YOU ax about dat music made
On banjos long ago,
An’ wants to know why it ain’t played
By niggers any mo’.
Dem banjos b’longed to by-gone days
When times an’ chunes was rare,
When we was gay as children-‘case
We did n’t have a care.
But when we got our freedom, we
Found projeckin’ was done;
Our livin’ was to make-you see,
An’ dat lef’ out de fun.
We learned to vote an’ read an’ spell,
We learned de taste ob tears-
An’ when you gets dat ‘sponsible,
De banjo disappears!
(Howard Weeden)
More Poetry from Howard Weeden:
Howard Weeden Poems based on Topics: Liberty & FreedomReaders Who Like This Poem Also Like:
Based on Topics: Liberty & Freedom PoemsBased on Keywords: lef, children-, banjos, sponsible