Category: James Weldon Johnson

“Lift Every Voice and Sing”

Post author By TDarris
Post date January 31, 2022
No Comments on “Lift Every Voice and Sing”

by James Weldon Johnson

James Weldon Johnson circa
(1900 – 1920) / SOURCE: U.S. Library of Congress

“Lift Every Voice” / Original Version

Lift every voice and sing
Till earth and heaven ring,
Ring with the harmonies of Liberty;
Let our rejoicing rise
High as the listening skies,
Let it resound loud as the rolling sea.
Sing a song full of the faith that the dark past has taught us,
Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought us,
Facing the rising sun of our new day begun
Let us march on till victory is won.

“Lift Every Voice” by James Weldon Johnson, sung by Committed

Stony the road we trod,
Bitter the chastening rod,
Felt in the days when hope unborn had died;
Yet with a steady beat,
Have not our weary feet
Come to the place for which our fathers sighed?
We have come over a way that with tears has been watered,
We have come, treading our path through the blood of the slaughtered,
Out from the gloomy past,
Till now we stand at last
Where the white gleam of our bright star is cast.

Alicia Keys – Lift Every Voice and Sing Performance

God of our weary years,
God of our silent tears,
Thou who has brought us thus far on the way;
Thou who has by Thy might Led us into the light,
Keep us forever in the path, we pray.
Lest our feet stray from the places, our God, where we met Thee,
Lest, our hearts drunk with the wine of the world, we forget Thee;
Shadowed beneath Thy hand,
May we forever stand.
True to our God,
True to our native land.

This poem is in the public domain.

Tags african american history, african american literature, African American poet, America, American Literature, American poetry, art, Arts, Black History, black history month, Black Poetry, faith, Literature, poem, poems, poet, Poetry

19th century African-American America American American Poetry Black History Celebration Harlem Renaissance Hope James Weldon Johnson Poetry Reflect Uncategorized United States

“The Gift to Sing” by James Weldon Johnson (1871 – 1938)

Post author By TDarris
Post date June 29, 2016
No Comments on “The Gift to Sing” by James Weldon Johnson (1871 – 1938)

Sometimes the mist overhangs my path,
And blackening clouds about me cling;
But, oh, I have a magic way
To turn the gloom to cheerful day—
I softly sing.

And if the way grows darker still,
Shadowed by Sorrow’s somber wing,
With glad defiance in my throat,
I pierce the darkness with a note,
And sing, and sing.

I brood not over the broken past,
Nor dread whatever time may bring;
No nights are dark, no days are long,
While in my heart there swells a song,
And I can sing.

Tags #read, #reading, 19th century, 20th century, african, african american history, African American poet, african american slavery, African-American, African-American Literature, African-American Poetry, african-cuban, africana, America, american, american history, American Literature, american poet, American poetry, american slave, americana, anthology, art, Arts, Black, Black History, black history month, black literature, black music, Black Poet, Black Poetry, Black Poety, civil right, civil rights, countee cullen, cullen, Freedom, harlem, Harlem Renaissance, harvard, History, history & politics, hughes, hymn, iamb, jim crow, Langston Hughes, lift ev'ry voice and sing, literary, Literature, man, Memory, men, music, nature, negro, negro spiritual, negroes, negros, pentameter, poem, poet, poetic, poetics, Poetry, poetry book, poetry books, poetry community, poetry reading, poetry society, Poets, poettrisnotdead, readers, reconstruction, refelct, reflection, reflections, reflects, renaissance, Rhyme, rhymed stanza, rhythm, sing, slave, song, songs, spiritual, thought, thoughts, time, United States, west, western, Write, Writer, writers, writing

African-American American Black History Harlem Renaissance James Weldon Johnson

“The Glory of the Day Was In Her Face” by James Weldon Johnson

Post author By TDarris
Post date May 8, 2015
No Comments on “The Glory of the Day Was In Her Face” by James Weldon Johnson

The glory of the day was in her face,
The beauty of the night was in her eyes.
And over all her loveliness, the grace
Of Morning blushing in the early skies.

And in her voice, the calling of the dove;
Like music of a sweet, melodious part.
And in her smile, the breaking light of love;
And all the gentle virtues in her heart.

And now the glorious day, the beauteous night,
The birds that signal to their mates at dawn,
To my dull ears, to my tear-blinded sight
Are one with all the dead, since she is gone.

Tags 19th century, 20th century, african american history, African American poet, african-american, African-American Poetry, America, american, american poet, American poetry, art, Arts, Black, Black History, Black Poet, Black Poetry, tdarris

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this: