MLK Day is usually really really cold and really really fun. My wife and kids are out of school and we get to hang out. And I get to sing all the Civil Rights, black history, and spiritual tunes that I love at my sing-a-longs. Usually I do about half Dees songs and half traditional kid tunes but around MLK's b-day I go all out with the stuff I really like. Here's some of the stuff I'm singing today, all weekend, Monday, and all next week. Happy birthday!
classics:
John Brown's Body
Lift Every Voice and Sing
We Shall Overcome
Down in the Valley (don't forget the "Birmingham jail" verse)
Follow the Drinking Gourd
The Welcome Table
Let Us Get Together (the Rev. Gary Davis tune)
This Little Light
Go Down, Moses
Wade in the Water
Redemption Song (yeah, that one. before you scoff, try playing it for an NYC crowd. EVERYONE will sing along, even most of the hipsters)
Down by the Riverside
I Sing Just to Know That I'm Alive (Trinidadian tune I learned from Nina Simone)
Dees tunes:
Tub-Tub-Ma-Ma-Ga-Ga
Ah Ahimsa
Sojourner Truth
Underground Railroad
Cool Papa Bell
Bring 'Em In (about Satchel Paige)
Got your own favorites? Please send: thedeedledeedledees AT yahoo DOT com
L
