My favorite new song is "so long from the sunshine state" by Jerry Lawrence Bullard. It's all about inviting people to pack up and go home and leave Florida for them what love her. Bobby Hicks (the other one) is fighting cancer in Tampa. He wrote "I'm Florida, Need I say more?" which ought to be our state song. Way down upon the Suwanee river is a great song except for that one unfortunate phrase. We ought to honor it as the song emeritus like they did with "Carry me back to old Virginia" and put it on the shelf in a box made out of palmetto leaves.
Will McLean wrote about 1000 songs celebrating Florida. If you've never heard "Osceola's Last Words" or "Lord Hold Back the Waters" you're missing something wonderful.
So what's your favorite Florida song?
Will McLean wrote about 1000 songs celebrating Florida. If you've never heard "Osceola's Last Words" or "Lord Hold Back the Waters" you're missing something wonderful.
So what's your favorite Florida song?
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Florida
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Re: Songs about Florida
Sun, December 2, 2007 - 4:53 PMLest those who do not know the words to this wonderful song be left out heres the words to this Florida State song:
Written By Stephen Collins Foster (July 4, 1826 – January 13, 1864),
upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...ter.jpeg
Although this song may sometimes be performed with "modern" lyrics that some see as more racially sensitive, the song's original lyrics, included here, have been officially adopted as the lyrics of Florida's state song
1st verse
Way down upon de Swanee ribber,
Far, far away,
Dere's wha my heart is turning ebber,
Dere's wha de old folks stay.
All up and down de whole creation
Sadly I roam,
Still longing for de old plantation
And for de old folks at home.
Chorus
All de world am sad and dreary,
Ebry where I roam,
Oh! darkies how my heart grows weary,
Far from de old folks at home.
2nd verse
All round de little farm I wandered
When I was young,
Den many happy days I squandered,
Many de songs I sung.
When I was playing wid my brudder
Happy was I
Oh! take me to my kind old mudder,
Dere let me live and die.
Chorus
3rd verse
One little hut amond de bushes,
One dat I love,
Still sadly to my mem'ry rushes,
No matter where I rove
When will I see de bees a humming
All round de comb?
When will I hear de banjo tumming
Down in my good old home?
Chorus
I'm a Florida native and you can sing it anyway YOU want to but in its original form is my preferred listening pleasure. Hearing it played by good musicians with Banjos and a preferred southern drawl its a listening pleasure.....Let the banjos roll..... -
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Unsu...
Re: Songs about Florida
Sun, December 2, 2007 - 6:18 PMThere was a song done by a local Ft. Laud band (I forget their name) called "South Florida Girls" Kind of Beach Boys, "Californnia Girls" type thing. I know there was a recording of the song done, but not sure if it ever had any airplay.
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Re: Songs about Florida
Sun, December 2, 2007 - 6:23 PMI don' t know if the story is correct or not, but the way I heard it, Stephen Foster never saw the Suwanee river. He wanted to write a song about a southern river and originally used the Peedee, a South Carolina river. He changed the word from three to two syllables.
It's a pretty good song, and I agree that changing the lyrics to "oh brothers, or "I'm lonely" or whatever dishonors history.
Another song from the same era, and the hit parade tune of the 1860's was "Kingdom Come" by Henry Clay Work. A lot of people know another HC Work Song, "My Grandfather's Clock." Kingdom comes starts "Oh darkies have you seen the master with the moustache on his face. Went down the road some time this morning and I expect he's gawn away."
The song was a favorite of folk of all colors, political and geographic persuasions. -
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Re: Songs about Florida
Tue, December 18, 2007 - 6:33 PMYou are correct he never saw the river. Heres the link that I recovered the lyrics from and lots more facts of the song, its author and his work.:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Folks_at_Home
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Re: Songs about Florida
Thu, December 20, 2007 - 4:40 AMThe Music Educators of Florida were charged with getting a new song for us. They had a contest and narrowed it down to 4 of the saddest songs you have ever heard. I hope that better sense causes a redo of the process. You can here the four dirges at www.justsingflorida.com but make sure that you lock up the guns, knives, ropes and pills first. -
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Re: Songs about Florida
Thu, December 20, 2007 - 5:42 AMA more accurate song for today's Florida would be one about strangers who come from far away and take away everything you love. -
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Re: Songs about Florida
Fri, December 21, 2007 - 8:16 AMYou really need to hear "So Long From the Sunshine State" by Jerry Lawrence Bullard and "I'm Florida, Need I Say More?" by the late (he died two days ago) Bobby Hicks. Both tunes are wonderful in their own way and both focus on what we had and what we lost and who it was that took the good stuff away.
My only copy of "So Long From the Sunshine State" was recorded with a very low end digital device at a campfire a few months ago and is not of sufficient quality to distribute but Jerry Lawrence is spending time in the studio so there ought to be a quality version soon. By the way, the title comes from the sign-off that Gordon Solie used as he ended each episode of Championship Wrestling from Florida; a television series popular on this side of the Mason/Dixon in the 60s and 70's.
Bobby Hicks died a couple of days ago and I will be including at least one of his tunes on the next edition of my Florida podcast, the TallyCast. You can find the feed at feeds.feedburner.com/tallycast and the show notes/blog at www.tallycast.com. There will be a memorial service for Bobby in mid-January somewhere in Tampa.
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