by Thomas Moore (1779 - 1852)
Oh say, thou best and brightest
Language: English
Oh say, thou best and brightest, My first love and my last, When he, whom now thou slightest, From life's dark scene hath past, Will kinder thoughts then move thee? Will pity wake one thrill For him who lived to love thee, And, dying, loved thee still? If, when that hour recalling From which he dates his woes, Thou feel's a tear-drop falling, Ah! blush not while it flows: But all the past forgiving, Bend gently o'er his shrine, And say, "This heart, when living, With all its faults, was mine!"
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- by Thomas Moore (1779 - 1852), "Oh say, thou best and brightest : Spanish Air", appears in National Airs, 6th No., first published 1827 [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 W. H. J. Graham , "O say, thou blest and brightest", published 1866 [ voice and piano ], NY : Pond [sung text not yet checked]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in Swedish (Svenska), a translation by Karl Alfred Melin (1849 - 1919) ; composed by Emil Sjögren.
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2010-04-20
Line count: 16
Word count: 91