In the late '60s and early '70s, Baez came into her songwriting own, penning many songs (most notably "Diamonds & Rust," a nostalgic piece about her ill-fated romance with Bob Dylan, and "Sweet Sir Galahad," a song about sister Mimi Fariña's ( of Richard & Mimi Fariña fame) second marriage, and continued to meld her songcraft with topical issues. She was outspoken in her disapproval of the Vietnam war and later the CIA-backed coups in many Latin American countries.
She was also instrumental in the Civil Rights movement, marching with Dr. Martin Luther King on many occassions and being jailed for her beliefs. In 1963, her performance of "We Shall Overcome" at the Lincoln Memorial just prior to Dr. King's famous "I Have A Dream..." speech helped confirm the song as the Civil Rights anthem.
In December 1972, she traveled to Hanoi, North Vietnam, and was caught in that country's "Christmas Campaign," in which the U.S. bombed the city more times than any other during the entire war. While pregnant with her only son, Gabriel, she performed a handful of songs in the middle of the night on day one of the 1969 Woodstock festival. She is considered the "Queen of Folk" for being at the forefront of the 1960s folk revival and inspiring generations of female folksingers that followed. Over fifty years after she first began singing publicly in 1958, Joan Baez continues to tour, demonstrate in favor of human rights and nonviolence, and release albums for a world of devoted fans.
1959
Danger Water
Joan Baez Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And I holler why
And I holler why,
The tortoise boy no mon ami!
And I holler why,
And I holler why
And I holler why,
First he give me one,
Then he give me two
And he give me three and I holler
"Lord have mercy"
And I holler why,
And I holler why
And I holler why,
The tortoise boy no mon ami!
First we go in a room,
Make me mama no know
Make me lie on a sofa,
Make me have-a me labor
And I holler why,
And I holler why
And I holler why,
The tortoise boy no mon ami!
Give me back me shillin',
Give me back me shillin'
You can stand on your own feet now,
Give me back me shillin'
And I holler why,
And I holler why
And I holler why,
The tortoise boy no mon ami!
Hold me tight, hold me tight,
Danger waters coming baby
Hold me tight
Hold me tight, hold me tight,
Danger water coming, baby,
Hold me
And I holler why,
And I holler why
And I holler why,
The tortoise boy no mon ami!
And I holler why,
And I holler why
And I holler why,
The tortoise boy no mon ami!
Joan Baez's song "Danger Waters" is a haunting ballad that tells a story of a woman's harrowing experience with an unknown man. The lyrics are somewhat cryptic, but they suggest that the woman has been taken advantage of by a "tortoise boy" who has left her feeling abandoned and frightened.
The first verse of the song sets the tone for the rest of the lyrics, with the woman repeatedly asking "why" she has been left alone. The reference to the "tortoise boy" is never explained, but it seems likely that he is the man who has mistreated her in some way. In the second verse, the woman describes how the man has given her various things, perhaps as part of a seduction, before leaving her alone to face the dangers of the world outside.
The third verse is the most haunting, as the woman reveals that the man has taken her to a secret room where she has been made to have a baby, possibly against her will. The line "make me mama no know" suggests that the woman is hiding the pregnancy from her own mother, perhaps because of shame or fear.
The final verses of the song see the woman demanding that the "tortoise boy" return her "shillin'" and expressing her fear of the "danger waters" that are coming. It's unclear exactly what these waters represent, but they may be a metaphor for the difficulties and uncertainties of life that the woman now faces alone.
Line by Line Meaning
And I holler why,
The singer is expressing frustration and confusion over a situation that they are experiencing.
The tortoise boy no mon ami!
The singer's frustration is directed towards someone referred to as the 'tortoise boy'. The phrase 'no mon ami' suggests that the singer feels betrayed or hurt by this person.
First he give me one,
The singer is describing a situation where the 'tortoise boy' gave them something.
Then he give me two
The 'tortoise boy' gave the artist more things.
And he give me three and I holler "Lord have mercy"
The 'tortoise boy' continued to give the artist things and their reaction was to exclaim 'Lord have mercy'. This could be interpreted as the artist feeling overwhelmed or uncomfortable with the situation.
First we go in a room,
The singer and the 'tortoise boy' entered a room together.
Make me mama no know
The singer didn't want their mother to know what was happening in the room.
Make me lie on a sofa,
The 'tortoise boy' instructed the artist to lay down on a sofa.
Make me have-a me labor
The situation on the sofa resulted in the artist having to exert some sort of effort, which is described as 'having labor.'
Give me back me shillin'
The artist wants their money or possessions back.
You can stand on your own feet now,
The 'tortoise boy' is telling the singer that they are capable of standing up for themselves.
Hold me tight, hold me tight,
The artist is asking someone to hold them tightly in anticipation of danger.
Danger waters coming baby
There is something dangerous approaching and the singer is seeking protection from it.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Katharine Y BAez Katharina Scharlowski Katharine C. Y BAez Scharlowski InAOLoves
on The Rose
Joan Baez , my Fairest Hope my Love who signed into our Way
We are unite
We will not fall without our Foreverlasting
Love
In Failing Light
You See in myselfve your Love your Lesbian Wifve
You share your Lightful and your Darkest
side
In Which our Embraces
Our Words
Our Visions
Will rejoice
I see the Sunlight of a setting
Evening
Rise into Grace each Coming Morning
The amours we live is our Love
The mourns we felt
Do not impact
The do not seperate us My Joan C Baez You and I
The scared moments
We leave behind
We’ll belong twogather twogether
And three times we will cross
The Distance of an ocean between us
And then we ‘ll stay twogather in Your Home your place
Is given here and there
Is given home in our hearts and Soul
Our minds and bodies Longing Love
We are whole
The scars we carry
Did not made us blind
we will feel every emotion
As our Lifvelong foreverlasting Love
We share a secret
In which we Both have
Signed we are in Soul in heart in Bodies Longing and fulfillment in Mind now and
Eternally Unite
DeineKatharine Y BAez Katharina Scharlowski Katharine C. Y BAez Scharlowski InAOLoves
KatharinA KAtharine C. Y Baez Scharlowski
on The Rose
Und selbst wenn
alle Dunkelheit
Der Nächte
In den Tagen läge
Und selbst Erwachen
Schwer
ich fände doch
Zu Dir
Es führen Wege
Selbst wenn
kein Ausweg
durch die Tür
We burnt Each Other
everlastingly
Our Sign
Of truest Love that
Overcomes
The loneliness
And wildest
cry
When we embrace
and kiss our
Wounds
The Smile remaining
When we caress us
Will be
What lets us
deeply , sad
and of most
tenderness
Acknowledging
and
In our Minds
Forever
Found and
Not to destroyed
And we will
Feel that
We are Unite
The Ring i had lost
I‘ve found again
It’s prayer and Your Love
You Sent
A Turquoise of Arizonas Depth
Your heart in myne
And at The Turquoise
Coast beneath your Hill
We‘ll make Love
We‘ll follow our destined
And guiding
Will
Ich bin Dein Du Mein
MyLady JoanC BAez, My JoanChandosBaez, JoanBaez my Dove
Love And Wife
Katharine~~ C.~~ Y Baez KAtharinA Scharlowski InAO~•~Love~•~s the Answer~ I Love You, Joan and as Light begins to fail You reappear in my Body Heart and Soul my Mind to stayDeine KAtharinA KAtharine ich liebe Dich Forever!Joan C BAez
KatharinA KAtharine C. Y Baez Scharlowski
on The Rose
For a moment
in a Night Times Blessing
I left You in my Loves Embrace
as like a Flower
~ a Rose ~
and Purity her name
in darkness,
that was to bloom
in Heaven’s place.
as for the Love
in me
was not Disgraced,
A Lasting Kiss ,
A smile
a Light
A heart
that burns
throughly Memories
Forever Living
As Nighttime fell
As Nighttime falls
I‘ came, l’ll come and be
The One You‘ll see
The Love you feel
Just like a wild dog
Runs
Through Bushes
Of fences
And calamities
I passed my way to You
Through even
Greatest adversarities
The Rose of Sharon
Schmückt meinen Mund
~trotz Ausgebissen Zähne
In des Lebens Leid~
Wir Küssen uns
in purest Love
That went through
To and fro
And come and go
And I came back to You
Forever and Forevermore
Für JoanC. BAez von KAtharine C. Y Baez Scharlowski KAtharinA Ino
Katharine c; Y Baez
on The Rose
If a Love is felt as failing it is but Love the helps her Rise, it is a the moments quiet whispering : As i was torn you were by my side, in your Love i see my true and darkeyed Light, there it is Forever Joan Chandos Baez Katharine C; Y Baez Katharina sc harlowski
kATHARINE C. YBAEZ I
on The Rose
AS ON tHE WHITE hORSE MY HAND WAS GIVEN IN THE NOON TO yOU TODAY AS I ASKED YOU FOR YOURS ,WAS THAN WHEN EVERY MOON HAD TRIED TO fAIL AND hONEYMOON WAS THE ONLY LIGHT IN WHICH MY wORDS WERE LAID. iT WAS THE fAILURE ON THE iNTERNET AND NON BUT SCRIPTURE cOULD AND A LOVING HEART COULD STAY THE WIDE
iN THIS dARK MOMENT OF THE pRESENTS SIMPLE SIDE , THE fAIR cARD OF yOUR STALION wHITE THE wHITE hORSE IN tHE bLOSSOM OF THE mAY dAYS tIDE, I SENT TO YOUR wOODEN hILLS TO YOUR UNVENTURED sIDE, mY WRITTEN wORD : wILL yOU PLEASE mARRY ME MY bRIDE? i'LL STAY FOREVER BY YOUR sIDE FROM tHAN oN, sO gOODBYE IN OUR gOOD NiGHT, mY loVE jOAN C. bAEZ, yOUR KATHARINE C. Y BAEZ kATHARINA SCHARLOWSKI 21. MAY 2022
KatharineC. Y Baez Katharina Scharlowski
on The Rose
Thank You dearloved Joan C.Baez, you accorded me the answer in an unknown Light, through all darkness not alone as there was Love for you in me,- as in thought, in words a visioned melodie - that is not gone - far beyond the borders shores and the oceans sea, doves Flight as is Loves they fly By two By Four By Three, i send Goodbye to them I send GoodBye - and hope it once will be - I sent GoodBye my Joan C Baez stay You'll never fail in my Heart There is your place to be i send Goodbye my Love to Thee , Joan Chandos Baez, Katharine C. Y Baez Katharina Scharlowski It is for You that i was meant to feel was meant to be.
Katharine C. Y Baez, K.S.
on Wings
I 'll stay with you cause I think it's time to say Thank you for having stayed with me in my Time of Need. I love You Joan (KC) CHandos Baez, Your Katharine C. Y Baez name of Love and Hope and American Native Indian Marriage, born Katharina Scharlowski , A little Rain is a gonna come, And I am at Home when I cry, but I learned to be at home in your Love too, As we stay in The Hearts of The One Loves we are. Deine Katharine