by Alfred Edward Housman (1859 - 1936)
Wake: the silver dusk returning
Language: English
Wake: the silver dusk returning Up the beach of darkness brims, And the ship of sunrise burning Strands upon the eastern rims. Wake: the vaulted shadow shatters, Trampled to the floor it spanned, And the tent of night in tatters Straws the sky-pavilioned land. Up, lad, up, 'tis late for lying: Hear the drums of morning play; Hark, the empty highways crying "Who'll beyond the hills away?" Towns and countries woo together, Forelands beacon, belfries call; Never lad that trod on leather Lived to feast his heart with all. Up, lad: thews that lie and cumber Sunlit pallets never thrive; Morns abed and daylight slumber Were not meant for man alive. Clay lies still, but blood's a rover; Breath's a ware that will not keep. Up, lad: when the journey's over There'll be time enough to sleep.
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Text Authorship:
- by Alfred Edward Housman (1859 - 1936), "Reveille", appears in A Shropshire Lad, no. 4, first published 1896 [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 Geoffrey Allen (b. 1927), "Reveille ", op. 10 no. 4 (1995) [ tenor and piano ], from Bredon Hill : eight songs for tenor voice and piano to poems of A. E. Housman, no. 4 [sung text not yet checked]
- by John Woods Duke (1899 - 1984), "Reveille", 1947 [ medium voice and piano ], Southern/Texas [sung text not yet checked]
- by George Dyson (1883 - 1964), "Reveille", published 1935 [ SATB chorus and strings with optional instrumental ensemble ], from Three Songs of Courage [sung text not yet checked]
- by Ivor (Bertie) Gurney (1890 - 1937), "Reveille", 1921, published 1926 [ baritone, string quartet, and piano ], from The Western Playland, no. 1 [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Alan Leichtling , "Reveille", published 1971 [ baritone and orchestra ], from Eleven Songs from "A Shropshire Lad" [sung text not yet checked]
- by (Gerald) Graham Peel (1878 - 1937), "Reveille", published 1911 [ voice and piano ], from Songs of a Shropshire Lad, no. 1 [sung text checked 1 time]
- by John Ramsden Williamson (1929 - 2015), "Reveille - Wake, the silver dusk returning" [ baritone and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this page: Ted Perry
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 24
Word count: 137