by Fenton Johnson (1888 - 1958)
The Banjo Player
Language: English
There is music in me, the music of a peasant people.
I wander through the levee, picking my banjo
and singing my songs of the cabin and the field.
At the Last Chance Saloon I am as welcome
as the violets in March; there is always
food and drink for me there,
and the dimes of those who love honest music.
Behind the railroad tracks the little children clap their hands
and love me like they love Kris Kringle.
But I fear that I am a failure.
Last night a woman called me
a troubadour.
What is a troubadour?
Text Authorship:
- by Fenton Johnson (1888 - 1958), "The Banjo Player" [author's text checked 1 time 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 Robert F. Baksa (b. 1938), "The Banjo Player", from Three Portraits, no. 1. [text not verified]
Available translations, adaptations, and transliterations (if applicable):
- GER German (Deutsch) (Paridam von dem Knesebeck) (Eva Hesse) , title 1: "Der Spielmann", from Mein dunklen Hände. Moderne Negerlyrik in Original und Nachdichtung, copyright ©
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2004-12-28
Line count: 13
Word count: 99