Yellow Fever

[Bruce Dykes]

-----Original Message-----
From: Bob Haas <highbob at MINDSPRING.COM>
To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
Date: Monday, March 27, 2000 2:44 PM
Subject: Re: Yellow Fever


>I'd say it's a play on the actual disease of yellow fever, which is spread
>by mosquitos.
>
>>> << A friend who's a counselor at a college in Washington - and who is
>>> Japanese - told me about a statement she'd just heard.  A male was
>>> being discussed and she was told he had "Yellow fever."  My friend
>>
>> One question is whether 'yellow fever' is analogized from 'jungle fever'
>> (as in the Spike Lee joint) or vice versa (or neither).


Amazing how this stuff works.

First I've ever heard this term was on this list (which describes a
sheltering I should either be embarrassed by or proud of).

I'm looking on the net for a group and a song title , when I only know the
chorus, and thanks to Google (http://www.google.com/ ), I wind up only two
pages away from the band's homepage, http://www.bloodhoundgang.com/ .

So I'm browsing their website, and one of their songs, that they offer to
stream, is: Yellow Fever (http://www.bloodhoundgang.com/ofbc_f.html ).

A quick sample of the lyrics
(http://www.bloodhoundgang.com/lyrc/ofbc/yellow_lyric_f.html ):

Let me take you back to the day that I met my China girl
When I landed a 'Pam' like on the San Fran Real World
I was sweating like a vegetable inside of a wok
I'd never been to Asia Minor but I was gonna Bangkok
..........
[and notably]
..........
I think I got that jungle fever but I caught it in 'Nam
..........

Following through on the rest of the lyrics really isn't necessary...they
describe them as 'one half wit and one half half-wit' and 'fifth grade'.
Although eighth is probably closer to the mark. To put a date on this song,
it was recorded in 1996.


The obvious folk etymology will be by way of 'jungle fever', as they both
concern the same activity, dating (and romance). Whether the original coiner
intended that, or it grew parallel, or whether it was a play on malaria,
we'll likely never learn.

bkd