by James Withcomb Riley (1849 - 1916)
When June is Here
Language: English
When June is here--what art have we to sing The whiteness of the lilies midst the green Of noon-tranced lawns? Or flash of roses seen Like redbirds' wings? Or earliest ripening Prince-Harvest apples, where the cloyed bees cling Round winey juices oozing down between The peckings of the robin, while we lean In under-grasses, lost in marveling. Or the cool term of morning, and the stir Of odorous breaths from wood and meadow walks, The bobwhite's liquid yodel, and the whir Of sudden flight; and, where the milkmaid talks Across the bars, on tilted barley-stalks The dewdrops' glint in webs of gossamer.
Authorship:
- by James Withcomb Riley (1849 - 1916) [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Timothy Hoekman , "When June is Here", 1990, published 1992 [ voice and piano ], from American Lyrics, no. 1 [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this page: Malcolm Wren [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2020-08-27
Line count: 14
Word count: 102