Uncle Jim's Baptist Revival Hymn
By Sidney and Clifford Lanier.
[Not long ago a certain Georgia cotton-planter, driven to desperation
by awaking each morning to find that the grass had
quite outgrown the cotton overnight, and was likely to choke it,
in defiance of his lazy freedmen's hoes and ploughs,
set the whole State in a laugh by exclaiming to a group of fellow-sufferers:
"It's all stuff about Cincinnatus leaving the plough to go into politics
FOR PATRIOTISM; he was just a-runnin' from grass!"
This state of things -- when the delicate young rootlets of the cotton
are struggling against the hardier multitudes of the grass-suckers --
is universally described in plantation parlance by the phrase "in the grass";
and Uncle Jim appears to have found in it so much similarity
to the condition of his own ("Baptis'") church, overrun, as it was,
by the cares of this world, that he has embodied it in the refrain
of a revival hymn such as the colored improvisator of the South
not infrequently constructs from his daily surroundings.
He has drawn all the ideas of his stanzas from the early morning phenomena of
those critical weeks when the loud plantation-horn is blown before daylight,
in order to rouse all hands for a long day's fight against the common enemy
of cotton-planting mankind.
In addition to these exegetical commentaries, the Northern reader
probably needs to be informed that the phrase "peerten up" means substantially
`to spur up', and is an active form of the adjective "peert"
(probably a corruption of `pert'), which is so common in the South,
and which has much the signification of "smart" in New England, as e.g.,
a "peert" horse, in antithesis to a "sorry" -- i.e., poor, mean, lazy one.]
Solo. -- Sin's rooster's crowed, Ole Mahster's riz,
De sleepin'-time is pas';
Wake up dem lazy Baptissis,
Chorus. -- Dey's mightily in de grass, grass,
Dey's mightily in de grass.
Ole Mahster's blowed de mornin' horn,
He's blowed a powerful blas';
O Baptis' come, come hoe de corn,
You's mightily in de grass, grass,
You's mightily in de grass.
De Meth'dis team's done hitched; O fool,
De day's a-breakin' fas';
Gear up dat lean ole Baptis' mule,
Dey's mightily in de grass, grass,
Dey's mightily in de grass.
De workmen's few an' mons'rous slow,
De cotton's sheddin' fas';
Whoop, look, jes' look at de Baptis' row,
Hit's mightily in de grass, grass,
Hit's mightily in de grass.
De jay-bird squeal to de mockin'-bird: "Stop!
Don' gimme none o' yo' sass;
Better sing one song for de Baptis' crop,
Dey's mightily in de grass, grass,
Dey's mightily in de grass."
And de ole crow croak: "Don' work, no, no;"
But de fiel'-lark say, "Yaas, yaas,
An' I spec' you mighty glad, you debblish crow,
Dat de Baptissis's in de grass, grass,
Dat de Baptissis's in de grass!"
Lord, thunder us up to de plowin'-match,
Lord, peerten de hoein' fas',
Yea, Lord, hab mussy on de Baptis' patch,
Dey's mightily in de grass, grass,
Dey's mightily in de grass.
poem by Sidney Lanier
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Related quotes
Cotton Fields
When i was a little bitty baby
My mama done rock me in the cradle
In them old cotton fields back home
It was back in louisiana
Just about a mile from texarkana
In them old cotton fields back home
Let me tell you now well got me in a fix
I caught a nail in my tire doing lickitey splits
I had to walk a long long way to town
Came upon a nice old man well he had a hat on
Wait a minute mister can you give me some directions
I gonna want to be right off for home
Don't care if them cotton balls get rotten
When i got you baby, who needs cotton
In them old cotton fields back home
Brother only one thing more that's gonna warm you
A summer's day out in california
It's gonna be those cotton fields back home
It was back in louisiana
Just about a mile from texarkana
Give me them cotton fields
(it was back in louisiana)
Let me hear it for the cotton fields
(just about a mile from texarkana)
You know that there's just no place like home
Well boy it sure feels good to breathe the air back home
You shoulda seen their faces when they seen how i grown
In them old cotton fields back home
song performed by by Beach Boys
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Jones's Porvate Argyment
That air same Jones, which lived in Jones,
He had this pint about him:
He'd swear with a hundred sighs and groans,
That farmers MUST stop gittin' loans,
And git along without 'em:
That bankers, warehousemen, and sich
Was fatt'nin' on the planter,
And Tennessy was rotten-rich
A-raisin' meat and corn, all which
Draw'd money to Atlanta:
And the only thing (says Jones) to do
Is, eat no meat that's boughten:
`But tear up every I, O, U,
And plant all corn and swear for true
To quit a-raisin' cotton!'
