UFO, 2007, by David Huffman. Courtesy the artist and Paulson Fontaine Press
Blues Poems
By Henry Dumas
Employment Blues
I been to the factory, even got a card to go to sea
Yeah, I even got a card to merchant the sea
Aint there somebody in this city got a job for poor me?
Been all over town, everybody say the same
Yes, they all sayin the same
I’m so desperated, think I’ll change my name
Gettin interviewed the other day, man say, “Sit down boy”
Yeah, outa work and he say “Sit down boy”
Well I looked at the man and I say, “My fist look like a toy?”
Lookin high and low people
drive a truck or dig a ditch
Yeah, I’ll drive a truck or dig a ditch
Cause without a job, a man’s in an awful fix
Concentration Camp Blues
I aint jokin people, I aint playin around
Wouldnt jive you people, aint playin around
They got the Indian on the reservation
got us in the ghetto town
Like when you down home, tryin to get out
A mule in his stall trying to kick out
You gets to it in the ghetto but you aint got out
Wouldn’t jive you people, this a natural fact
They watchin us all people, a natural fact
The man is plannin to put a harness on my back
So get with it people, let’s get outa his camp
I aint jokin, I got to get outa his camp
Cause the man is ready to number us all with a rubber stamp
Keep the Faith Blues
They say if you ain't got no faith
you keep the blues most all the time
If you ain't got no faith, you keep the blues most all the time
Must be the reason I’m almost bout to lose my mind
I’m tryin to hold on, people, tryin to keep what I got
Yeah, tryin to hold on, tryin hard to keep what I got
But you know the man is steadyin pressin me
bout to bust my natural back
Heard a man say once, you better hold on and keep the faith
He said hold on baby, and keep the faith
People, I swear I’m hold on and all I got left is faith
Yes the world gone crazy, they even talk about God is dead
Yes the world is gone crazy, some say worship the Devil
instead
Well, I’m keeping my own faith, people
Can’t let religion
bust open my head.
The Buster
Now when I was a kid, my mama
use to bust me with a switch
(I was bad) [Spoken]
Now my mama used to bust me with a switch
Now my baby scream “Bust me” and I buster,
cause she so sweet
Now this a dance the buster you gotta learn
Do the buster, a dance you gotta learn
It’ll make you wanto shout,
make your buster burn
Now you put your right foot here
your left foot there
Do a little bustin here a little bustin there
Now what you do with your hands,
I’m tellin you I dont care
Do the buster one, baby it’s good, buster two
Hmmmm buster one, hmmmm buster two
Dance the buster the whole night through
Outer Space Blues
(to Sun Ra Myth)
People, I heard the news the other day
like to scared me half to death
Yeah things happen in this world
like to scared me half to death
TV say a spaceship is comin here
if it do wont be no people left
But I tell you folks, spaceship cant be so bad
Reckon I just a fool people,
spaceship cant be too bad
I been on earth all my life,
and all my life I been mad
So when the spaceship land
I aint runnin too fast
I say, I reckon I might not run too fast
I might run over into Mississippi
and you know I can’t pass
Hold it people, I see a flying saucer comin
guess I wait and see
Yeah, a spaceship comin
guess I wait and see
All I know they might look just like me