# 'Othello', Dance Hall Crashers

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/othello-dance-hall-crashers/539935>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [May 18, 2010, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/othello-dance-hall-crashers/539935 "2010-05-18T21:40:18Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\
**Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/othello-dance-hall-crashers/539935/1 "2010-05-18T21:40:18Z")

</div>

_Othello_ is a song by Dance Hall Crashers. It’s popped up in the rotation; and as I do every time I hear it, I wonder what the hell the refrain is that they’re singing. I just can’t make it out. (I tend to listen to the iPod at work, where I can’t play music too loud.) The verses are fine. It’s just the chorus I’m not hearing.

Anyway, since I can’t make out what they’re singing, I usually mentally replace it with ‘Nine-one-one, Quack! Quack!’ Not that it sounds exactly like that. She could be singing ‘Might wanna ride the line’.

So does anyone know the actual words?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\
**Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/othello-dance-hall-crashers/539935/2 "2010-05-18T22:37:48Z")

</div>

The version on Youtube isn’t very clear (and the sample on iTunes, which is clear, doesn’t include the refrain), but it sounds to me like “Black, white, white, go black.” Which could be somehow related to the title.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\
**Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/othello-dance-hall-crashers/539935/3 "2010-05-19T02:02:44Z")

</div>

It does sound like that.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\
**Post date:** [May 19, 2010, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/othello-dance-hall-crashers/539935/4 "2010-05-19T04:38:37Z")

</div>

I’ve always heard it as “Blood water and wine go black”

I do not know why I hear it that way. lol