Thus spouted Jones (whar folks could hear,
-- At Court and other gatherin's),
And thus kep' spoutin' many a year,
Proclaimin' loudly far and near
Sich fiddlesticks and blatherin's.
But, one all-fired sweatin' day,
It happened I was hoein'
My lower corn-field, which it lay
'Longside the road that runs my way
Whar I can see what's goin'.
And a'ter twelve o'clock had come
I felt a kinder faggin',
And laid myself un'neath a plum
To let my dinner settle sum,
When 'long come Jones's waggin,
And Jones was settin' in it, SO:
A-readin' of a paper.
His mules was goin' powerful slow,
Fur he had tied the lines onto
The staple of the scraper.
The mules they stopped about a rod
From me, and went to feedin'
'Longside the road, upon the sod,
But Jones (which he had tuck a tod)
Not knowin', kept a-readin'.
And presently says he: "Hit's true;
That Clisby's head is level.
Thar's one thing farmers all must do,
To keep themselves from goin' tew
Bankruptcy and the devil!
"More corn! more corn! MUST plant less ground,
And MUSTN'T eat what's boughten!
Next year they'll do it: reasonin's sound:
(And, cotton will fetch 'bout a dollar a pound),
THARFORE, I'LL plant ALL cotton!"
poem by Sidney Lanier
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High Cotton
High cotton
Written by roger murrah and scott anders
We didnt know that times were lean
Round our house the grass was green
It didnt seem like things were all that bad
I bet we walked a thousand miles
Chopin cotton and pushin plows
And learnin how to give it all we had.
As life went on and years went by
I saw the light in daddys eyes
And felt - the love in mamas hands
They kept us warm and kept us fed
Taught us how to look ahead
Now lookin back, I understand.
Chorus:
We were walkin in high cotton
Old times there are not forgotten
Those fertile fields are never far away
We were walkin in high cotton
Old times there are not forgotten
Leavin home was the hardest thing we ever faced.
When sunday mornings rolled around
We dressed up in hand-me downs
Just in time, together with the church
Sometimes I think how long its been
And how it impressed me then
It was the only day my daddy wouldnt work.
Chorus x2
We were walkin in high cotton.
song performed by by Alabama
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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A Sea-Shore Grave. To M. J. L.
By Sidney and Clifford Lanier.
O wish that's vainer than the plash
Of these wave-whimsies on the shore:
"Give us a pearl to fill the gash --
God, let our dead friend live once more!"
O wish that's stronger than the stroke
Of yelling wave and snapping levin;
"God, lift us o'er the Last Day's smoke,
All white, to Thee and her in Heaven!"
O wish that's swifter than the race
Of wave and wind in sea and sky;
Let's take the grave-cloth from her face
And fall in the grave, and kiss, and die!
Look! High above a glittering calm
Of sea and sky and kingly sun,
She shines and smiles, and waves a palm --
And now we wish -- Thy will be done!
poem by Sidney Lanier
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Cotton Eyed Joe
Traditional
If it hadnt been for cotton-eye joe
Id been married long time ago
Where did you come from. where did you go?
Where did you come from cotton-eye joe?
(repeat)
He came to town like a midwinter storm
He rode through the fields so
Handsome and strong
His eyes was his tools and his smile was his gun
But all he had come for was having some fun
(repeat intro)
He brought disaster wherever he went
The hearts of the girls was to hell broken sent
They all ran away so nobody would know
And left only men cause of cotton-eye joe
(repeat intro)
song performed by by Nina Simone
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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An October Dream
Awaking from an October dream
To watch clouds roll over rooftops
While my love lays sleeping beside me
The quiet stillness of the morning air
The whisper of birdsong beyond the window
A scene set to be remembered
Damp cotton wool clouds faintly grey
A whistle of a bird singing somewhere
Still, still she sleeps safely dreaming
A soft light across her face
The awaking passion of a heart
Set free into a morning sky
How fair, how beautiful this feeling
To warm the soul with little ease
Who cares for the dream awoken from
When a day begins like this
A morning picture remembered
When waking from an October dream
poem by Matthew Holloway
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Cotton Candy
You feel like a cotton glove?
A roaming of which my hands love.
Soft and smooth your skin
Outside and in
Sweet...
