buck buck /bʌk bʌk/, int.
1. Representing the sound of gunshots
1987 Boogie Down Productions, "9mm Goes Bang," 1:50, But just as they put their pistols down to take a cut / Me jumped out the kitchen, went "buck! buck! buck!"
1993 KRS-One, "Return of the Boom Bap," 3:52, now Boogie-down, boogie down, boogie down produc/ wit the "buck buck buck buck buck buck BUCK!"
2002 Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, "Pump Pump," 1:08, You ain't gotta listen but I'ma let you hear it / Pump Pump, Buck buck buck buck buck.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I'm not sure the "buck buck buck buck buck buck BUCK!" in "Return of the Boom Bap" qualifies as gunomatopoeia per se. It sounds a lot like KRS-One is skatting, using a syllable he has often favored. See, e.g., "Black Cop" ("Buck buck buck-buck-buck, buck-buck buck buck! / All rude bwoy lissen up!"). Now, "Mad Crew"'s "Buck buck buck buck booyaka shan" sounds largely skat-like, but Ice Cube's sample of that line in "Keep Their Heads Ringin'" is more invocative of a gunomatopoeia.
ReplyDeleteWHOA there, dan... As far as I knew, KRS's use of Buck even out of the context of imitating a gunshot for illustrative, dramatic, or narrative purposes, still derived from the gunomatopeia as opposed the other meanings of the word "Buck" (i.e. rowdy, hostile, or disagreeable). Boom-Bap strikes me as a case that could go in either direction, skat derived from gunomatopeia or straight gunomatopeia. The reason why I think it's more likely the latter is because earlier in the verse he talks about shooting at P.M. Dawn (on and on to the P.M. Dawn/ I buck two shots and your squad is gone), and this sense of "buck" would reemphasize that BDP will shoot at you if you step to them.
ReplyDeleteAlso, "Boom-Bap" is an onomatopoeia! How great is that?!!!!
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteBoom-Bap is a drumomatopoeia, in fact. Also, a fairly rare onomatopoeia genre name, along with ska (respresenting a guitar sound) and arguably doo-wop (the genre refers to the vocals, but the vocals themselves represent the sound of a bass, I think you could say). And let's not forget "Woop woop," representing the sound of da police, off the same album.
ReplyDeletewait, what? I thought woopwoop was the sound of a roof being raised, which is to say, partymotopaeia.
ReplyDelete