I originally heard this song as a young child in the 60's. It was sung by Trinidadian calypso singer Lord Melody, and I thought the lyric, sung in a West Indian accent, referred to some kind of Shaman's totem, don't ask me why; as a child, many sayings of adults sounded odd to my ears, I just didn't question them. Many years later, Madness released a cover of the song in their inimitable style, & in a flash, it all seemed so obvious - how could I possibly have erred? My misheard lyric was by now however, so ingrained that to this day, that is the way I sing it...
