ADD: Lift Ev'ry Voice (Lift Every Voice and Sing)

02 Feb 99 - 08:37 PM (#56943)
Subject: Lift Ev'ry Voice
From: Anne Lee

Trying to find the music to a poem written in 1900 in honor of Lincoln's birthday.

Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing Written by James Weldon Johnson Music by J. Roasmond Johnson

Is said to have been the national anthem from African-Americas.

Lift ev'ry voice and sing, Till earth and heavan ring, Ring with the harmoniesof Liberty, Let our rejoicing rise High as the list'ning skies, Let it resound loud as the rolling sea. Sing a song full of the faith that the dark past hast taught us Sing a song full of hope that the present has brought us Facing the rising sun of our new day begun, Let us march on till victory is won.

1st of 4 verses.

My students are memorizing poem for this month, would really like the notes.

Odean Pope Sax. choir has a song with same title. Maybe someone knows where I can find someone else who performs song.

Danke Sehr,

Anne Lee

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02 Feb 99 - 09:38 PM (#56959)
Subject: ADD: Lift Every Voice and Sing (Johnson)
From: Joe Offer

Hi, Anne Lee - you'll find the song, with MIDI, at The Cyber Hymnal (click here). I think it was one of the most inspiring songs used by the U.S. civil rights movement in the 1960's.
-Joe Offer-

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LIFT EVERY VOICE AND SING
Words: James W. Johnson, 1899
Music: John R. Johnson

Lift every voice and sing, till earth and Heaven ring,
Ring with the harmonies of liberty;
Let our rejoicing rise, high as the listening skies,
Let it resound loud as the rolling sea.
Sing a song full of the faith that the dark past has taught us,
Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought us;
Facing the rising sun of our new day begun,
Let us march on till victory is won.

Stony the road we trod, bitter the chastening rod,
Felt in the days when hope unborn had died;
Yet with a steady beat, have not our weary feet,
Come to the place for which our fathers sighed?
We have come over a way that with tears has been watered,
We have come, treading our path through the blood of the slaughtered;
Out from the gloomy past, till now we stand at last
Where the white gleam of our bright star is cast.

God of our weary years, God of our silent tears,
Thou who hast brought us thus far on the way;
Thou who hast by Thy might, led us into the light,
Keep us forever in the path, we pray.
Lest our feet stray from the places, our God, where we met Thee.
Lest our hearts, drunk with the wine of the world, we forget Thee.
Shadowed beneath Thy hand, may we forever stand,
True to our God, true to our native land.

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03 Feb 99 - 09:29 AM (#57021)
Subject: RE: Lift Ev'ry Voice
From: Brad Sondahl

The sheet music is in the ELCA Lutheran Hymnal... Brad http://www.camasnet.com/~asondahl

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05 Feb 19 - 06:34 PM (#3975027)
Subject: RE: Lift Ev'ry Voice (Lift Every Voice and Sing)
From: Felipa

A timely song as Abe Lincoln's birthday approaches (12 Feb. I hadn't realised that this song is seen as an African American National Anthem to replace the Star Spangled Banner. See Denise Oliver Velez' article at https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2019/2/3/1830202/-Lift-Every-Voice-and-Sing-for-Black-History

The article includes a lot of video links giving various treatments of the song.
"James Weldon Johnson was one of the key figures in the history of civil rights struggles in the U.S., and was a leader of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), which adopted Lift Every Voice as the 'Negro National Anthem' in 1919."

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25 Apr 21 - 01:58 PM (#4103482)
Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Black National Anthem - aka Lift Every
From: leeneia

Thanks, Gargoyle.

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25 Apr 21 - 02:20 PM (#4103485)
Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Black National Anthem - aka Lift Every
From: Dave Hanson

Black National Anthem of which nation ?

Dave H

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25 Apr 21 - 11:35 PM (#4103518)
Subject: RE: ADD: Lift Ev'ry Voice (Lift Every Voice and Sing)
From: Joe Offer

Well, let's say that in the United States it's often called the "Black National Anthem." A couple of years ago, I was at a church gathering where Dr. Kim Harris (formerly of Kim & Reggie) sang this with 10,000 people. But they were white Catholics, and didn't know the song. I sang con mucho gusto, and I really enjoyed the performance.
There's a very interesting Wikipedia article on the song:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lift_Every_Voice_and_Sing

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11 Feb 26 - 08:12 PM (#4235679)
Subject: RE: ADD: Lift Ev'ry Voice (Lift Every Voice and Sing)
From: GUEST

Dave Hanson, "The NAACP dubbed “Lift Every Voice and Sing” as the Black national anthem in 1919, more than a decade before "The Star Spangled Banner" was named the national anthem"
source

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