#AmericanWriters
My name is Johnson— Madam Alberta K. The Madam stands for business. I’m smart that way. I had a
Love Is a ripe plum Growing on a purple tree. Taste it once And the spell of its enchantment
Goin’ down the road, Lawd, Goin’ down the road. Down the road, Lawd, Way, way down the road. Got to find somebody
My old mule, He’s gota grin on his face. He’s been a mule so long He’s forgotten about his race. I’m like that old mule —
I work all day, Said Simple John, Myself a house to buy. I work all day, Said Simple John,
I’ve known rivers: I’ve known rivers ancient as the w… flow of human blood in human veins My soul has grown deep like the ri… I bathed in the Euphrates when da…
Gather quickly Out of darkness All the songs you know And throw them at the sun Before they melt
To fling my arms wide In some place of the sun, To whirl and to dance Till the white day is done. Then rest at cool evening
I sat there singing her Songs in the dark. She said; 'I do not understand The words’.
Where is the Jim Crow section On this merry—go—round, Mister, cause I want to ride? Down South where I come from White and colored
Let America be America again. Let it be the dream it used to be. Let it be the pioneer on the plain Seeking a home where he himself is… (America never was America to me.…
Clean the spittoons, boy. Detroit, Chicago, Atlantic City, Palm Beach.
Well, son, I’ll tell you: Life for me ain’t been no crystal… It’s had tacks in it, And splinters, And boards torn up,
Because my mouth Is wide with laughter And my throat Is deep with song, You do not think
She, In the dark, Found light Brighter than many ever see. She,