The Barbarians formed in 1964 in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. While their debut single, "Hey Little Bird" (on Joy Records) bombed, two of their next three singles (on Laurie) charted on Billboard, (with "Are You a Boy or Are You a Girl?" peaking at #55) and also made the Cash Box charts.
They received their biggest break when featured on The T.A.M.I. Show (performing "Hey Little Bird") alongside other artists such as The Rolling Stones, The Supremes, Lesley Gore, Chuck Berry, James Brown, and Marvin Gaye.
As their name implies, their image relied heavily on looking barbaric. They wore leather sandals and grew their hair longer than most of their contemporaries. One-armed drummer Victor "Moulty" Moulton had a prosthetic claw on his left arm. He had lost part of his left arm in an explosion at the age of 14. Moulty was able to play drums using the prosthesis to hold a drum stick. Their minor hit "Moulty" was a humorous and melodramatic autobiographical song chronicling the drummer's life and the loss of his hand. The Barbarians disbanded in 1966.
The Ramones' song Do You Remember Rock 'n' Roll Radio? includes Moulty in its list of rock 'n' roll figures and institutions.
2) Streetpunk band from Barberà del Vallés, Catalonia
Bo Diddley
The Barbarians Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Mama's gonna buy me a mocking bird
And If that mocking bird don't sing,
Mama's gonna buy me a diamond ring
If that diamond ring don't shine
Mama's gonna take it to a private eye
If that private eye can't see
Mama what are you gonna do to me?
Hey! Hey!
Hey! Hey!
Hey! Bo Diddley
Hey! Bo Diddley
Hey! Hey! Bo Diddley have you heard?
Mama's gonna buy me a mocking bird
And If that mocking bird don't sing,
Mama's gonna buy me a diamond ring
If that diamond ring don't shine
Mama's gonna buy me a bottle of wine
If that bottle of wine gets broke
Mama's gonna buy me a nanny goat
And if that nanny goat runs away
Mama's gonna beat him at Boom-Di-Aye
Hey! Hey!
Hey! Bo Diddley
Hey! Bo Diddley
Hey! Bo Diddley, Bo Diddley!
Go, Bo Diddley!
Hey!
Hey! Bo Diddley
C'mon Bo Diddley
One more time!
The lyrics of "Bo Diddley" by The Barbarians are about a child who is hoping to gain different rewards from their mother. The first verse mentions a mocking bird that the mother promises to buy for the child. If the bird doesn't sing, the mother will then buy a diamond ring. If the ring doesn't shine, the mother will take it to a private eye. The child then wonders what the mother will do to them if the private eye can't fix the ring. The second verse follows a similar pattern with the mother promising to buy a bottle of wine if the diamond ring doesn't shine. If the bottle breaks, the mother will buy a nanny goat. And if the nanny goat runs away, the mother will beat it. The chorus repeatedly addresses the song's titular character, Bo Diddley, as if he is aware of the child's predicament.
Overall, the lyrics seem to reflect a child's desire for material possessions and the mother's attempts to appease those desires. The use of Bo Diddley's name might suggest that the child looks up to him as a role model, or that Bo Diddley represents a kind of cool rebelliousness that the child aspires to. There's also an element of playful exaggeration in the lyrics, as the mother's responses escalate with each failed reward.
Line by Line Meaning
Hey! Hey! Bo Diddley have you heard?
Hello, Bo Diddley, are you aware?
Mama's gonna buy me a mocking bird
My mother is going to purchase a bird to mimic sounds.
And If that mocking bird don't sing,
And if the bird does not make noise,
Mama's gonna buy me a diamond ring
My mother will buy me jewelry made of carbon.
If that diamond ring don't shine
If the jewel does not emit radiant light
Mama's gonna take it to a private eye
My mother will enlist a detective to scrutinize the jewelry.
If that private eye can't see
If the detective is unable to figure out what's wrong
Mama what are you gonna do to me?
Mother, what are you going to do to me?
Hey! Hey!
Oi! Oi!
Hey! Bo Diddley
Hello, Bo Diddley
Hey! Bo Diddley
Hello, Bo Diddley
Hey! Hey! Bo Diddley have you heard?
Hello, Bo Diddley, are you aware?
Mama's gonna buy me a mocking bird
My mother is going to purchase a bird to mimic sounds.
And If that mocking bird don't sing,
And if the bird does not make noise,
Mama's gonna buy me a diamond ring
My mother will buy me jewelry made of carbon.
If that diamond ring don't shine
If the jewel does not emit radiant light
Mama's gonna buy me a bottle of wine
My mother will buy me an alcoholic beverage made of fermented grapes.
If that bottle of wine gets broke
If the bottle of the alcoholic beverage gets shattered into pieces,
Mama's gonna buy me a nanny goat
My mother will buy me a female goat to take care of children.
And if that nanny goat runs away
And if the female goat escapes from captivity
Mama's gonna beat him at Boom-Di-Aye
My mother will aggressively punish the goat with a rhythmic phrase.
Hey! Hey!
Oi! Oi!
Hey! Bo Diddley
Hello, Bo Diddley
Hey! Bo Diddley
Hello, Bo Diddley
Hey! Bo Diddley, Bo Diddley!
Hello, Bo Diddley, Bo Diddley!
Go, Bo Diddley!
Proceed, Bo Diddley!
Hey!
Oi!
Hey! Bo Diddley
Hello, Bo Diddley
C'mon Bo Diddley
Come on, Bo Diddley.
One more time!
Repeat one more time!
Contributed by Charlotte D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Hezakiah4
Still dig the song
Shannon Boyk
:D