Pass the Dutchie

Discogs

Birmingham group Musical Youth really stood for their name: they were young. They were created by their fathers in 1979, and the youngest (junior) was born in 1967. Pass the Dutchie is from 1982, and was an enormous international hit.

Contrary to popular (and my) belief, Dutchie is not slang for weed or marihuana. In Jamaican it stand for a Dutch cooking pot. I suppose for making stew. The lyrics refer to the sharing of the food. However, this song is actually a cover version of Pass the kouchie , a song by the rastafarians Mighty Diamonds. The kouchie they are singing about is indeed the smoking of weed using pipes. The writers of the Musical Youth have made sure that all references to the recreational drug have been banished from the song.

Musical Youth’s success was like a one day fly. In 1985 already they broke up following personal and financial differences. Two of the members are still performing under the same name, as a duo. Junior has died of schizophrenia in 2022, aged 55.

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