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This lyric was written by Langston Hughes, after the murder of Emmett Till. It was set to blues music, which is considered lost. I was given a copy by the BBC when I went to be part of a radio program on Till. I set a new melody on dulcimer, and was aided by Sarah Azzara on vocal and acoustic guitar. This track was the start of the STRUMMERS project

lyrics

The Money Mississippi Blues (1955)
Lyrics by Langston Hughes; Original Music by Jobe Huntley; New Melody: Cornelius Eady

I don’t want to go to Money, honey,
not Money, Mississippi!
no, I wouldn’t go to Money, honey,
down in Mississippi.
There’s pity, sorrow, and pain
in Money, Mississippi.
Tears and blood like rain
in Money, Mississippi,
in Money, Mississippi!

His father died for democracy
fighting in the army over the sea.
His father died for the U. S. A.
Why did they treat his son this a-way?
in Money, Money, Mississippi,
Money, Mississippi.

His mother worked to raise her child,
dressed him neat, kept him from running wild.
She sent him to the country when vacation came,
but he never got back to Chicago the same.
They sent him back in a wooden box----
from Money, Money, Mississippi,
Money, Mississippi.

Like old boy, just fourteen years old,
shot, kicked, and beaten ‘cause he was so bold
to whistle at a woman who was white.
He was throwed in the river in the dead of night
In Money, Money, Mississippi,
Money, Mississippi.

I don’t want to go to Money, honey,
not Money, Mississippi.
No, I wouldn’t want to go to Money, honey,
down in Mississippi.

credits

from WHEN YOU GO TO SLEEP, DO YOU THINK YOU'LL WAKE UP IN AMERICA?, released December 20, 2018
Cornelius Eady: Mountain Dulcimer and Vocal
Sarah Azzara: Acoustic Guitar and Vocal
w/ Pablo Fazio, Bass, Drums and Arrangement
Track mixed by Sebastian Sanchez

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Cornelius Eady New York, New York

Cornelius Eady is the author of 8 books of poetry, lives in NYC and is the co-founder of Cave Canem. The band Rough Magic came out of the sessions for his CD/Chapbook BOOK OF HOOKS. (Kattywompus Press, Jan. 2013)

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