You smell of honey
Being harvest out of play
You become
A different flower
Each and every day
I slowly confess to you
My love...
As I walk gracefully
Upon your maze.
If a cotton thorn be found
I lovingly gaze
Which it is mentally...removed
A pure cotton body
To me you are
Not a flaw in sight.
I go on with my harvest
Through the night.
Dew upon the cotton
Sparkles of which are who?
Spun into candy...
I lovingly devour you.
poem by whisperkwane Lamb
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Her Candy Cotton Kiss
Her candy cotton kiss
Her taste so warm and wet
Her cotton candy lips
I'll never them forget
Her cotton candy kiss
Sends shivers down my spine
I tremble at her touch
With love and grace divine
poem by Bradley Lester
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Cotton Fields
Chorus1:
When I was a little bitty baby
My mama would rock me in the cradle,
In them old cotton fields back home;
Chorus2:
It was down in louisiana,
Just about a mile from texarkana,
In them old cotton fields back home.
Chorus3:
Oh, when them cotton bolls get rotten
You cant pick very much cotton,
In them old cotton fields back home.
Chorus2
Chorus1
Chorus2
Chorus3
Chorus2
Chorus1
Chorus2
song performed by by Creedence Clearwater Revival
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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My dad was a cotton buyer and cotton buyers always considered themselves superior to the rest of the world.
quote by Joseph Mitchell
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Underneath The Harlem Moon
Creole ladies walk along with rhythm in their thighs
Rhythm in their feet and in their lips and in their eyes,
Where do highbrows find the kind of love that satisfies?
Underneath the harlem moon!
Theres no fields of cotton; picking cotton is taboo;
They dont live in cabins like the old folks used to do.
Their cabin is a penthouse up on lennox avenue,
Underneath that harlem moon!
Why, they just live on dancing,
Theyre never blue or forlorn,
cause it aint no sin to laugh and grin;
Thats why darkies were born.
Oh, they shout, hallelujah! every time theyre feeling low;
Every sheik is dressed up like a georgia gigolo,
You may call it madness but they call it hi-de-ho,
Underneath the harlem moon!
song performed by by Randy Newman
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Cotton Jenny
Theres a house on a hill
By a worn down weathered old mill
In the valley below where the river winds
Theres no such thing as bad times
And a soft southern flame
Oh cotton jennys her name
She wakes me up when the sun goes down
And the wheels of love go round
Wheels of love go round
Love go round, love go round
A joyful sound
I aint got a penny for cotton jenny to spend
But then the wheels go round
When the new day begins
I go down to the cotton gin
And I make my time worth while to them
Then I climb back up again
And she waits by the door
Oh cotton jenny Im sore
And she rubs my feet while the sun goes down
And the wheels of love go round
Wheels of love go round
Love go round, love go round
A joyful sound
I aint got a penny for cotton jenny to spend
But then the wheels go round
In the hot, sickly south
When they say well shut my mouth
I can never be free from the cotton grind
But I know I got whats mine
Shes a soft southern flame
Oh cotton jennys her name
She wakes me up when the sun goes down
And the wheels of love go round
Wheels of love go round
Love go round, love go round
A joyful sound
I aint got a penny for cotton jenny to spend
But then the wheels go round
song performed by by Gordon Lightfoot
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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The Crow Sat On The Willow
The crow sat on the willow tree
A-lifting up his wings,
And glossy was his coat to see,
And loud the ploughman sings,
'I love my love because I know
The milkmaid she loves me';
And hoarsely croaked the glossy crow
Upon the willow tree.
'I love my love' the ploughman sung,
And all the fields with music rung.
'I love my love, a bonny lass,
She keeps her pails so bright,
And blythe she trips the dewy grass
At morning and at night.
A cotton dress her morning gown,
Her face was rosy health:
She traced the pastures up and down
And nature was her wealth.'
He sung, and turned each furrow down,
His sweetheart's love in cotton gown.
'My love is young and handsome
As any in the town,
She's worth a ploughman's ransom
In the drab cotton gown.'
He sang and turned his furrow oer
And urged his team along,
While on the willow as before
The old crow croaked his song:
The ploughman sung his rustic lay
And sung of Phoebe all the day.
The crow he was in love no doubt
And [so were] many things:
The ploughman finished many a bout,
And lustily he sings,
'My love she is a milking maid
With red rosy cheek;
Of cotton drab her gown was made,
I loved her many a week.'
