Quite Early Morning

I've decided to start up yet another blog to inflict (once again) my meandering experiments with words and music on the world. Here's what this blog's going to do. Each post will feature a song that I've been working on. This means there'll be a recording of me singing the song as well as the lyrics so that all and sundry can sing-along. It's part of the whole participatory thing, so we don't end up being bland consumers of music!

For my first entry, I've decided to post up a version of "Quite Early Morning". The song was written by Pete Seeger (who will feature on these pages a lot). I only learnt it recently, after viewing a masterful YouTube version by Pete Seeger himself. I'll put the video of him singing it: extremely powerful and moving. I was convinced that I had to learn how to play the banjo after watching Pete sing it, so here's my version, complete with banjo accompaniment. I actually had some trouble learning its deceptively simple melody, and sing the first two lines 'wrongly' because I tend to sing a "blues" note instead (which is just a nicer way of saying I can't keep the tune straight ...). Still, I like the song very much.



Don't you know it's darkest before the dawn
And it's this thought keeps me moving on
If we could heed these signs and warnings
The time is now quite early morning
If we could heed these signs and warnings
The time is now quite early morning

Some say that humankind won't long endure
But what makes them do doggone sure?
I know that you who hear my singing
Could make those freedom bells go ringing
I know that you who hear my singing
Could make those freedom bells go ringing

And so we keep on while we live
Until we have no, no more to give
And when these fingers can strum no longer
Hand the old banjo to young ones stronger
And when these fingers can strum no longer
Hand the old banjo to young ones stronger

So though it's darkest before the dawn
These thoughts keep us moving on
Through all this world of joy and sorrow
We still can have singing tomorrows
Through all this world of joy and sorrow
We still can have singing tomorrows