As a young man employed by Jamaican Telephone Company Ltd, he became interested in the Rastafari movement and converted from Catholicism while still a teenager. His outspoken statements on theology have generated controversy even among Rastafarians, and he has described Rasta as "part of a universal quest which may also be pursued by other routes, such as Hinduism or Buddhism or Christianity.
The Monkey
Mutabaruka Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Three monkey sat on a coconut tree
Discussing things has they are said to be
Said one to the other, now listen you two
There is a certain rumour that cant be true
That man descended from our noble race
The very idea is a big disgrace
Nor her baby and ruin her life
Yeah.the monkey speaks his mind
And you never known a mother monk
To leave her baby causing it to plunk
Nor pass them on one to another
Till they scarcely knew who was their mother
Yeah... the monkey speaks his mind
And another thing you will never see
A monkey build a fence around a coconut tree
And let all the coconuts go to waist
Forbidding all other monkeys to come and taste
Now if I build a fence around this tree
Starvation will cause you to steal from me
Yeah.the monkey speaks his mind
Here is another thing a monkey wont do
Go out at night and get on a stew
Or use a gun a club or a knife
To take another monkey's life
Yes man descended the worthless b
But my god brothers from us he did not come
Yeah.the monkey speaks his mind
In Mutabaruka's song "The Monkey," the monkeys are portrayed as highly intelligent and proud creatures that take offense to the idea that humans descended from them. The opening line, "the monkey speaks his mind," sets the tone for the rest of the song, as the monkeys discuss and refute the notion that humans are superior to them.
The monkeys argue that they have a strong sense of family and community, unlike humans who often abandon their loved ones. They also highlight that unlike humans, they do not build fences around resources like coconuts and hoard them. Instead, they share freely with their community, and it is unthinkable for them to betray one another or take someone else's life.
The song is a commentary on human behavior, pointing out how we have lost touch with our primal instincts and sense of community. Mutabaruka uses the monkeys as a metaphor to suggest that we can learn from these intelligent creatures and live in harmony with each other and the environment.
Line by Line Meaning
Three monkey sat on a coconut tree
Three monkeys were sitting on a coconut tree.
Discussing things has they are said to be
They were having a discussion, as monkeys tend to do.
Said one to the other, now listen you two
One monkey said to the other two, 'Listen to me.'
There is a certain rumour that cant be true
There's a rumor going around that man evolved from monkeys, which can't be true.
That man descended from our noble race
The very idea that man evolved from monkeys is a disgrace to monkeys.
No monkey ever deserted his wife
Monkeys never leave their wives and children to ruin their lives.
Nor her baby and ruin her life
They would never abandon their babies and cause them harm.
Yeah.the monkey speaks his mind
This is the chorus, repeated throughout the song.
And you never known a mother monk
You would never see a mother monkey abandoning her baby.
To leave her baby causing it to plunk
The baby monkey would never fall from the tree because the mother abandoned it.
Nor pass them on one to another
Monkeys wouldn't give their babies to other monkeys to take care of until they forget who their real mother is.
Till they scarcely knew who was their mother
This would be confusing and distressing for the baby monkeys.
Yeah... the monkey speaks his mind
Chorus, repeated.
And another thing you will never see
Here's another example of what monkeys won't do.
A monkey build a fence around a coconut tree
Monkeys wouldn't build a fence around a coconut tree.
And let all the coconuts go to waist
They wouldn't waste all the coconuts by keeping them to themselves.
Forbidding all other monkeys to come and taste
Monkeys wouldn't prevent other monkeys from trying the coconuts too.
Now if I build a fence around this tree
If I were to build a fence around the tree,
Starvation will cause you to steal from me
Then you would be so hungry that you would have to steal coconuts from me, which is understandable.
Yeah.the monkey speaks his mind
Chorus, repeated.
Here is another thing a monkey wont do
Another example of what monkeys wouldn't do.
Go out at night and get on a stew
Monkeys wouldn't go out at night to cook and eat other monkeys in a stew.
Or use a gun a club or a knife
They wouldn't use weapons to kill each other.
To take another monkey's life
They wouldn't take another monkey's life, unlike humans.
Yes man descended the worthless b
The singer agrees that humans descended from monkeys.
But my god brothers from us he did not come
But humans did not evolve from monkeys; they are not 'god brothers' to the monkeys.
Yeah.the monkey speaks his mind
Chorus, repeated.
Contributed by Abigail D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@homeschoolingandawareness
😃😃 The monkeys have sense. We need to learn from them.
@TheRealJamaica
Big up Muta from the early 2000s