His milking maid the ploughman sung
Till all the fields around him rung.
poem by John Clare
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Three Corn Patches
(words & music by leiber - stoller)
I said three corn patches about four cotton fields away
I said three corn patches about four cotton fields away
Lives the prettiest girl in the whole darn u.s.a.
I said a
Shes got big brown eyes and long black wavy hair, mmm
Shes got big brown eyes and long black wavy hair
Shes so beautiful, people it dont seem fair
Well Ive been to chicago, been to new orleans
Yes, Ive been to chicago, been to new orleans
But Id rather see my baby workin in her old blue jeans
I said three corn patches
About four cotton fields away
I said three corn patches
About four cotton fields away
Lives the prettiest girl in the whole darn u.s.a.
I said a
She keeps a big bull dog out in the yard all night
She keeps a big bull dog out in the yard all night
And it barks like a bear oh, but he dont bite
Yeah,
I said three corn patches
About four cotton fields away
I said three corn patches
About four cotton fields away
Lives the prettiest girl in the whole darn u.s.a.
I said a
Gimme three, gimme four
I said three, well four
song performed by by Elvis Presley
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Baby Buffalo
Are you there?
Can you hear me?
Somewhere near me
In the morning long ago
Had to hold you so close
Had to never let go
Time on the river
Sliding on by
Hard to believe
Wink of an eye
Whered you go baby buffalo?
Whats become of old cotton eyed joe?
Hold up, lying low
Long gone coma a summertime snow
Talk to your doctor
Making her rounds
Ninety-six tear
One thousand clowns
There they are
Shining bright
True creation
Pure delight
They go on
So do you
On and on
Maybe me too
Long ago baby buffalo
Whats become of old cotton eyed joe?
Hole up, lying low
Long gone come a summertime snow
Hold on to now
Till you have to let go
Easy through your fingers
Ever so
Im just guessing
I dont know
Maybe its a blessing
I sure hope so
song performed by by James Taylor
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Cotton Mouth
James seals, dash crofts
Red eyed momma keep cryin
Blue eyed cat keeps a lyin
Catfish keep his eye on the string
And that cotton mouth keep on windin
Sing, sing, sing
Dark moon keeps hidin
And gator, he keeps right on slidin
And bull frog, he aint mindin
Oh, cotton mouth keep on windin
Sing, sing, sing
Lightnin bugs in bottles
They gimme all the light I need
And Im seinin bait for linin
And that cotton mouth keeps on windin
Sing, sing, sing
Oh, that big iron pots a boilin
And that red eyed momma keeps toilin
And the crawdad meats for dinin
And oh, that cotton mouth keeps on windin, lord
Sing, sing, sing
song performed by by Doobie Brothers
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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That was where my dream began to take hold, of not havin' to pick cotton and potatoes, and not havin' to be uncomfortable, too hot or too cold. That in itself had driven me to try to find some better way of life.
quote by Buck Owens
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Cotton Candy Sky
I awoke and turned my face to a cotton candy sky.
Sun rising from its slumber, moon slowly waving bye.
Wind so still, it whispered, went dancing through the grass.
A peaceful moment, to catch in words, I couldn’t let it pass.
The frost upon my window, frozen diamonds on the pane.
I sit and watch them disappear as they’re melted by the rain.
In the distance singing, a proud songbird says good day.
I finish off my morning coffee it’s time I was on my way.
I leave this peace, this tranquil scene, I scurry to the city.
To sit, cut-off from peaceful views, I know it’s such a pity.
But at days end, I’ll travel home, steel myself against the rain.
Tomorrow I’ll rise, look to the sky at cotton candy skies again.
poem by Jojoba Mansell
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Cotton Owens was leading and daddy was second. They came up on me and I moved over to let them pass. Cotton went on, but daddy bumped me in the rear and my car went right into the wall.
quote by Richard Petty
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Cotton Candy Land
(words & music by ruth batchelor - bob roberts)
Sandmans comin, yes hes comin
To sprinkle you with sand
Hell say one, two, three
And youll be, in cotton candy land
Sandmans comin, yes hes comin
Hell take you, by the hand
And youll ride upon, a big white swan
In cotton candy land
You and the swan will float upon
A cloud of pink ice cream
Where every star is a candy bar
And the moon is a marshmallow dream
Sandmans comin, yes hes comin
Take his magic hand
Now goodnight...now sleep tight
In cotton candy land
In cotton candy land...
song performed by by Elvis Presley
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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