Sweet Honey in the Rock was founded in 1973 by Bernice Johnson Reagon who formed the group out of the strongest singers from a vocal workshop she was teaching with the D.C. Black Repertory Company. The name of the group comes from a religious parable that tells of a land so rich that when rocks were cracked open, honey flowed from them.
The music of Sweet Honey in the Rock challenges its listeners with songs on topics including motherhood, spirituality, freedom, civil liberties, domestic violence, and racism.
Over the years, more than twenty individuals have lent their voices to Sweet Honey in the Rock. Beginning as a quartet, Sweet Honey in the Rock is now comprised of six African American women (including a professional American Sign Language interpreter who accompanies the group on concert tours). The ensemble tackles difficult five-part harmonies and composes much of their own music.
Sweet Honey in the Rock has received several Grammy Award nominations, including one for their children's album Still the Same Me which received the Silver Award from the National Association of Parenting Publications. They won a Grammy in 1989 in the category of Best Traditional Folk Recording for their version of Leadbelly's "Grey Goose" from the compilation album Folkways: A Vision Shared.
Stranger Blues
Sweet Honey In The Rock Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm a stranger here, just blowed in your town,
Just because I'm a stranger everybody wants to dog me around,
Lord, I wonder do my good gal know I'm here?
Lord, wonder do my good gal know I'm here,
Well, if she do she sure don't seem to care.
I wonder how can some people dog a poor stranger so,
I wonder how can some people dog a poor stranger so,
I would stay up North but there's nothing here that I can do,
I would stay up North but there's nothing here that I can do,
But hang around this corner and sing the poor stranger blues.
Mama, I am going back south if I wear ninety nine pair of shoes,
Mama, I am going back south if I wear ninety nine pair of shoes,
Then I know I'll be welcome and I won't have the stranger's blues.
The song "Stranger Blues" by Sweet Honey In The Rock tells a story of a stranger who has just arrived in town and is facing hostility from the locals simply because he is an outsider. The lyrics express the struggles and difficulties he is facing trying to make his way and find a place for himself in the community. He wonders if his girlfriend knows he is there but feels neglected by her lack of concern.
The lyrics also convey a message of karma, as the stranger laments how people can treat him so poorly, forgetting that what goes around comes around. The song highlights the theme of prejudice and how it can turn people against each other without any real reason or cause. The stranger ultimately decides to return home to the South where he believes he will be welcomed with open arms, regardless of his outsider status.
Overall, "Stranger Blues" is a powerful and poignant song that captures the struggles of being an outsider in a new place, and the universal human desire for acceptance and belonging.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm a stranger here, just blowed in your town,
I am not familiar with this place as it is my first time in this town.
Just because I'm a stranger everybody wants to dog me around,
People treat me harshly just because I am new to this town.
Lord, wonder do my good gal know I'm here?
I wonder if my girlfriend is aware of my presence in this town.
Well, if she do she sure don't seem to care.
Even if she knows that I am here, it seems like she does not care about me.
I wonder how can some people dog a poor stranger so,
I am curious about why people are so unfair and unkind to a helpless stranger like me.
They should remember they gonna reap what they sow.
Those who mistreat others should be aware that they will face the same punishment in the future.
I would stay up North but there's nothing here that I can do,
I would have stayed in the North if there were opportunities for me, but there are none.
But hang around this corner and sing the poor stranger blues.
I am left with no choice but to sit on this street corner and sing the blues about my sad state as a stranger in this town.
Mama, I am going back south if I wear ninety nine pair of shoes,
I will do whatever it takes to leave and go back to the South where I feel that I belong.
Then I know I'll be welcome and I won't have the stranger's blues.
I am sure that when I go back to the South, I will feel welcomed and accepted and no longer suffer from the discomfort and sadness of being a stranger.
Lyrics © ACORN PUBLISHING
Written by: ELMORE JAMES, MARSHALL E SEHORN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Barbara Barnett
on Young and Positive
what are the lyrics to im young and im positive
Amado Mc. G
on The little Shekere
The Little Shekere Lyrics: I Use to be a squash in Aminatta’s field Until the day she decided to collect her yield I was so afraid that she would come and choose me but since I couldn’t run away, I had to wait and see She went back and forth and up and down every row then without choosing me she decided to go I was so relieved I began to shout! Which made her turn around and see me so she picked me out! When she wrapped me in her sack and place me on her head and started walking toward her village, I was filled with dread Many of my friends and family had left the land but never knowing where they went I did not understand That a whole new life was just ahead of me as a calabash, moraccas, agbe, axatse. I never knew a squash could be so many things full of colors and designs and beaded down with strings When we reached the house they took me out of the sack I wanted to go home! (somebody take me back!) But as I look around I just could not believe my eyes I saw my friends and family, what a nice surprise! They were happy to see me and they were looking good and when they started to talk, that’s when I understood Even though each one was different in color and shape when they all played together the music was great. My life was just beginning in the musical world I’d be a shekere for these young boys and girls A Shekere! (A Shekere!) A Shekere! (A Shekere!) So listen everybody to my family and friends we’re gonna sing this song for you from begin to end A Shekere! (A Shekere!) A Shekere! (A Shekere!) *Shekeres Playing* Shekere!
Ahfor Taitu
on I Be Your Water
I BE YOUR WATER-LYRICS
i————
i be your shelter
i be your rain
i be your everything
i be your friend
i be your water
when your thirsty and dry…
i woke up mourning in a crowded sick place
surrounded by evil, protected by grace
there were these hands, hundreds reaching for me
they knew exactly who and what i should be
each way i turned, had me stronger than the last
which would i choose & how could i pass
then i heard whispers (be still -be still -be still)
from deep inside me (be still -be still -be still)
then i heard whispers (be still -be still -be still)
from deep inside me (be still -be still -be still)
as i gave power to the sound of my own voice
a way broke before me, i followed my choice
i walked along the way others lives had been
til’ i came to what seemed like an end
again these hands, reaching beckoning for me
they knew exactly who and what i should be
again the whispers (be still -be still -be still)
keeping me steady (be still -be still -be still)
again the whispers (be still -be still -be still)
keeping me steady (be still -be still -be still)
way before me was mine to make
there was no road, no path to take
as i had my life, through this muddy walk way
others toiled beside me for a justice new day
still i have felt lonely most of the time
walking this sweet freedom struggle of mine
still i have felt lonely most of the time
walking this sweet freedom struggle of mine
saved by the whispers (be still -be still -be still)
keeping me steady (be still -be still -be still)
saved by the whispers (be still -be still -be still)
keeping me steady (be still -be still -be still)
yesterday i stumbled around the bend
i saw you standing, you reached me your hand
i seen you before, oh many of times
why your life had plowed the road, right next to mine
now you make the sun rise in my sky
you rock my cradle hunny, you make me fly
you keep me company
now you make the sun rise in my sky
you rock my cradle hunny, you make me fly
you keep me company
i————
I be your shelter
i be your rain
i be your everything
i be your friend
i be your water
when your thirsty and dry…
Brenda Nelson
on Long Journey Home
Does anyone have lyrics for this song...long journey home ....by sweet honey in the rock?