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Vèvè / Jou’vert Lyrics by Kamau Brathwaite

Humboldt Caribbean Lit

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Brathwaite's reading of these poems can be heard on SoundCloud or by opening this annotation
Vèvè1But on the beach
the fisherman's net is completed;
the fine webs fell softly,
sand shifting under his walking;
the water is ready;
twined spray through the air
and the seine holds the sun
and the line in his hand
tightens steady.
The net drifted downward,
through tides and reversals
of shell-clinking water,
through time and the hopes
that were drowned in the deep
sleeping sound of the bay.
The fan sifted slowly
through cobwebs of light
catching softly the moons of his green
spreading opening day
2And so the black eye travels to the brink of vision
but not yet;
hold back the fishnet's fling of morn-
ing; unloose the sugarcane;
my spattered breast must undertake one more incision;
cut, carve, dissect
the merchant's pound of flesh, the soldier's pawn
of violence, the preacher's hymn of pain.
The black eye travels to the brink of vision:
look, the fields are wet,
the sea sits gentle on the dawn
of sand; but voices fill the green with hurricane.
And yet it is what happens
it is what happens
when they fall:
conquerors, helmets, plumes,
unloosened knots
of blood, dried river beds of iron,
rust;
it is the bird that sings,
the green that wavers, wavers, wins
the slave rebellion of the rot
of dust
that matters;
it is this that glitters
in the salt
lagoon,
that crusts the coral
with foundation stone,
that stirs the resurrection
out of Tacky's bones.
3So on this ground,
write;
within the sound
of this white limestone vèvè,
talk
of the empty roads,
vessels of your head,
claypots, shards, ruins.
And on this sailing ground,
sprinkled with rum, bitten
with the tenor of your open wound,
walk
walk
the hooves will come, welcomed
by drumbeats, into your ridden head;
and the horse, cheval of the dead,
charade of la mort,
tongued with the wind
possession of the fire
possession of the dust
sundered from your bone
plundered from my breast
by ice, by chain, by sword, by the cast wind,
surrenders up to you the graven Word
carved from Olodumare
from Ogun of Alare, from Ogun of Onire
from Shango broom of thunder and Damballa Grand Chemin.
For on this ground
trampled with the bull's swathe of whips
where the slave at the crossroads was a red anthill
eaten by moonbeams, by the holy ghosts
of his wounds
the Word becomes
again a god and walks among us;
look, here are his rags,
here is his crutch and his satchel
of dreams; here is his hoe and his rude implements
on this ground
on this broken ground.
Jou'vert So
bambalula bambulai
bambalula bambulai
stretch the drum
tight hips will sway
stretch the back
tight whips will flay
bambalula bambulai
bambalula bambulai
kink the gong gong
loop and play
ashes come
and Christ will pray
Christ will pray
to Odomankoma
Nyame God
and Nyankopon
and
bambalula bambulai
bambalula bambulai
dust of desert
cries of arrows
boulders roll
and coils of shadows
boulders roll
and rivers thunder
lightning flashes
man asunder
bambalula bambulai
bambalula bambulai
fangs of lightning
strike and
bite the bitter
world of stone
and sorrows
bambalula bambulai
bambalula bambulai
but the sorrows
burn to ashes
grey rocks
melt to pools
of lashes'
sweat and flowers
bloom along the way
bambalula bambalai
bambalula bambulai
flowers bloom
their tom tom sun
heads raising
little steel pan
petals to the music's
doom
as the ping pong
dawn comes
riding
over shattered homes
and furrows
over fields
and musty ghettos
over men now
hearing
waiting
watching
in the Lent-
en morning
hurts for-
gotten, hearts
no longer bound
to black and bitter
ashes in the ground
now waking
making
making
with their
rhythms some-
thing torn
and new
Credits
Kamau Brathwaite

Kamau Brathwaite

About “Vèvè / Jou’vert” by Kamau Brathwaite

Read the complete lyrics to "Vèvè / Jou’vert" by Kamau Brathwaite from the album "Humboldt Caribbean Lit". On Lyrks you can follow along with the full text, explore the artist's discography, and discover related songs. The track is often categorized under Non-Music, Spoken Word, Poetry.

"Vèvè / Jou’vert" is performed by Kamau Brathwaite. from the album "Humboldt Caribbean Lit" This page provides the full lyric text for fans who want to sing along, study the songwriting, or compare versions across releases. Lyrks organizes lyrics by artist and song slug so you can bookmark and share a stable URL. Music lyrics help listeners connect with emotion, narrative, and rhythm in a track. Whether you are learning English, researching a favorite chorus, or preparing for karaoke, having accurate line breaks and section labels (verse, chorus, bridge) makes the experience easier. We link to the official artist profile on Lyrks where available, including biography snippets, top songs, and chart placements when we have that data. If you enjoy "Vèvè / Jou’vert", explore more songs by Kamau Brathwaite using the links below. Chart and trending pages on Lyrks highlight what listeners are searching for this week. For copyright or correction requests, see our DMCA and contact pages.

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Frequently asked questions

"Vèvè / Jou’vert" is credited to Kamau Brathwaite. Songwriting credits may include additional writers listed on the release; check the credits section on this page for linked collaborators.

"Vèvè / Jou’vert" appears on "Humboldt Caribbean Lit".

Visit the Kamau Brathwaite artist page at /artist/kamau-brathwaite for biography, popular tracks, and links to more lyric pages.