A late-night (3.30 a.m.) take on a traditional folk song.
'We shall overcome' - a miners' working song, a key anthem of the Civil Rights Movement . derived, apparently, from a gospel song by the Reverend Charles Tindley (1901), later sung by Pete Seeger and then the revered Joan (1963). Earlier versions can be traced back to the 1880s.
The Joan Baez version is the one I know and love . . .
I've tried to make it personal - no plagiarism intended . . .
Song / poem? Works? Comments welcome!
Cheers!
John X
Deep in my Heart
We shall overcome!
We shall overcome!
We shall overcome . . .
some day.
Deep in my heart,
I need to believe
that we shall overcome
one day.
Our pain will never go!
Our pain will never go!
Our pain will never go
away.
Deep in my heart,
I want to believe
that we can heal ourselves
somehow.
Tears caress your face!
Tears caress your face!
Tears caress your face
once more.
Deep in my heart,
I need to believe
that we can overcome
our pain.
Will we meet once more?
Will we meet once more?
Will we meet once more
one day?
Deep in my heart
I want to believe
That we will meet once more
We two.
Will we overcome?
Will we overcome?
Will we overcome
one day?
Deep in my heart
I need to ask,
"Will we overcome
some day?"
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Written by mr_soul (126 comments posted) 10th August 2008 | Nicely written again John, liked this very much. I'm not familiar with the original folk song, I will need to look it up, I like folk music myself. Haven't heard much of Joan Baez's stuff though I adore "Love Is Just A Four Letter Word", a Bob Dylan song I believe, she captured that one beautifully.
But back to the poem, I'm a fan of this. I like how the narrator seems so down and despairing, one can only imagine the conditions people had to face. Yet the hope of these people - when you'd expect them to just give up - is truly remarkable. Yet this poem seems to capture perfectly the fact that these people hold on to hope because its the only thing they have left to hold on to.
Not only the fact that they "want" to believe, but they "need" to believe, because thats the only thing that can keep them going, the hope of a better life.
Anyway, fantastic. Well done | John!
Written by Brett (1001 comments posted) 10th August 2008 | Come off it - you are capable of much more than this - there is more than enough postings by people who think that writing anything in short lines is poetry. You know different, and whilst some song lyrics may stand on their own as poetic verse, they are few and far between.
Consider the name of the site where we post our humble scribblings, it is almost becoming ironic! I certainly don't consider my own verses anything more than my own simple musings, but there does seem to be a lack of members whose work is worth reading.
I can think of a handfull of poets on this site that when I see a post of theirs I think 'good, something to read.'
The lack of people willing to study poetry (I even doubt some of them read it) is shocking - you can't write any old bilge and say its verse.
Sorry, Tolstoy - I went off on a rant - not directly because of your post, but because I know your eagerness to post often results in quantity rather than quality. Sorry.
Cheers |
Written by Veronica_Milvus (768 comments posted) 10th August 2008 | Not different enough from the original, or a witty enough parody, to be worth it, John! Go back to your sonnets, they were getting somewhere!
Like a tree, standing by the waterside, you'll never walk alone! | Thanks Brett and Vron!
Written by Katanga (1537 comments posted) 10th August 2008 | Truly!
What I wrote was drunken late-night bilge - no offence to you mr_soul, who enjoyed it . . .
Yes, you are so right!
Please, if you have a mo, do you like Pegasus?
Vron - still pondering your last sentence re 'a tree'!
Lovely! I think I need to find my roots, and yes, I feel more comfortable with sonnets . . .
Think I'll pause for a bit and staunch the non-poetical diarrhoea!
Another sonnet in the offing . . . eventually!
Cheers!
John XX | Hmm
Written by mr_soul (126 comments posted) 10th August 2008 | Don't be told what to do and not what to do John. Ok, I'm no good at poetry and fair enough if people criticise this from a poetic point of view. Ofcourse thats their right. But just because it doesn't meet the standards of some doesn't mean it doesn't have something to say to others. In fact I meant what I said, it meant something to me. Now people can rage all they want about me having no clue about poetry and they'd probably be right. But works such as these often mean more to me than supposed well-written pieces, for me it painted a picture, for me it expressed beautifully struggle and hope. So don't let yourself become restricted by what you write, feel free to express yourself any way you like. Fair enough if you truly feel didn't like this yourself but I did and I would welcome similar works of such emotion. Thats just my opinion.
Keep up the good work! | mr_soul!
Written by Katanga (1537 comments posted) 18th August 2008 | I see that you have become disheartened recently.
No need to be - in this instance, Brett and Veronica are absolutely right.
I think, if you see the original folk lyric, you will agree with them - well, and me, now!
I would have deleted this, though I don't want to lose your supportive comments, or the honest critiques above.
I sometimes post late-night unwise stuff - you have to be a master of self-control not to do this occasionally.
Some are hits - most are misses. But so what? It helps!
Stick with us, please!
Cheers!
John |
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