began as a sound system DJ in 1961, spinning records for the Doctor Dickies set, later known as Dickies Dynamic, in such well-known Jamaican venues as Victoria Pier, Foresters Hall and Emmett Park. His inspiration was the DJ Winston Count Machuki, who worked for Coxsone Dodd and subsequently on Prince Buster's Voice Of The People sound system. By the mid-60s he was DJ for Sir George The Atomic, based around Maxfield Avenue in Kingston. Around 1967 he began to work with King Tubby as DJ for his Home Town Hi-Fi. From this association developed the whole modern DJ style; Tubby's work at Duke Reid's studio, where he was disc-cutter, led him to discover dub. He found that by dropping out the vocal track and remixing the remaining rhythm tracks he created new �versions� of much-loved tunes. He began to record a series of special acetate recordings or dub plates for exclusive use on his sound system. The space left by the absent vocal tracks enabled U-Roy to improvise his own jive-talk raps or toasts when the sound system played dances. The effect in the dancehall was immediate and electrifying. In 1969 U-Roy was invited to play for Dodd's Down Beat sound system, playing the number 2 set; the number 1 set had King Stitt as DJ. U-Roy became dissatisfied with playing the latest Coxsone music only after Stitt had first exposed it to dance patrons, and returned to Tubby's. He then began his recording career in full, recording two discs for Lee Perry, Earth's Rightful Ruler and OK Corral, before moving to producer Keith Hudson, for whom he made the outstanding Dynamic Fashion Way.
U-Roy then began recording for Duke Reid, using as backing tracks Reid's rocksteady hits from 1966-67; their success was unprecedented. His first record for Reid, Wake The Town, which used Alton Ellis� Girl I've Got A Date as backing, immediately soared to the top of both Jamaican radio charts. His next two releases, Rule The Nation and Wear You To The Ball, soon joined it. These three releases held the top three positions in the Jamaican charts for 12 weeks during early 1970. Other sound system DJs were quick to follow U-Roy, including Dennis Alcapone and Scotty. The radio stations refused to play DJ music just to give singers a chance, so big was the demand. U-Roy recorded 32 tracks for Reid, in the process versioning almost every rocksteady hit issued on the label and releasing two albums. By 1973 he was recording for other producers, including Alvin Ranglin, Bunny Lee, Glen Brown and Lloyd Charmers as well as self-productions. However, the rise of the next DJ generation including Big Youth signalled the partial eclipse of U-Roy. In 1975 he made a series of albums for producer Prince Tony Robinson which were leased to Virgin Recordsin the UK, wherein the DJ revisited Reid's earlier hits in the then prevalent rockers style. He appeared at the London Lyceum in August 1976, backed by a band featuring Channel One stalwarts Sly Dunbar (bass) and Ansell Collins (organ). He operated his own sound system, Stur-Gav, featuring Ranking Joe and selector Jah Screw. When they left after the sound system was broken up during the turbulent 1980 Jamaican election, it was rebuilt with new DJs Charlie Chaplin and Josey Wales, and Inspector Willie as selector. U-Roy continued to record sporadically throughout the '80s, recording Hustling, a single for Gussie Clarke, in 1984, and two excellent albums for DJs turned producers Tapper Zukie and Prince Jazzbo, in 1986 and 1987 respectively. In 1991 he played a successful �revival� concert at the Hammersmith Palais, London. U-Roy is the man who is responsible for putting the DJ on the map, both as recording artist in Jamaica and as a major indirect influence on the US rappers. As such his importance is immense. source: http://u-roy.20m.com/
Rob The Natty
U Roy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Push me in the corner, I don't love that
Push me in the corner, yeah
It's alright
Yeah, when I tell say no, say
No push me ina no corner, no way y'all
No push me in no corner, let me tell you
I don't sweep out no boom, yes
You and I supposed to live nice, we nice, nice, nice
And I supposed to live fine, so fine, so real fine
You and I should live good, baby, not like puss and dog
So don't push me ina no corner
Why you try to rob the natty?
Rob him for him quatty
Hey, why you try to rob the natty?
