Parkinblog

Parkinsong duet performed by Billy Spakemon and Ray Andrews
Words and music by Billy Spakemon

The moowa we bin tergetha (x3)
the ‚appier we wull be.

The moowa we sing tergetha (x3)
we’ll fun an ‚armony

Fer yo’s fried bin mar friend
an‘ mar friend bin yo’a friend
the moowa we bin tergetha
the ‚appier we wull be

The moowa we stond tergetha (x3)
the stronga we wull be

Fer (as above)
the stronga we wull be

One by one side by side ‚elpin‘ aiche otha through owa lives
with an ‚ope there’ll be a wairld weya all wull understond

The moowa we bin tergetha (x3)
the ‚appier we wull be

The moowa we run tergetha (x3)
We’ll build a unity

Fer (as above)
The moowa we bin tergetha
the ‚appier we wull be.

Glossary

aiche - each
wull - will
bin - been
'h's are always dropped
er' is often changed to a
a is changed to o

Billy Spakemon (Dr Brian Dakin)
Born Oldbury the Black Country West Midlands England 28/11/1952

My work engages with the notions of identity through place, voice and histories. I write, perform, am a public speaker, radio show host, academic, events organiser, community project leader and freelance project co-ordinator, among other things. I recorded the above song during a year long project I organised with John Langford to raise funds for local Parkinson support groups in the Black Country and Birmingham. The song came about from a memory session I did with a dementia group and an elderly lady began to sing an old chapel song (only the first line as that was all she could remember). It developed into the song on the Parkinsong Duets CD. I asked Ray Andrews a local businessman who has Parkinson’s. He was the starting point of our fund raising efforts in 2018 and an inspiration.