by Francis Thompson (1859 - 1907)
Language: English
Go, songs, for ended is our brief, sweet play;
Go, children of swift joy and tardy sorrow:
And some are sung, and that was yesterday,
And some ... unsung, and that may be tomorrow.
Go forth; and if it be o'er stony way,
Old joy can lend what newer grief must borrow:
And it was sweet, and that was yesterday,
And sweet is sweet, though purchased with sorrow.
Go, songs, and come not back from your far way:
And if men ask you why ye smile and sorrow,
Tell them ye grieve, for your hearts know Today,
Tell them ye smile, for your eyes know Tomorrow.
Composition:
- Set to music by John Theodore Livingston Raynor (1909 - 1970), "Go, Songs", op. 395 (1953), published 1971 [ voice and piano ]
Text Authorship:
- by Francis Thompson (1859 - 1907)
See other settings of this text.
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 12
Word count: 106