Push him in the corner, tell him all kinda things
And I do love dem, kinda something they, no way
When I'm all alone with no one of my own
Still everything alright, you know I mean
They push me in the corner, yeah, it's alright
It may be alright for you but not alright for me
Hey, don't, don't push me ina no corner
Bring me on the front line
I wanna see everyone face
Don't push me to no disgrace
So why can't you and I live good?
The birds and bees are living real nice
Why can't I live good with you
As you live good with I?
Don't push me ina no corner, nothing to love that
Don't push I ina no corner, no way y'all
Take I from the corner and put I on the front line
And everything will be so doggone fine
You know who steal my purse?
Steel trash man? Yeah, you know
So why you try to rob the natty
Of him little penny, he penny?
Say, why you try to rob the natty
And push him in a corner?
In U Roy's song "Rob The Natty," the artist expresses his disdain for being pushed into a figurative corner. The repetitive phrase "Push me in the corner" serves as a symbol for the artist's feeling of being trapped or taken advantage of in a particular situation. However, U Roy also asserts his individuality and pride by rejecting the idea that he is someone who can be pushed around like a "doggone boom."
The chorus of the song contains a rhetorical question addressed to those who would try to "rob the natty" of his "little penny." The phrase "natty" likely refers to someone who is proud of their Afrocentric identity and natural hair. By extension, the song can be interpreted as a commentary on the exploitation and marginalization of black people in Jamaican society. The lyrics suggest that the artist believes that he and others like him deserve to be treated with respect and dignity, rather than pushed aside or robbed of their livelihoods.
Line by Line Meaning
Push me in the corner, hey don't do that
I don't like it when you try to force me into a corner and take away my power.
Push me in the corner, I don't love that
I don't enjoy being put in a position where I'm powerless and vulnerable.
Push me in the corner, yeah
It's alright
Even though I don't like it, I'll tolerate it for now.
Yeah, when I tell say no, say
No push me ina no corner, no way y'all
No push me in no corner, let me tell you
No push me ina no corner 'coz I'm not no doggone boom
I don't sweep out no boom, yes
When I say 'no', I mean 'no'. Please don't try to force me into a corner because I won't tolerate it. I refuse to be treated like a disposable or insignificant person.
You and I supposed to live nice, we nice, nice, nice
And I supposed to live fine, so fine, so real fine
You and I should live good, baby, not like puss and dog
So don't push me ina no corner
We should be enjoying a good life together, not struggling to get by like animals. Please don't force me into a powerless, vulnerable position.
Why you try to rob the natty?
Rob him for him quatty
Hey, why you try to rob the natty?
Push him in the corner, tell him all kinda things
And I do love dem, kinda something they, no way
Why do you want to take advantage of me? You're trying to steal what little I have, and you're trying to manipulate me into thinking that it's okay.
When I'm all alone with no one of my own
Still everything alright, you know I mean
They push me in the corner, yeah, it's alright
It may be alright for you but not alright for me
Even when I'm alone, I know that I don't want to be forced into a powerless position. It may be okay for you, but it's not okay for me.
Hey, don't, don't push me ina no corner
Bring me on the front line
I wanna see everyone face
Don't push me to no disgrace
Stop trying to take away my power and put me in a position of shame. Bring me out into the open where I belong, so that I can demonstrate my strength and ability.
So why can't you and I live good?
The birds and bees are living real nice
Why can't I live good with you
As you live good with I?
The natural world is thriving, so why can't we thrive together? Why do you want to push me into a powerless, vulnerable position when we could both be living a good life?
Don't push me ina no corner, nothing to love that
Don't push I ina no corner, no way y'all
Take I from the corner and put I on the front line
And everything will be so doggone fine
I don't appreciate being forced into a powerless position, so please stop. If you bring me out into the open where I belong, we can both thrive and be successful.
You know who steal my purse?
Steel trash man? Yeah, you know
Someone stole my purse, and I suspect that it might have been you. Don't underestimate me, because I'm strong and capable.
So why you try to rob the natty
Of him little penny, he penny?
Say, why you try to rob the natty
And push him in a corner?
Why are you trying to take advantage of me and steal what little I have? Why do you want to force me into a powerless, vulnerable position?
Contributed by Katherine P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.