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by Carl Sandburg (1878 - 1967)

Passers‑by
Language: English 
Passers-by,
Out of your many faces
Flash memories to me
Now at the day end
Away from the sidewalks
Where your shoe soles traveled
And your voices rose and blent
To form the city's afternoon roar
Hindering an old silence.

Passers-by,
I remember lean ones among you,
Throats in the clutch of a hope,
Lips written over with strivings,
Mouths that kiss only for love.
Records of great wishes slept with,
Held long
And prayed and toiled for..
 
Yes,
Written on
Your mouths
And your throats
I read them
When you passed by.

Text Authorship:

  • by Carl Sandburg (1878 - 1967), "Passers-by", appears in Chicago Poems, first published 1916 [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 John Parsons Beach (1877 - 1953), "Passers-by", published 1923 [medium voice and piano], from Two Songs of Labor [
     text not verified 
    ]

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website: 2008-06-17
Line count: 23
Word count: 93

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