Four Negro Songs

Song Cycle by John Alden Carpenter (1876 - 1951)

1. Shake your brown feet, honey  [sung text not yet checked]

Language: English 
Shake your brown feet, honey,
Shake your brown feet, chile,
Shake your brown feet, honey,
Shake 'em swift and wil' --
  Get way back, honey,
  Do that rockin' step.
  Slide on over, darling,
    Now! Come out
    With your left.
Shake your brown feet, honey,
Shake 'em, honey chile.

Sun's going down this evening --
Might never rise no mo'.
The sun's going down this very night --
Might never rise no mo' --
So dance with swift feet, honey,
  (The banjo's sobbing low)
Dance with swift feet, honey --
  Might never dance no mo'.

Shake your brown feet, Liza,
Shake 'em, Liza, chile,
Shake your brown feet, Liza,
  (The music's soft and wil')
Shake your brown feet, Liza,
  (The banjo's sobbing low)
The sun's going down this very night --
Might never rise no mo'.

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2. The cryin' blues
 (Sung text)

Language: English 
Hey! Hey!
That's what the
Blues singers say.
Singing minor melodies
They laugh,
Hey! Hey!

My man's done left me,
Chile, he's gone away.
My good man's left me,
Babe, he's gone away.
Now the cryin' blues
Haunts me night and day.

Hey!....Hey!

Weary,
Weary,
Trouble, pain.
Sun's gonna shine
Somewhere
Again.

I got a railroad ticket,
Pack my trunk and ride.

Sing 'em sister!

Got a railroad ticket,
Pack my trunk and ride.
And when I get on the train
I'll cast my blues aside.

Laughing,
Hey!....Hey!
Laugh a loud,
Hey! Hey!

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3. Jazz‑Boys
 (Sung text)

Language: English 
Sleek black boys in a cabaret.
Jazz-band, jazz-band, --
Play, plAY, PLAY!
Tomorrow....who knows?
Dance today!

White girls' eyes
Call gay black boys.
Black boys' lips
Grin jungle joys.

Dark brown girls
In blond men's arms.
Jazz-band, jazz-band, --
Sing Eve's charm!

White ones, brown ones,
What do you know
About tomorrow
Where all paths go?

Jazz-boys, jazz-boys, --
Play, plAY, PLAY!
Tomorrow .... is darkness.
Joy today!

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4. That soothin' song
 (Sung text)

Language: English 
Play the blues for me.
Play the blues for me.
No other music
'Ll ease my misery.

Sing a soothin' song.
Said a soothing song,
Cause the man I love's done
Done me wrong.

Can't you understand,
O, understand
A good woman's cryin'
For a no-good man?

Black gal like me,
Black gal like me
'S got to hear a blues
For her misery.

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Please note: this text, provided here for educational and research use, is in the public domain in Canada, but it may still be copyright in other legal jurisdictions. The LiederNet Archive makes no guarantee that the above text is public domain in your country. Please consult your country's copyright statutes or a qualified IP attorney to verify whether a certain text is in the public domain in your country or if downloading or distributing a copy constitutes fair use. The LiederNet Archive assumes no legal responsibility or liability for the copyright compliance of third parties.

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
Total word count: 351