italy


So many coins in the fountain
There are a lot of coins in the fountain


Each one longing for a home
The people throwing coins are each wishing for a home or happiness


There they lie in the fountain
The coins end up in the fountain


Just like in the heart of Rome
The image is reminiscent of the famous Trevi Fountain in Rome


And is to see the Barbadian with he swimming trunk on
Describes Cephas wearing swimming trunks


Waiting patiently ′til all the fools gone
Cephas waits until all the foolish visitors to the fountain have left before going in and stealing the money


To sing:
Indicates Cephas is about to start singing again


"All is mine, all is mine, all is mine!"
Cephas repeats the lyrics to his song


Four o'clock one morning meh girlfriend waking me
Introduces a new character, Cephas' girlfriend, waking him up early in the morning


Telling me come go up to the fountain with she
Cephas' girlfriend wants to go to the fountain with him


Ah say "Well me ain't walking twelve miles up no mountain!"
Cephas responds that he does not want to walk the long distance to the fountain


She say "Well if it′s twelve thousand we still going"
Cephas' girlfriend is determined to go, even if it means walking twelve thousand miles


"Darlin′", she say, "we living too long in sin
Cephas' girlfriend wants to go to the fountain to absolve some of their sins


We have a right to go and fix it by the fountain"
Cephas' girlfriend believes that going to the fountain will help them fix their sins


Ah had some money in meh house to pay meh rent
Cephas reveals that he has money in his house that he needs to pay his rent


In the fountain the girl throw every cent
Cephas' girlfriend throws all of his rent money into the fountain


And hear she singing:
Indicates that Cephas' girlfriend is about to start singing


"Which one will the fountain bless?
Cephas' girlfriend sings the same question about which coin the fountain will bless


Which one will the fountain bless?"
Continuation of the song lyrics


But all the time the stupid woman making she wish
Cephas insults his girlfriend, saying that she is foolish to believe in the superstition


Is the smart Barbadian that is getting rich
Cephas sees himself as the smart one who is getting rich by stealing from the fountain


The vagabond singing:
Refers to Cephas as a vagabond, indicating that he is unscrupulous


"All is mine, all is mine, all is mine!"
Cephas repeats his song lyrics again


Ah don't know how the news reach the F.B.I.
Introduces the F.B.I. (Federal Bureau of Investigation) and their involvement in the story


But the police decide to arrest the guy
The police decide to arrest Cephas for stealing from the fountain


An inspector by the name of Duntin
Introduces Inspector Duntin, who is going to arrest Cephas


Disguise himself, so he went up to the fountain
Inspector Duntin disguises himself and goes to the fountain to catch Cephas


Take out three gold coins and throw it inside
Inspector Duntin throws three gold coins into the fountain


Pretend he′s making a wish, but he went and hide
Inspector Duntin pretends to make a wish at the fountain but then hides


When the Barbadian see the gold like if he went crazy
Cephas sees the gold coins and gets very excited


So in the fountain he jumping immediately
Cephas jumps into the fountain to get the gold coins


And hear him singing:
Cephas starts singing again


"Three coins in the fountain
Cephas sings about the three coins in the fountain


Through the ripples how they shine
Describes how the gold coins sparkle in the water


"All is mine, all is mine, all is mine!"
Repeats the same lyrics as before


But as the vagabond come out from the fountain
Refers to Cephas again as a vagabond


The Inspector arrest him and start to sing:
Inspector Duntin arrests Cephas and taunts him by singing


"Not this time, not this time, not this time!"
Inspector Duntin repeats the lyrics as he arrests Cephas




Contributed by Amelia A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

Genre not found
Artist not found
Album not found
Song not found
Comments from YouTube:

@bondeebryan411

He is so far above the rest
The Birdie is up there where the air is rare all by himself.
Just the best.
Love you man.

@pizee

I was singing this song a few weeks ago and I am glad you put it up. Lawd...what a laugh!

@wendelcarrington2025

Co sex

@marshaallison70

Every time i tried to out my father, he sang this to me. When i agreed about not getting enough allowance my father would sing" all is mine". i tried singing to him once and sang"Not this time"

@ShakeshaWilliams

marsha allison 😂

@marjorieferguson2064

Those were the day myself friend we taught will never end

@heatherfulmore3412

Lol

@debcarey7900

The citizens of this Earth given a special gift when Mighty Sparrow born.

@SKYPAT99

Thanks for the Good memories!

@thebonzell

Tonight is oldies night. No better way to beat the COVID-19 lockdown.

More Comments